Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has said that contrary to ex-Vice President Yemi Osinbajo\u2019s claim, former military President Ibrahim Babangida did not torment Tinubu during the military era.<\/p>\n
Last week, Osinbajo made the remark while reviewing Babangida\u2019s autobiography, A Journey in Service, at its public presentation in Abuja.<\/p>\n
He recalled how Tinubu, then a senator, resisted the military\u2019s dissolution of the Senate following the annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential election.<\/p>\n
In a lighthearted comment, he noted that Tinubu, who was then \u201ctormented\u201d by the military, including Babangida, was now present to celebrate one of his former adversaries.<\/p>\n
However, speaking on Sunrise Daily, a Channels Television programme on Tuesday, Onanuga countered the claim, insisting that Babangida was, in fact, a major influence on Tinubu\u2019s political journey.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the former Vice President got it wrong. Babangida was not really a tormentor of President Tinubu. Don\u2019t forget that in his own speech at the event, Tinubu acknowledged that Babangida inspired him to go into politics,\u201d Onanuga said.<\/p>\n
He explained that Babangida\u2019s call for new-breed politicians in the late 1980s and early 1990s attracted several technocrats and private sector professionals, including Tinubu, into politics.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe military president had talked about bringing in fresh faces, and many professionals, including Tinubu, heeded that call. So, he went there (the book launch) to pay homage,\u201d Onanuga added.<\/p>\n
The presidential aide clarified that Tinubu\u2019s real challenges with the military began under General Sani Abacha when he and some lawmakers attempted to reconvene the Senate in Lagos.<\/p>\n
The Presidential aide also commended Babangida\u2019s recent admission that Chief MKO Abiola won the 1993 presidential election but noted that such acknowledgement came too late.<\/p>\n
Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has said that contrary to ex-Vice President Yemi Osinbajo\u2019s claim, former military President Ibrahim Babangida did not torment…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":116583,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-116582","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exclusive"],"yoast_head":"\n