What to Learn from Tinubu’s Political Playbook: Say what you will about Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, love him or loathe him but when it comes to political mastery, he is one of the most strategic minds Nigeria has ever seen. His rise wasn’t accidental. It was engineered. Carefully, deliberately, and decades in the making. And for anyone serious about leadership, influence, or systemic change, there are critical lessons to learn from how Tinubu plays the game.

1. He Made Men Before He Made Moves
   Tinubu didn’t just build a network, he built a political dynasty. He identified talent early, invested in them, empowered them, and strategically positioned them where they could eventually become useful to him. Fashola, Osinbajo, Ambode, Sanwo-Olu, Fayemi, Aregbesola, and countless others passed through his orbit.

He put them in rooms they couldn’t have entered alone. He funded campaigns, offered political cover, and gave them visibility but always in a way that kept him central to their rise. Loyalty wasn’t demanded, it was built through patronage, mentorship, and opportunity.

2. He Played the Long Game
   While others focused on short-term wins, Tinubu was always thinking in decades. After leaving office as Lagos governor in 2007, he didn’t vanish. Instead, he consolidated his influence first over Lagos, then the South-West, then the opposition at large.

He built coalitions, brokered deals, and did the unthinkable, merged disparate parties to form the APC, a platform that would eventually unseat a sitting president. That move alone was historic.

3. He Funded the Machinery
   Tinubu understood that ideas without structure are dead on arrival. Politics requires money, not just for campaigns, but for organizing, mobilizing, and sustaining loyalty. He sponsored elections, built grassroots support, and controlled key structures across states.

He didn’t just win elections, he owned the platforms through which they were won. While others were begging parties for tickets, Tinubu was handpicking flagbearers.

4. He Made a President Before Becoming One
   Perhaps the boldest part of Tinubu’s political genius is that he made a president (Buhari) before he became one himself. He knew Nigeria wasn’t ready to hand the presidency to a Southern Muslim yet. So he backed Buhari, a Northern Muslim with grassroots northern support and made himself indispensable in the process.

He delivered the South-West. He protected Buhari’s campaign. He negotiated the merger. And when the time came, he cashed in. That is leverage.

The Lesson:

Tinubu teaches us that politics isn’t about charisma alone, it’s about structure, loyalty, investment, and timing.

You don’t win by being only the loudest. You win by building people, placing them strategically, and making yourself the center of the web not through control, but through value.

Many idealists want to jump into politics and “change the system,” from the top but they haven’t groomed anyone, funded anything, or built a pipeline. Tinubu did all three consistently.

If you want real power, don’t just seek influence build it. Groom it. Sponsor it. Protect it. Then one day, when the time is right, it will turn around and crown you.

Because power doesn’t just go to the most deserving, it goes to the most prepared. And on that front, Tinubu was always 10 steps ahead.

By Chioma Amaryllis Ahaghotu