Olayiwola Matthew
Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to President Bola Tinubu, has countered former vice-president Yemi Osinbajo.
During the public presentation of ‘A Journey In Service’, an autobiography by former military president Ibrahim Babangida, Osinbajo jokingly remarked that Tinubu was ironically at the event to celebrate with his “former tormentors”.
“And then, of course, there’s a gentleman here who was an elected senator in 1992 because of Babangida’s transition programme,” Osinbajo said.
“When Babangida annulled the 1993 election and General Abacha took over, dissolved the senate, that senator tried to reconstitute the senate in resistance to the dissolution.
“He was detained, charged to court, and later escaped into exile. Today, he is here, celebrating with his former tormentors — but as the president, commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the federal republic of Nigeria… President Bola Tinubu.”
‘PAYING HOMAGE’
Onanuga, however, said Tinubu’s travails at the time began during the regime of Sani Abacha, the late military head of state who succeeded Babangida after sacking the Ernest Shonekan interim government.
“I think the former vice-president got it wrong. I think Babangida was not really a tormentor of President Tinubu,” Onanuga said on Sunrise Daily, a Channels Television programme, on Tuesday.
“Don’t forget that President Tinubu said in his own extempore speech that he owed Babangida something, that he was the person that inspired him to get into politics.
“When Babangida came in, he was talking about new breed politicians and so on, and Tinubu… many of them were already technocrats or in private business and so on.
“All of them came out to participate in politics, that was what brought him in. So, he came there to pay homage, and that he inspired him.”
Onanuga added that Tinubu was at the event to show appreciation to Babangida.
“He was elected as senator under Babangida in 1992 or so and he was there till Babangida left office in August in 1993,” the spokesperson said.
“The torment began under General Sani Abacha when Tinubu tried to reconvene the senate, along with some of his colleagues in Lagos, at the old parliament building, and he was arrested.
“As a NADECO activist, NADECO came in after Babangida had left.
“So I would not say Babangida was Tinubu’s tormentor-in-chief. Tinubu and Babangida had some relationship when Babangida was in office. So it was not true. He was not his tormentor.”
IN THE TRENCHES
Following the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, Tinubu became a founding member of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) — a pro-democracy group that pushed for the restoration of democracy and recognition of MKO Abiola as the winner of the election.
During the struggle, Tinubu and other pro-democracy activists were arrested and detained by the Abacha junta.
Tinubu fled into exile in 1994, continuing the fight for democracy through NADECO’s international network.
After Abacha’s death in 1998, Tinubu returned home and joined politics, during yet another transition to civil rule programme.
He was elected governor of Lagos on the Alliance for Democracy (AD) platform in 1999.