Flashback: How I Worked As Cab Driver, Security Man To Pay My Tuition Fee In Chicago – Tinubu

The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu has shared details of his journey in the United States.

The former Governor of Lagos State noted that he had to do some menial jobs to pay for my apartment and tuition fees at the Chicago State University.

Tinubu graduated from the University of Chicago in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting.

The APC National Leader while narrating his trip to Chicago said he decided to travel out of the country with his friends which include, including Bolaji Agaba.

According to Tinubu in an interview with TheNews Nigeria which was initially published in 2021 as part of his 69th birthday celebrations, said he left Nigeria on the same day with his friend Agaba, while their third friend came months later.

Tinubu while trying to survive in the United States they got an unregistered car which they ran as a taxi.

The APC presidential candidate added that he deferred his schooling which should have started from April till September to make money.

Tinubu when asked about his journey in the US said, “Bolaji Agaba and I left the same day for the United States, while Badejo left some months later. We got our visas through my family connections. Bolaji’s own had almost expired before we left. On our arrival in the US, we thought we would stay in New York. But Nurudeen Olowopopo said no and we put some money together for Bolaji’s ticket and we headed for Washington D.C. I stayed with the late Sola Popoola at Washington before we started finding our way. We were running out of funds then.

“He helped us secure a one-room apartment in Alexandria, Virginia. We got an unregistered used car (they left the licence open) commonly called Gypsy, which we ran as a taxi. We operated at the airport, where we picked passengers, and not anywhere else, like the hotel because it was forbidden for unlicensed cab drivers to do so. We did that for a while to raise some money. We did, and Bolaji went to Tennessee, while I headed for Chicago.

“It was aimed at getting additional money to what I had. I always liked to have a life of comfort. Tunde Badejo and Olowopopo told me that Chicago was very cold, so I told myself that I must have a car. I was supposed to have started schooling in April. I deferred it till September to have more money. Immediately after I got to Chicago, I went straight to Richard Daley College. It was very interesting. I was able to pay for my apartment and tuition fees at the Chicago State University. I supplemented that by doing different menial jobs like door guard and security man.”