Bayo Onanuga vs Rauf Aregbesola: The Selective Amnesia Of A Propaganda Merchant
- By Erasmus Ikhide
THE recent vitriolic outburst by Bayo Onanuga against Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola is not just a study in sycophancy; it is a desperate attempt to rewrite history using the ink of hypocrisy.
To watch a man who built his reputation on the back of “guerrilla journalism” now serve as the chief laundromat for an administration drowning in its own ineptitude is a tragedy of Shakespearean proportions.
Bayo Onanuga’s attempt to paint Aregbesola as a failure is a classic case of a man pointing one finger while four others—soiled by the current administration’s blood-soaked and hunger-stricken reality—point back at him.
The Myth of the “Broken State”
Onanuga’s critique of Aregbesola’s tenure in Osun ignores a fundamental historical truth: Aregbesola inherited a state looted and hollowed out by the Olagunsoye Oyinlola administration. It is on record that the previous PDP government left Osun buried in a mountain of debt and administrative decay.
Aregbesola did not just govern; he built. From the “O-Meal” program that became a global model for social investment to the radical transformation of infrastructure and school feeding, Aregbesola gave Osun a soul when it had none. To blame him for the financial headwinds caused by the national economic downturn of that era is intellectually dishonest.
The Hypocrisy on Insecurity
Onanuga has the effrontery to mention the Kuje jailbreak while his principal presides over a nation where Brigadier Generals are slaughtered like chickens and soldiers are buried in mass graves weekly. Need we remind Bayo that in 2014, his current paymaster, then an opposition leader, demanded President Goodluck Jonathan’s resignation because he “could not secure the lives of Nigerians”?
By that same logic, why hasn’t Bayo advised President Tinubu to step down? Under the current “Renewed Hope” (now widely felt as “Renewed Hardship”), kidnappings have been decentralized to every nook and cranny of the federation. While Bayo churns out empty, soulless press releases from the comfort of the Villa, mothers are weeping in the forests of the North and the highways of the West.
A Stellar Record vs. Empty Rhetoric
While Onanuga attempts to diminish Aregbesola’s time as Minister of Interior, the statistics tell a different story—one of modernization and tangible results. Unlike the current administration’s reliance on intentions, Aregbesola delivered. He moved the Nigeria Immigration Service from manual drudgery to digital efficiency, implementing the MIDAS system at international airports and expanding visa categories from 6 to 79 to boost the Ease of Doing Business.
Aregbesola didn’t just manage prisons; he initiated the construction of 3,000-capacity ultra-modern custodial centers and increased inmate enrollment in WAEC/NECO, focusing on rehabilitation over mere incarceration.
Under his watch, the Federal Fire Service was revitalized, saving assets worth over N25 trillion and thousands of lives through the procurement of hundreds of modern fire engines. Aregbesola deployed over 1,500 specialized personnel to protect farmers—a stark contrast to the current reality where farmers have abandoned their lands for fear of being slaughtered.
The Economy of Despair
Bayo Onanuga boasts about “relief measures” while the average Nigerian cannot afford a single square meal. Let us speak in numbers, Bayo. You claim inflation is falling, yet the price of a bag of rice has eclipsed the new minimum wage.
The most damning indictment of this administration is the Crude Oil Math. This year’s budget was hinged on $66 per barrel. Today, with crude hovering near $200 per barrel in certain market windows or significantly higher than the benchmark, Nigerians are asking: Where is the excess profit? Why is the “excess” not reflecting in house rents, transportation costs, or school fees? The removal of the fuel subsidy without a credible cushion was not boldness; it was economic sabotage against the poor.
The Merchant of Discord
Finally, it is rich for Bayo Onanuga to preach about “national interest.” This is the same man whose name is synonymous with the ethnic profiling and slurs against the Igbo during the 2023 elections. A man who weaponized ethnicity to rig an election has no moral standing to lecture anyone on “desperados” or “power mongers.”
Bayo, the real “scammers” are not those gathered at a political convention of African Democratic Congress (ADC) yesterday. The real scammers are those who promised “Renewed Hope” but delivered a funeral shroud. While you and your paymasters obsess over 2027, Nigerians are obsessing over how to survive until tomorrow morning.
Rauf Aregbesola has a record he can defend. Can you say the same for the hunger and blood that define your current tenure?
No, Bayo. The mirror is your greatest enemy.
- Erasmus Ikhide contributed this piece via: ikhideluckyerasmus@gmail.com
The opinions expressed in this publication are solely those of the author. It does not represent the editorial position or opinion of OSUN DEFENDER.
