Nigeria’s Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo has described the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila, as a bridge-builder and one of the most resilient, resourceful and successful Nigerian politicians.
Prof. Osinbajo said Gbajabiamila’s bridge-building cuts across tribes, religions, political parties and generations, noting the successes the Speaker has recorded as a politician.
The Vice President spoke at the public presentation of a photobook ‘Gbajabiamila: The Long Road,’ authored by Mr Ayo Adeagbo, the Special Assistant on Visual Communications/Personal Photographer to the Speaker, in Abuja at the weekend.
While congratulating Mr Adeagbo for the book, a collection of the photographs of the Speaker’s political journey, Prof. Osinbajo said: “Ayo has proved to be a creative and faithful storyteller of the political journey of the charismatic and photogenic Speaker.”
He said having done a personal review of the book, “I really think Ayo has done a good job. But I think the job was made easier by the fact that his subject is one of the most resilient, one of the most resourceful and most successful Nigerian politicians, having won elections five times in the last 18 years.
“He is an effective bridge builder across tribes, across religions, across political parties, and even generations. He has proved to be an innovative mediator and an honest broker in several local and national disputes and conflicts.”
Prof. Osinbajo, who said he is himself a collector of photographs, added that the book tells a lot of stories about the Speaker’s political journey.