Dele Momodu: Tinubu needs to hear the truth

Sadly, my fellow Nigerians, this is not the greatest of times in our cherished nation of Nigeria. We are now faced with yet another monstrosity after thinking, cheerfully and gleefully, that no government could be worse than the current Buhari regime.

After less than two months in office, Tinubu’s administration began to undermine Buhari’s achievements. However, we would have presumed and anticipated that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu would have been considerably more prepared and visionary than Buhari and his mediocre staff were.

Sadly, the opposite hasn’t been true. I’m under no obligation to provide a summary of Tinubu’s shaky leadership thus far, but I feel compelled to express my thoughts and categorical opinion regarding the unfolding Tinubugate. I’m acting in my individual role as a citizen of Nigeria and a dependable friend of Tinubu. I think that only a loyal friend could face one of the most powerful men in the world with you right in the eyes and tell him the gospel truth.

The vast majority of Tinubu’s alleged pals and constant hangers-on are arrogant hypocrites, in my opinion. Tinubu has also done himself no favours by elevating himself to the status of a demigod and inviting puppets and royalty alike to prostrate themselves at his feet. They offer him no practical function, in my opinion. This fact will be established in a moment.

It wasn’t yesterday when the Tinubugate started. The biggest benefactor of our epic struggles in exile throughout the NADECO era, it all began once Tinubu returned from exile and transformed into the governor of Lagos State in 1999. Sincere to say, we were all pleased that he received a substantial reward for his heroic efforts.

But disaster was building without our knowledge. We were unaware of the circumstances that prompted legal eminence Chief Gani Fawehinmi to exhume numerous “false declarations” included in the paperwork Tinubu submitted to run for governor. Just a few months after Tinubu ran for office and was elected, on October 11, 1999, Newswatch magazine published Chief Fawehinmi’s stirring interview with the headline: “WHY TINUBU MUST GO – Gani Fawehinmi.” The fearless attorney agreed to an additional interview with The Source magazine, which included the even more scathing headline: “TINUBU IS A CRIMINAL – Gani, and a rider below: Deserves 10 years in jail! The Tinubu Story: THE SOURCE UNDER THREAT was an alarming article that appeared on top of the same publication. This was the first warning indication of the toxic new Lagos State that was about to emerge—a Lagos ruled by a single man permanently, similar to the Sicilian Mafia, which we secretly dubbed the “Cosa Nostra” of Nigeria.

Naturally, some members of our “exile confraternity” were concerned. However, we were uncharacteristically timid, and as a result, we mistakenly disregarded Gani’s case as, at best, hysterical and excessively meddling. Some of us who were close to Gani Fawehinmi understood that trying to convince him to withdraw the case would be difficult and fruitless. The saddest realisation came when several of Tinubu’s commissioners began to stress and perspire heavily. God is my guarantor. Many of them were distancing themselves from Tinubu in a fashionable manner as a result of their worry over the impending impeachment of Tinubu. Some of them, who are currently serving in government, were speaking incoherently when they said things like, “We brought our integrity into this government, and we can’t allow anyone to tarnish it.”

Let’s take a brief diversion. One of them, who was very close to Tinubu, was the first to inform us of “the fabrication of Tinubu’s age, the identity of his original parents from Iragbiji, his fabricated academic records,” and other things. This heavy smoker insisted that he had complete information of Tinubu’s life. He explained to me in my Accra house that he has ceased giving Tinubu the truth because he is immediately labelled as an adversary. You can only imagine the calibre of counsel Tinubu receives on a regular basis with this mentality.

Then, out of nowhere, my brave and devoted buddy Tokunbo Afikuyomi made the decision to take the risk on Tinubu’s behalf. He behaved in a manner that is comparable to the “lamb of God who took away the sins of the earth.” He accepted all responsibility for the mistakes in Tinubu’s files, acting like a kamikaze soldier. Tinubu somehow survived, and we were all relieved. Everyone keeps asking me how Tinubu paid Afikuyomi, and I honestly have no idea.

Notable is the fact that Festus Keyamo had joined the impeach Tinubu campaign at the time. This is a different tale for another time. To put names and faces to the principal dramatis personae, I can’t wait until my memoirs are finished.

Read also: Ending Buhari’s eight years of persecution by releasing Nnamdi Kanu, IPOB lawyer Ejimakor to Tinubu

Now let’s go ahead and jump to 2002. The Week was a well-liked publication. It prepared a Tinubu cover story. The story was somehow leaked to the governor of Lagos State at the time. Tinubu quickly and automatically contacted the magazine’s publisher, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, and begged him to retract the scandalous item. Atiku contacted the management of The Week magazine out of love and respect for his friend, and shelved the piece. This situation incensed the Editors, and as a result, Mr. Simon Kolawole, the Editor, resigned and left the company.

The main point of my letter today is that this Tinubugate offers a wealth of didactic teachings. In the end, Tinubu departed his position in 2007. However, he never truly went away from Lagos. He became the ultimate godfather in Nigeria, deciding who gets what practically to the last detail. Many of his followers were prepared to stand ramrod for his orders because they knew he could make them into emergency billionaires. This, in my opinion, is the key issue.

Why, then, am I blaming Tinubu and his devoted supporters? The two main causes are recklessness and carelessness (or is it negligence?). Why would a person who left office in 2007—16 long years ago—fail to expunge the records that almost led to his impeachment? And given that he was unable to handle those documents personally, why could the legions of minions who professed to adore him forever be unable to provide a first-rate file for his paperwork?

A presidential candidate was never required by Nigerian law to attend college. Tinubu should have made sure his personal records were spotless before submitting them to INEC for the past 16 years. He might have easily returned to school to try to forget all the previously contentious information (Atiku still attended classes recently to update and enhance himself). He could have chosen a preferred birthday date instead of settling with his contradictory dates of birth, like President Olusegun Obasanjo did. A child’s parents failing to document or acquire his birth certificate is never a crime. Regarding his assertions that he had worked for Deloitte and other corporations, he ought to have stopped at “I have worked for big multinationals globally and they truly enjoyed my services and valued my contributions” rather than going into detail about specific firms and times.

In terms of paternity, I would have made the world aware of my lowly origins and unlucky parents. Being adopted and taking on the name of one’s foster parents is nothing to be ashamed of and is not against the law. Everyone was aware of the fatherly role Chief MKO Abiola played in my life, including his travels to Ijebu-Igbo and Ijebu-Ode for my wedding in 1992, but that never stopped me from honouring my parents, who were destitute. And even if there were strange explanations for erasing one’s original family history, those are still simple to understand. Too many secrets cannot be kept by a prominent figure. Tinubu has shamelessly refused to let the public into his private life for far too long. He and his immediate family have suffered greatly as a result of this stifness. This may have been prevented with more candour.

Now, let’s talk about how the Chicago scandals were specifically handled. For me, things are much worse than they should be thanks to Tinubu and his loud fans. The only people who will continue to debate a narrative that began more than fifty years ago are his gullible and dishonest supporters. This catastrophe was brought on by all of us who knew the truth but chose to ignore it. It is also egregiously unfair.

Instead of acting like a man and apologising to Nigerians in a true and unconditional way, Tinubu’s “brood of vipers” are busy deriding the country’s patient citizens and purposefully rubbing salt and pepper in their festering wounds. It is quite unjust. This will simply fuel the rage of our people, especially the young people.

Tinubu needs to first get off his high horse and live in the real world for a while. No man, no matter how strong, can consistently accomplish anything through force. The well-known tale of EFUNSETAN ANIWURA, IYALODE IBADAN, is extremely illuminating. Power is ephemeral.

The new controversy over Tinubu’s record, which has persisted, is undoubtedly the work of God.Atiku, Obi, Kwankwaso, Sowore, and others are no longer relevant. Nigeria is the topic here. Atiku has performed honourably both domestically and internationally. His accomplishments in Chicago represented a significant win for our democracy. Atiku will help many Nigerians regain their sense of pride. The responsibility has already been placed on everyone of us. No matter how the Supreme Court decision turns out, it is clear to me that a new era is upon us all, with the exception of those who choose to be willing slaves.

THISDAY