Bola Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, says he wants to be president to change the lives of Rivers people and make the state a “forest of joy.”

The former Lagos governor made this statement in his rally in Port Harcourt on Wednesday, wooing Rivers people to support his presidential bid.

“Here we are again in Nigeria and in Rivers. It is koto first we are looking for. It is not crayfish, e dey Lagos too. What we are looking for is authority. Authority to change your lives. Power and mandate to give you the best of life. To take care of your inheritance. To make sure that the youth are empowered to have the best skills in the world that can  produce things that other countries want.

Closing his speech at the rally, Mr Tinubu said “thank you for a warm reception. I will come back to Rivers. Rivers will be a forest of joy. A forest of peace. Forest of prosperity.”

Making Rivers state a “forest of joy and forest of prosperity” comes among many of Mr Tinubu’s misspeak since he joined the race for Nigeria’s presidency, raising questions about his mental health from his critics.

The former Lagos governor had in October 2022, hailed Kaduna governor Nasir El-Rufai’s creativity in turning the fortunes of his state from a “rotten situation into a bad one.”

Before then, the APC presidential candidate had forgotten how to pronounce the name of his party, referring to APC members as belonging to the “Action Group” party. On another occasion, he said “a town hall different from Bala Blu blublu bulaba.”

In February 2022, Peoples Gazette published a video revealing Mr Tinubu soaked from behind, while his security aide covered his nose; a development that would insinuate that Mr Tinubu was battling a health condition.

Mr Tinubu, 70, however, dismissed criticisms about his frail health, saying being Nigeria’s president is not grave digging that requires his physical strength.