.says he neither misled anyone nor acted in bad faith

By James Ogunnaike, Abeokuta

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has responded to former Ogun State Governor, Chief Olusegun Osoba, over claims that he deceived leaders of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) during the political realignments leading to the 2003 general elections, insisting that he neither misled anyone nor acted in bad faith.

In a lengthy letter dated July 23, 2026, titled “Reply to Your Inaccurate Posture: ‘How Obasanjo Deceived Us in 2003′”, Obasanjo described Osoba’s account, published in The Legal Observer on July 20, as “farfetched” and riddled with inaccuracies, omissions and misconceptions.

The former President took particular exception to Osoba’s allegation that he deceived Yoruba political leaders, insisting that his political engagements had always been guided by openness and national interest.

“I take strong and serious objection to your calling me a deceiver because I deceived nobody. I always presented my case and all issues as I had them and as I understood them, no matter whose ox is gored,” Obasanjo wrote.

Obasanjo argued that several political developments preceding his emergence as President in 1999 were unknown to Osoba because they were handled by senior leaders of Afenifere and the AD.

He disclosed that after his release from prison, several groups from across the country urged him to contest for the presidency, including delegations led by Lawan Katsina, the late Chief S.M. Afolabi and Chief Martins Kuye.

According to him, those consultations informed his eventual decision to join the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) after extensive consultations with political leaders across the South-West, North and South-East.

Recalling his engagements with the late Afenifere leader, Chief Abraham Adesanya, Obasanjo said despite being repeatedly told that Yoruba people would not vote for him, he continued to maintain cordial relations with the elder statesman.

“There was no time I called on Papa Adesanya that I was not well entertained. Yet Papa stood on no vote for me, and I stood on my respect and what was due to him,” he stated.

The former President defended his decision to invite the AD into what he described as a broad-based national government after winning the presidency, saying it was motivated by a desire to promote national unity rather than political weakness.

“Bringing PDP and AD to join me for a sort of national government was not out of weakness; rather, it was out of strength and for the unity and progress of the country.”

Obasanjo also rejected Osoba’s account of events surrounding the attempted impeachment of then Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ghali Na’Abba, alleging instead that the impeachment plot originated from within his own administration.

He claimed that his then Vice-President had encouraged the move while simultaneously pursuing his own presidential ambition.

“The game continued to be played on with me treating it with contempt as I had committed no impeachable offence,” he wrote.

On the 2003 elections, Obasanjo disputed Osoba’s suggestion that the defeat of AD governors resulted from political manipulation by the Presidency.

Instead, he maintained that the electoral outcome reflected the political realities at the time.

“Your loss or defeat in 2003 was genuine in all the six states except the one where the figures were successfully and murderously changed,” he asserted.

The former President further accused some AD leaders of embracing what he described as an anti-democratic political arrangement allegedly promoted by his Vice-President without verifying the claims with him.

He maintained that he had consistently rejected ethnic politics, insisting that Nigeria’s presidency should never be viewed through a tribal lens.

“I have never believed in tribal politics,” Obasanjo declared.

While criticising Osoba’s interpretation of events, Obasanjo nevertheless acknowledged the former governor’s contributions to Ogun State and to the establishment of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL) in Abeokuta.

He commended Osoba for allocating the land on which the library stands, describing it as a landmark project that has benefited the state.

“The greatest service you rendered for me and for Abeokuta is the land allocated by you for Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library. It has become the most significant landmark in Abeokuta.”

Obasanjo concluded by urging Osoba to embrace humility, gratitude and enduring political relationships, stressing that politics should never destroy personal bonds.

“Politics may end, relationships may live till life’s end… there is no end to humility and thanksgiving.”

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has told President Bola Tinubu that foreign recognition will not secure him another term in office, insisting that Nigerians will judge his administration by its performance, not by diplomatic gestures from other world leaders.

In a statement issued on Thursday by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the opposition party reacted to the Presidency’s celebration of a purported letter from United States President Donald Trump to Tinubu.

The ADC said presenting the letter as an endorsement of Tinubu’s administration was misleading, stressing that diplomatic correspondence between world leaders is a normal part of international relations.

“The Presidency’s attempt to present President Donald Trump’s letter to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as though it were a referendum on the state of the nation is not correct,” the party said.

According to the ADC, countries cooperate, leaders exchange views and letters regularly, adding that such communication does not amount to an endorsement of a government’s performance.

The party accused the Tinubu administration of being desperate for international validation instead of focusing on solving Nigeria’s challenges.

“It is apparent that this administration is desperate to seize upon any gesture of international recognition as proof of success at home,” the statement said.

The ADC maintained that “a letter from a foreign president, however well-intentioned, cannot substitute for the verdict of the Nigerian people.”

It added that the true measure of any government is not what foreign leaders say about it, but what citizens experience daily.

The opposition party argued that Trump’s letter had not changed the reality facing millions of Nigerians, especially those affected by insecurity.

“For the millions of Nigerians still living with the consequences of this government’s failures, President Trump’s communication changes nothing. It did not say that insecurity has been overcome or that Nigerians can once again travel freely, farm safely and sleep without fear,” the party stated.

The ADC also pointed to the continued captivity of hundreds of women and children in parts of Borno State and Kaiama in Kwara State, while many communities in Benue and other parts of the country still live in constant fear because of insecurity.

The party further noted that, despite the Presidency’s celebration of the letter, the United States Department of State has not changed its travel advisory for Nigeria.

According to the ADC, several Nigerian states remain under Level 3 and Level 4 travel advisories, with American citizens still being urged to reconsider or avoid travel because of crime, terrorism, kidnapping and civil unrest.

“We therefore wonder how correspondence from a government that designates several Nigerian states as ‘Do Not Travel’ areas can be regarded as an endorsement,” the party said.

It argued that the travel advisory shows the international assessment of Nigeria’s security situation remains different from the image the Presidency is trying to project.

The ADC said Nigerians are more concerned about their safety than diplomatic exchanges between presidents.

“The daily reality of Nigerians is shaped not by diplomatic correspondence, but by the guarantee that they can go about their lives without falling victim to violent crime or terrorism,” it said.

The party stressed that Trump’s letter was simply communication between two presidents and “does not amount to an endorsement of this government’s overall performance.”

It urged the Tinubu administration to focus less on celebrating diplomatic courtesies and more on delivering measurable improvements in the lives of Nigerians.

“Ultimately, Nigerians will not judge this government by the letters it receives from foreign capitals. They will judge it by whether it improved the lives of the people it was elected to serve,” the statement added.

.Says ex-VP’s quest for the presidency over 3 decades marabout-fuelled

By Johnbosco Agbakwuru

ABUJA — The Presidency on Thursday took a swipe at the former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, for reporting President Bola Tinubu to American President Donald Trump and the US Congress over a matter that has long been concluded.

In a statement titled “When will Atiku Abubakar report himself to President Trump,” the Presidency said it is baffling that someone who has sought the presidency for over three decades would resort to reporting President Tinubu to President Trump and members of the US Congress.

The statement, issued by the presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga, accused the former vice-president of using a lobbying group in the US and submitting petitions to President Trump and the US State Department regarding a civil forfeiture case from 1993 — a matter long settled, with no criminal conviction or finding of guilt.

The statement read: “Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s relentless desire to become President of Nigeria has regrettably closed his eyes to the virtues of statesmanship, decorum, and propriety expected of an elder statesman. Instead of embracing the dignity and maturity that come with his standing, he continues to diminish himself through reckless public statements and desperate political manoeuvres.

“It is baffling and disappointing that someone who has sought the presidency for over three decades would now resort to reporting the President of Nigeria to US President Donald Trump and members of the US Congress.

“In his latest act, Atiku Abubakar’s lobbying group in the US has submitted petitions to President Trump and the US State Department regarding a civil forfeiture case from 1993 — a matter long settled, with no criminal conviction or finding of guilt.

“This issue was resolved over 30 years ago in the United States and has been thoroughly litigated, explained, and rendered moot by the electoral mandates conferred on President Bola Tinubu by the people of Lagos and Nigeria at large. Reviving this matter today is an affront to the intelligence of Nigerians and an attempt to rewrite history for personal gain.”

According to the Presidency, “It is important to remind Atiku and his associates that Nigeria is a sovereign nation, not a satellite of any foreign power. Reporting the President of Nigeria to another country’s leader is not only inappropriate but also undermines the nation’s dignity and independence. Such actions are incongruous with the responsibilities of a statesman and are ultimately self-defeating.

“If Atiku has chosen to disregard his own sense of self-respect and self-worth, he should, at the very least, show respect for the country he aspires to lead and the office he so ardently seeks.”

It acknowledged that lobbying is part of American politics but said hiring paid foreign agents to discredit a sitting president undermines the country’s sovereignty.

“While lobbying is a legitimate part of American politics, employing paid foreign agents to peddle discredited documents against a sitting Nigerian President is not advocacy — it is an attempt to externalise domestic politics and undermine Nigeria’s sovereignty. Nigerians resolved this matter at the ballot in February 2023 and in the Supreme Court. That verdict stands, and Atiku’s latest fishing expedition would amount to nought.

“Furthermore, if Atiku Abubakar can spend $1.2 million on American lobbyists to report President Tinubu, perhaps he should also clarify his own legal standing in the United States.

The Presidency reminded the former vice-president that he had baggage and corruption allegations against him.

“He featured most prominently in the William Jefferson bribery scandal, a matter which saw the American congressman jailed.

“Atiku, along with his former wife Jennifer Douglas, was one of the subjects of an elaborate US Senate investigation, ‘Keeping Foreign Corruption Out of the United States: Four Case Histories.’

“The report of the investigation, chaired by Senator Carl Levin, was released in February 2010. It documented how Atiku used offshore companies to bring suspect funds, including bribes from multinationals running into millions of dollars, into the United States.

“Atiku’s obsession with the presidency is driven not just by his marabout-fuelled ambition, but by a desire for diplomatic immunity and to evade potential legal issues abroad. Recycling discredited allegations and documents from the 2023 campaign will not improve his chances in 2027.

“Nigerians have not forgotten the legacy of the privatisation programme under Atiku’s watch as vice-president. He presided over an egregious privatisation heist, selling national assets to cronies for peanuts and causing thousands of job losses and unpaid salaries and pensions that President Tinubu is clearing today.

“A man with such a dismal record as a public servant certainly has no business asking for our votes. Indeed, if Atiku Abubakar were Chinese, he would be rotting away in jail for his crimes against the Nigerian people.

“Rather than present policy alternatives to address the country’s challenges, the former vice-president has chosen the path of media theatrics and lobbying in Washington. The challenges Nigeria faces require serious engagement, thoughtful solutions, and leadership at home — not grandstanding abroad.

“President Tinubu is unfazed by Atiku’s theatrics as he remains focused on his Renewed Hope Agenda: stabilising the economy, attracting investments, securing the nation, and restoring Nigeria’s standing in the world. He is not distracted by political actors, perennial losers like Atiku, who now seek validation abroad.”