Debunking Shola Fasure's Tissues Of Lies*(Part three). How My Article Saved Rauf From Being Sent Away By Tinubu

I mentioned it in part two that after winning the governorship election in 1999, the governor-elect (Tinubu), for reasons best known to him wanted to do away with our group (his immediate Aides in Sunday Adigun; but with the exception of his old staff whose names l have mentioned in part two). If the whole thing had a spiritual undertone only God knows, but it just suddenly happened that he didn't give Aregbesola face again. It became so difficult for Rauf to reach him again such that our salary in that month was delayed due to the fact that he (Tinubu) didn't make himself available for Rauf to be seeing him again like before. It needs mentioning that Alhaji Lai Muhammed, who joined us after the election had been won then became Tinubu's new favorite. He had taken over completely and it was like Tinubu didn't want to see Rauf anymore. So Rauf became frustrated.

He became so frustrated that one day, he addressed us and told us that he didn't know what was happening again; that he was fed up with his inability to have access to our principal again. But he told us that since "he (governor-elect) hasn't told us to go, we should keep coming to the office and to always be punctual too". But God is so good, He has a way of fighting for those who have worked hard. It was at that particular time that an organization, National Patriotic Movement of Nigeria (NPMN) by name, came up with a press release in the Nigerian Tribune where they attacked Tinubu, accusing him of betraying the late Chief Bola Ige. They lampooned Tinubu seriously for voting for Chief Olu Falaye against Chief Bola Ige during the delegate election to choose the Alliance for Democracy (AD) presidential candidate at the D' Rovans Hotel in Ibadan. Aregbesola who was our team leader didn't deem it fit to write a rejoinder to that indicting release and he never instructed the head of the media department to respond to it. Alhaji Lai Muhammed too, never thought of defending our principal. 

So it was me who used my discretion to respond to that press release and good God, it was that rejoinder (attached) that I wrote that then served as a saving grace for Aregbesola and our group. How? When Tinubu turned his back on Rauf creating an atmosphere of uncertainty within our group as our salary that month wasn't forthcoming, it was that article that Aregbesola showed to Tinubu at Krestal Laurel and told him "Your Excellency, one of us wrote this sir; Kola wrote this". Tinubu hadn't seen the article before Rauf showed it to him or he may have seen it but didn't know that it was my own Kola that wrote it since he didn't know my surname then. So he was so impressed when Rauf told him; he thumbed me up and that made him to relax towards our group and the following day or the third day, he paid our salary for that month.

It's important to mention it at this juncture that the Krestal Laurel story wasn't known to our other staff in Sunday Adigun (except one or two of us that l mentioned it to) because after the election, l was the only person Asiwaju Tinubu sent to Kresta Laurel. So it was myself, Aregbesola and one Mr. Tunde Bank Anthony who used to be in Krestal Laurel. For those who know Lagos well, Krestal Laurel is in Maryland. It's a tall glass house owned by Otunba Gbenga Daniel and it was where the transition committees that were set up by Tinubu after the election used to meet. It's a cool, corporate office conducive for serious intellectual work; unlike Sunday Adigun that was for all-comers. So Aregbesola, myself, Mr. Tunde Bank Anthony (still alive today and can confirm this story), Alhaji Lai Muhammed and our principal, Tinubu, that know the Krestal Laurel story.

So this is the true story about Rauf who was a nobody before Asiwaju Tinubu catapulted him to super success. Mention also needs to be made of the role mama Magaji (P BAT's mother) of blessed memory played in making sure that our group wasn't disbanded by our principal then. So I always find it funny the way Osun people hero-worship Aregbesola. It's in Osun that they see him as a demi-god. For those of us who knew him well and how we started together, he's a nobody. He only had his palm kernel cracked for him by benevolent spirits; to borrow late Chinue Achebe's proverb.

Shola Fasure also mentioned in his failed attempt to rewrite history that they wanted to retire Tinubu in Lagos so Rauf could take over political leadership in Lagos but that it was Rauf who rejected the idea. I therefore like to challenge Fasure here to come up with the names of those who wanted to retire Tinubu for Rauf in Lagos if he was sure of saying the truth. If he cannot come out to tell the world, then he must cover his face in shame for being a professional liar. For throwing dignity and integrity into the dustbin in order to satisfy His stomach he's no longer worth my respect. For, no man of dignity will ever wake up one morning and fabricate lies so as to satisfy anybody's interest. We must always ask ourselves before making a statement; especially the one for public consumption; "what l want to say, can it pass the test of a true statement?"

In conclusion, the American writer, S. E. Hinton must have had the ilk of Shola Fasure in mind when she quipped in her novel, The Outsiders, "l lie to myself all the time, but I never believe me". 

Thanks for reading and God bless 🙏

Shalom!