The allegations Bayo raised in his article was laced with roadside talks and had no substance of proof that linked the VP to the alleged Alpha Beta issue. As Attorney-General of Lagos State under Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Osinbajo led significant reforms that improved the Lagos judiciary, which has been widely commended, up till this day. The VP’s diligence and dedication to public causes has not waned, just as his integrity and character remain exemplary and consistent. The reference to “Ade Ipaye, then Lagos State Attorney General now Osinbajo’s chief of staff, turning down the said FOI request because it did not apply to the states” also does not hold water as it proves nothing.
The author of the headlined article, Bayo Oluwasanmi, appears to be a tired opinion writer. Or else, how can one describe Mr. Oluwasanmi’s recent article, which was published by Sahara Reporters on Monday, 17th August 2020, other than that from a writer with a penchant to pen the ridiculous laced with mischief and obvious bias?
The said writer wanted to give readers on the platform something to chew about, but he did not have anything of substance to write about, but regurgitated old articles and false allegations against the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, SAN. This is not the first time Bayo has authored spurious articles against Osinbajo, only this time, the emptiness of his missive was so loud that it was negligible. Even readers could tell its sorry rustiness from the debunked claims it rehashed. However, for the sake of setting the records straight, the said article needed a response.
Osinbajo’s loyalty to the service of his fatherland is something that has garnered praise from far and near, even from President Muhammadu Buhari himself. Trying to twist that for the aforementioned article failed woefully. As his deputy, it is expected that Osinbajo should stand by the President. What exactly is Bayo driving at? Also, the writer calling the President is ignorant and illiterate is reckless to say the least. No illiterate would have been able undergo academic and military training in Nigeria and the UK and then rise to become Major General in the Nigerian army.
In an attempt to generate clicks for Sahara Reporters, Bayo used the lies woven around RUGA and Alpha Beta as catch phrases on the headlines. Again, to set the records straight, the PUNCH report (July 13, 2019) which he claimed was an exhaustive investigation failed the major test of an informed investigative piece as it failed to prove the allegation against the VP.
When the said PUNCH story was published, Ocean trust Limited, the company that was reportedly linked to Alpha Beta Consulting Limited, debunked the allegation. It also wrote PUNCH asking them to retract the story in its entirety as it was false. The firm also emphasized that the Vice President was no longer involved in the activities of the firm since he resigned his membership of the firm after he was elected into office in 2015 “in line with international best practices.” So Osinbajo was no longer a partner and was not involved in the operations of Simmons Cooper as a shareholder. In other words, the VP had no link whatsoever in the allegations involving Ocean Trust Limited and Alpha Beta.
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The author’s attempt at mischief by quoting a Presidency aide on Osinbajo’s assets declaration form was obvious. Even if Simmons Cooper was listed as a company in which Prof. Osinbajo had a stake in his 2015 asset declaration form, it is on record that Osinbajo had resigned his position as a partner upon assumption of Vice President in 2015.
Also, there is no connection in quoting an interested party who alleged that Alpha Beta owed the federal government N100bn in unpaid taxes spanning over 10 years. The writer went on to resurrect spurious allegation that was already deadwood on arrival. It was a waste of opinion space.
The allegations Bayo raised in his article was laced with roadside talks and had no substance of proof that linked the VP to the alleged Alpha Beta issue. As Attorney-General of Lagos State under Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Osinbajo led significant reforms that improved the Lagos judiciary, which has been widely commended, up till this day. The VP’s diligence and dedication to public causes has not waned, just as his integrity and character remain exemplary and consistent. The reference to “Ade Ipaye, then Lagos State Attorney General now Osinbajo’s chief of staff, turning down the said FOI request because it did not apply to the states” also does not hold water as it proves nothing.
It obviously seemed that Bayo had a severe writer’s block, where writers are saturated to a point and are at a loss as to what to write about. After all, he rehashed old and discredited allegations, that if they were humans, they would have been tired of being over flogged needlessly by the likes of Bayo and Osinbajo’s misguided critics who keep failing at their mischievous rantings against the Vice President.
Under the Buhari administration, it is clear that issue bordering on corruption are not swept under the carpet, as was done in previous administrations, where endemic public sleaze and corruption thrived unabated. The administration’s fight against corruption is still ongoing, after decades of endemic corruption, it would take more than a few years to fix our society and rid it of the endemic monster. Apparently, that is lost on Mr. Oluwasanmi. Unlike his claim, history would be kind to Osinbajo and President Buhari for taking significant steps in improving the nation’s infrastructure, fighting corruption, restoring public confidence in government projects and pursuing the welfare of the citizenry