5th May, 2021
By Bright Okuta
Initially, when Femi Adesina called him a scoundrel, I said to myself that Bayo Oluwasanmi’s last name ought to redeem him. But after reading how he tried to shake Adesina down, it felt like this Oluwasanmi can never be associated with the illustrious Prof. Hazekiah Oluwasnami who was the sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s ace man, as first Vice Chancellor of the Obafemi Awolowo University, then University of Ife.
However, his latest titled …..removed all benefits of doubt; this guy is surely what Femi called him.
This little fella has once again proved to be irresponsible with his pen, infantile with his behavior and, very unprofessional, even dishonest with his opinion.
I will hit on every dart he fired at Prof. Osinbajo, about whom he is obsessed and on whom he desperately wants to hang a tag of RUGA Pastor on. This time, his mental frame shook because the law professor is pushing for peace in the country.
To be sure these are challenging times for the President and the VP politically. It’s even more challenging for all of us as a nation. But such rudeness?
Bayo flagrantly called Prof. Osinbajo a liar. This is the same Vice President a lot of Nigerians including myself look up to as one of the most trustworthy politicians and clergymen of the day. It is this same Osinbajo that the Emir of Daura described as ‘the most honest person and leader Nigeria has produced in recent times.”
It is this same Osinbajo that Speaker of the House Femi Gbajabiamila described as “a reliable human being and one of the most honest people he has ever met and has qualities worthy of emulation by Nigerians.”
Why should anyone take the word of Bayo over and above these other set of Nigerians?
The Vice President has repeatedly spoken against the state of insecurity in Nigeria. At different occasions, he spoke in support of state policing and he believes it is one of the solutions to the security problems in Nigeria. It beats my imagination that an adult like Bayo who has done nothing with his life so far except living illegally abroad, will attack decent personalities with pejorative words.
Punch Newspaper, is definitely not an ally of this government as there are countless articles to prove this. But even Punch could not diminish the truth in their 7 March 2021 headline that read, “Again, Osinbajo reiterates call for state police”
Without a doubt, the insincerity in Bayo’s twaddle cuts across bitterness and hate he has for the Vice President and the Buhari administration. This is the main reason he is not to be taken seriously.
At this juncture, it is important I explained how he became Mr Scoundrel, a title he justly earned on 9th April 2020. Femi Adesina, the spokesperson of President Buhari in an article titled, “THE SCOUNDREL CALLED BAYO OLUWASANMI” exposed Bayo as an activist/columnist by day and hustler by night. He detailed how Bayo begged for appointment and did not get one. He explained how this infuriated Bayo and why he is on a failed mission to make the Presidency look bad.
In his latest spit, which is but another ranting of an attention-seeking scurrilous gutter snipe, Bayo questioned the position of Prof. Osinbajo in preaching unity. This is the height of insensitivity from Bayo who lives in the United States but is yet to write or even march against the killings of blacks in the US. His hypocrisy does stink.
Out of the blues, Bayo who is not known by any group or movement in Nigeria is calling for Yoruba Nation because certain people have managed to give him the money that has eluded him in the past. This is a guy who has made no reasonable contribution to the Nigerian state or the Yoruba people.
As Vice President, Prof. Osinbajo has exceeded the functions of his office and has often stepped out of his constitutional functions to ensure that Nigeria achieves its potentials and that the people, especially the ordinary people, are the beneficiaries of these schemes.
Only yesterday, the Vice President sealed a deal with Microsoft which includes training for five million Nigerians (5,000,000) and broadband penetration across the country.
In March, the Guardian UK described the Vice President’s activities in office like this “Osinbajo defies expectations as Nigeria’s Vice President” but again this eluded Bayo and his cohorts. If Bayo dares or has the capacity, I challenge him to a public debate so that the world can know who he really is.
*Bright Okuta is a public affairs analyst and social commentator. He writes from Nigeria’s capital, Abuja