TheCable

Bola Tinubu, presidential hopeful, has called on the Lagos state house of assembly to extend their Mecca prayers beyond his 2023 ambition to the country.

Tinubu spoke in a statement released by his media team on Thursday.

The former Lagos state governor is currently on a pilgrimage to Mecca for lesser hajj.

On Tuesday, Mudashir Obasa, speaker of the Lagos house of assembly, announced a “special Tawaf for Asiwaju”, which will “seek the favour of Allah and His blessings for Asiwaju in the coming election”.

The Tawaf is billed for Thursday at noon and will see some members of the state’s assembly pray around Kaabah at the centre of the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

Reacting to the call for prayers in the statement, Tinubu thanked the lawmakers for the initiative and described it as an “important decision”.

He, however, called on them to “go beyond my ambition and pray for Nigeria as well”.

The APC chieftain also asked them to “pray to Almighty Allah to touch the hearts of bandits and criminal elements in our country”.

“As Muslim faithful continue their fasting and supplications to Allah in this Holy month of Ramadan, I express my gratitude to the Lagos State House of Assembly for their decision to organise a special tawaf (circumambulation of Holy Kaabah) and prayer session for me today (Thursday) in Mecca,” the statement read.

“I’m most honoured by this gesture purposed to be in furtherance of similar prayers seeking God’s blessings for my aspiration to lead our country from 2023.

“However, while thanking Speaker Mudasiru Obasa and all members of the Lagos State House of Assembly for this important decision, I enjoin the Speaker and his colleagues to go beyond my ambition and pray for Nigeria as well.

“I urge them to intercede on behalf of the nation and beseech Almighty Allah for an end to the challenges besieging our country.

“I urge them to pray for President Muhammadu Buhari and his administration in their efforts to surmount these challenges.

“Pray to Almighty Allah to touch the hearts of bandits and criminal elements in our country, so they toe the path of goodness in this blessed month.

“I also enjoin everyone organising or holding similar prayers either for themselves or for some particular causes to also remember to pray for our country in this sacred month.”