Sacking Tinubu: Presidency Fires Shots at Aregbesola
The presidency has taken a swipe at Rauf Aregbesola, a former Minister of Interior and an ex-governor of Osun state, over his criticism of President Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2027 general election.
Aregbesola, who was a former protege of President Tinubu, fell apart with his former boss over the 2022 governorship election in Osun state and subsequently joined the coalition led by the former Vice President Atiku. The coalition later adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as its party, and Aregbesola was made its national secretary.
Source: Twitter
At the ADC national convention in Abuja on Tuesday, April 1, Aregbesola said Tinubu's "Renewed Hope" agenda was a scam and urged Nigerians not to trust his former boss.
Reacting to his claim, Bayo Onanuga, the president's special adviser on information and strategy, said Aregbesola failed as a governor and as a minister under the immediate past administration of late President Muhammadu Buhari.
He recalled Aregbesola's administration as the governor of Osun state, where he was paying half salary, and the state was in huge debt. The system impoverished the workers and pensioners.
The presidency also explained that Nigeria recorded its highest number of jailbreaks under Aregbesola's watch as the minister of interior, adding that the former governor did not have the moral standing to criticise insecurity under President Tinubu.
Onanuga's statement reads in part:
"His tenure witnessed the highest number of jailbreaks in Nigeria’s history, including the infamous Kuje Prison escape in Abuja. During his four years, obtaining a Nigerian passport became a nightmarish process, and there were 15 major attacks on correctional facilities in Jos, Abolongo, Imo, Kabba, and Okitipupa, resulting in over 4,000 inmates escaping to join criminal elements."
However, Nigerians have started reacting to Onanuga's statement. Below are some of their comments:
Umar Muhammad Yakubu criticised insecurity under Tinubu:
"Why should any part of this country be under terrorist occupation? In any civilised country, BAT should resign."
Nwach criticised the presidency:
"The scammers are those pretending to be defenders of democracy but are today's destroyers of democracy. Tinubu remains the greatest threat to Nigeria's democracy."
Ogbontarigi criticised the former governor:
"I cannot imagine how he sleeps at night. A failure as governor, could not pay salary, only to be sharing “Opon Imo” with a bogus budget to siphon money. At the interior ministry, he failed woefully with Odo Oju Eja. Judas Iscariot will probably be honoured before Rauf."
Read the full statement on X here:
Source: Legit.ng
