Many sources claimed Tinubu was born on 29 March 1952 in Lagos State, Nigeria into a wealthy family of the Tinubu's. His mother – chief Abibatu Mogaji, was iyaloja of Lagos State.
Notwithstanding his wealthy family background, the Tinubu E-library biography publication says Bola Ahmed Tinubu "battled the challenges of his rather traumatic and difficult youth with courage only attributable to the lion-hearted". Details of this challenges and his early primary school life were kept in secrecy.
Tinubu attended Richard Daley College, Chicago Illinois, where he earned himself a place in the honors list of the College. He subsequently proceeded to the Chicago State University, Illinois where he obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration (Accounting and Management).
During his undergraduate years, he was honored with the Outstanding Student’s Award, The University Scholar’s Award and the Certificate of Merit in Accounting and Finance.
He made the honours’ list of Richard Daley College. He subsequently transferred to the Chicago State University, Illinois, graduating with honours in 1979 and earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration (Accounting and Management).
Bola Tinubu cut his professional teeth at the American-based Arthur Anderson, Deloitte Haskins and Sells (now called Deloitte Haskins and Touche) and GTE Service Corporation - the largest Communication and Utility Company in the United States of America. Meanwhile, at Deloitte Haskins and Sells, the young and professional Bola broadened his experience by participating in the auditing and management consultancy services of General Motors, First National Bank of Chicago, Procter and Gamble, International Harvester, GEC and other Fortune 500 firms. On his return to Nigeria and with his international experience in Financial Management, young Bola joined Mobil Producing Nigeria as a Senior Auditor before he retired as the company’s Treasurer.
Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s political career began in 1992 when he joined the Social Democratic Party, where he was a member of the Peoples Front faction led by Shehu Musa Yar’Adua and made up of other politicians such as Umaru Yar’Adua, Atiku Abubakar, Baba Gana Kingibe, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Abdullahi Aliyu Sumaila, Magaji Abdullahi, Dapo Sarumi and Yomi Edu. He was elected to the Senate, representing the Lagos West constituency in the short-lived Nigerian Third Republic.
After the results of the 12 June, 1993 presidential elections were annulled, Tinubu became a founding member of the pro-democracy National Democratic Coalition. This group mobilized support for the restoration of democracy and recognition of Moshood Abiola as the winner of the 12 June election. Following the seizure of power as military head of state General Sani Abacha, he went into exile in 1994. He returned to the country in 1998 after the death of the military dictator, which ushered in the transition to the Fourth Nigerian Republic.
In the run-up to the 1999 elections, Bola Tinubu was a protégé of Alliance for Democracy (AD) leaders Abraham Adesanya and Ayo Adebanjo. He went on to win the AD primaries for the Lagos State governorship elections defeating Funsho Williams and Wahab Dosunmu, a former Minister of Works and Housing. In January 1999, he stood for the Governor of Lagos State position on the AD ticket and was elected governor.
MAIN POLITICAL CAREER
In 2007, following the landslide victory of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the April 2007 elections, Tinubu was active in negotiations to bring together the fragmented opposition parties into a “mega-party” capable of challenging the PDP. In February 2013, Tinubu’s negotiations in creating a “mega opposition” party became paid off with the merger of Nigeria’s three biggest opposition parties – the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), a faction of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and the new PDP (nPDP), a faction of serving governors of the then ruling People’s Democratic Party – into the All Progressives Congress (APC).
In 2014, Tinubu supported the former military head of state General Muhammadu Buhari, leader of the CPC faction of the APC – who commanded a widespread following in Northern Nigeria and had previously contested in the 2003, 2007, and 2011 presidential elections as the APC presidential candidate. Tinubu initially wanted to become Buhari’s vice presidential candidate but later conceded to Yemi Osibanjo, his ally and former commissioner of justice. In 2015, Buhari rode the APC to victory, ending the sixteen-year rule of the PDP and marking the first time in the history of Nigeria that an incumbent president lost to an opposition candidate.
Tinubu has played an important role in the Buhari administration, supporting government policies and holding onto the internal party reins instead of his long-held rumoured presidential aspiration. In 2019, he supported Buhari’s re-election campaign defeating the PDP candidate Atiku Abubakar. In 2020, following an internal party crisis which led to the removal of Tinubu ally and party chairman Adams Oshiomole, it is believed the move was to scuttle Tinubu’s presidential prospects ahead of 2023.