An attorney specialising in human rights, Deji Adeyanju, has issued a challenge to former president Olusegun Obasanjo, saying that Obasanjo should publish an open letter denouncing President Bola Tinubu’s government and blaming Tinubu for orchestrating the defection of prominent opposition figures Rabiu Kwankwaso and Peter Obi from the African Democratic Congress.
Adeyanju said in an X post that unlike prior presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari, Obasanjo has not publicly criticised Tinubu.
He further divided the opposition by accusing Obasanjo of being the reason Obi and Kwankwaso left the ADC coalition.
An activist pointed out that Atiku Abubakar, a candidate for the ADC presidential nomination, had accused Obasanjo of betraying his tribesman. The activist then challenged the former president to write an open letter to Tinubu proving that the accusation was unfounded.
According to Adeyanju, “OBJ should write an open letter to Tinubu and prove that he is not” at this moment.
His challenge comes after Akin Osuntokun, a former political adviser to President Obasanjo, said that Obasanjo is the coalition’s principal supporter and completely endorses the Obi/Kwankwaso ticket for 2027.
According to Osuntokun, who served as the Director-General of Peter Obi’s 2023 presidential campaign, Obasanjo had previously desired the Obi-Kwankwaso ticket, but plans fell through.
If Obasanjo is backing a political ticket, it would be the one featuring Peter Obi and Kwankwaso. “He is actually the main sponsor of that ticket,” Osuntokun stated.
Obasanjo was further accused by the Yoruba Ronu Leadership Forum of working behind the scenes to ensure Tinubu’s re-election, with the group claiming that his seeming support for Obi and Kwankwaso was actually an attempt to conceal his true allegiance to the APC government.
Additionally, ADC has accused the Tinubu administration of using Buhari’s death for political benefit.
When it became apparent that Obi would not be the ADC’s presidential candidate, the organization claimed that Obasanjo fostered political realignments, which led to defections to the NDC.
Some have suggested that Obasanjo’s recent letter to former Ogun Governor Segun Osoba was more of an assault on the opposition as a whole than an attack on Atiku specifically, as it included accusations against Atiku.
Claims that Obasanjo was unwittingly serving Tinubu were denounced by Osuntokun as “absolute bunkum.”
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