I was just rounding up this morning’s session of web browsing when I decided to go through the RSS headlines on my Firefox 1.5 browser. Guess what headline I saw: “Gbenga Obasanjo’s Interview Causes Panic in Aso Rock”.
A click on this headline took me to AllAfrica.com where the first paragraph read: “There was political disquiet at the weekend in Abuja over the interview granted by Dr. Gbenga Obasanjo, President Olusegun Obasanjo’s son, in the current edition of TheNews magazine where he made damaging allegations against Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Chairman, Federal Capital Development Authority Mallam Nasir el-Rufai.”
What I find funny is the response of Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s media assistant, Mallam Shehu Garba: “In fact, the Vice President has a son who may be as old, and perhaps a better achiever than Gbenga. So that young man’s only qualification to speak and be quoted in the media is that he is one of the President’s sons. If the idea is that he should be replied, the Vice President’s son is the appropriate person to respond.
The V.P doesn’t belong to a culture in which children trade words will elders. Young men who attack men old enough to be their father are dismissed as rude and uncultured. This boy will not be glorified with a response. Let the mask come off the face of the masquerade and we shall face each other.”
This is interesting. There’s more to come.
Addendum #1
I have found an online publication of the full interview. – http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/content/view/2241/55/
Addendum #2
Gbenga Obasanjo has denied the interview!!! – “Right of Reply: Gbenga’s Lawyers Deny Interview”
Re: ALLEGED INTERVIEW GRANTED BY DR GBENGA OBASANJO TO MR. OMOYELE SOWORE
We are the retained solicitors to Dr Olugbenga Obasanjo, on whose instructions and behalf we forward this letter to you with regard to the above referenced subject matter, which was given a cover story prominence in the current edition of The News Magazine with vol 26 No 01 of 16th January 2006. The same story has found huge prominence in many national daily newspapers of today the 9th January 2006… more @ NVS.
This is getting even more interesting.
It’s interesting to note that the said interview cannot be found on elendureports.com as at time of writing. Could they have removed it out of panic due to the ‘bruhaha’ the interview is causing? What if Gbenga Obasanjo denies ever making such statements? 🙂
No! He can’t deny; this is due to facts appeared to everybody about the facts in issue.
thanks.
Balarabe
[…] Accusations have been that the Vice President is corrupt, and should not be allowed to stand as president in next year’s election. Gbenga Obasanjo (President Obasanjo’s son) accused him, as did the President himself. Several such accusations have been floating secretly, and openly. As at today, Atiku Abubakar has been suspended from the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP), for three months, over corruption allegations. […]