Tinubu's Circle Keeps Fashola Out Because He Won't Play Along, Ex-Aide Says

Tinubu's Circle Keeps Fashola Out Because He Won't Play Along, Ex-Aide Says

Ex-aide points finger at president's inner circle

A former Nigerian presidential aide has claimed that ex-Lagos governor Babatunde Fashola is absent from President Bola Tinubu's government because some people around the president do not want him there. Laolu Akande, who served as senior media aide to former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, made the allegation in an interview on the Naija Unfiltered podcast published by Symfoni TV on Friday, according to Punch, Vanguard and ThisDay.

Two reasons given, resistance the bigger one

Akande offered two reasons for Fashola's absence. "I think Fashola himself has a bit of fatigue, more importantly, I think there are people around the president who don't want to see Fashola because Fashola is not going to tolerate many of those things that you are seeing around," he said. He described Fashola as a principled figure who stands his ground and would not compromise to accommodate questionable practices, a disposition he suggested makes some in the president's circle uncomfortable.

No open fallout with Tinubu, friendship intact

Akande stressed that there has been no public rupture between Fashola and Tinubu. "Even somebody like Fashola, who is still very close to the president, no problems openly," he said, adding that Fashola had no blowout problem with Tinubu, although there were undercurrents that Fashola himself would speak about in time.

Eight years in Lagos, then two ministerial terms

Fashola governed Lagos State from 2007 to 2015 before joining the cabinet of the late President Muhammadu Buhari, first as Minister of Power, Works and Housing and later as Minister of Works and Housing, serving until 2023. He has held no position since Tinubu formed his administration in May 2023. Akande, who served under Buhari alongside Osinbajo, knows this generation of politicians first-hand.

Same interview faults chief of staff's performance

In the same interview, Akande criticised Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila, arguing that his failure to perform forced Tinubu to rely on Principal Private Secretary Hakeem Muri-Okunola, a former Lagos State Head of Service, to organise the president's schedule. "If the chief of staff was doing his job properly, he wouldn't need HMO; that's the truth," he said, as reported by Vanguard.

Tinubu yet to deliver his best, aide argues

Akande further argued that Tinubu had yet to deliver his best in office, saying the administration lacked influential figures of real weight. He named Fashola, Osinbajo, former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola and Central Bank Governor Olayemi Cardoso as examples of the calibre of people missing from the president's inner circle.

Whether Fashola returns is now Tinubu's call

Neither Fashola nor the presidency has publicly responded to the claims. Whether Akande's account holds and whether Tinubu recalls the former minister in a future reshuffle will be one of the things to watch in Nigerian politics.