Presidential candidate of the Accord Party, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, has expressed concern and sadness over President Bola Tinubu’s remarks during a recent meeting with Catholic Bishops at the State House in Abuja, saying he not only pities the president but is more concerned for the country as a whole.

Olawepo-Hashim, who is Co-Chairman of the Movement for Democratic Renewal, said the president’s public communication left him saddened rather than angry, adding that after listening repeatedly to the remarks, he came away with the impression that the Tinubu he heard was markedly different from the man he interacted with on several occasions between 2018 and 2021. “I listened to the recording over and over again. That was not the Bola Tinubu I knew between 2018 and 2021. I left deeply concerned. I am not making a medical diagnosis, but the president’s public communication gives me the impression that he may require genuine help,” he said.

Describing his interest as human rather than political, Olawepo-Hashim said unlike many Nigerians who are angry with the president, he genuinely feels pity for him. “My greatest worry is that those around him appear more interested in securing another election than in giving him the attention that he deserves. If they truly love him, they should put his comportment, wellbeing and the national interest above politics,” he said, warning that whatever challenges the president may be facing must never become an excuse for undermining Nigeria’s democracy and stability. “While we express concern over the President’s recent public communication, let us also make one thing unmistakably clear, Nigeria must never return to the dark era when elections were won by every means necessary,” he said.