‘I’m Jagaban… I still hold the title of Asiwaju’— Tinubu responds to rumour he fled the country

By our reporter| National leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former governor of Lagos state, Bola Tinubu on Saturday dismissed reports that he fled the country over the nationwide #EndSARS protests that has rocked the country in the last two weeks.

The social media space was flooded with news that Tinubu fed the country following the attack by security operatives on #EndSARS protesters at the Lekki Tollgate last Tuesday.

But speaking to journalists after visiting governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Saturday Tinubu dismissed the rumour of his travel as fake news, describing himself as ”Jagaban”, a reference to his title of Jagaban of Borgu in Niger state.

The former governor of the state further stated he was at the governors office to seek information on who ordered the shooting of protesters at the Lekki tollgate last Tuesday.

Tinubu said, “I didn’t go nowhere; I’m a Lagosian and I still hold the title of Asiwaju of Lagos and I am still a Jagaban.”

“Fake news is all over the place. They say Seyi my son was kidnapped and was chased but look at him. I didn’t pay a penny to bring him here.”

“First, we have to segregate the calendar – those who suffered casualty before the protests from the hands of SARS. You have to separate that from those who suffered casualty due to what happened at the tollgate.”

“For those who suffered casualty from SARS, the commission of inquiry that is already set up will unearth that and will make their recommendations. I trust the calibre and the character of the people there, they are independent. That is one.

“Those who suffered casualty during the gunshots need to answer some questions too. Even though we want to help, we still must extract information that will help the government to prepare in future and understand how and when to react because the governor, in particular, is a youth.

“As a youth himself, he (Sanwo-Olu) quickly went to Abuja with the 5/5. The government immediately put into action, dissolved the SARS and had to work through other recommended actions, the needs they demanded. Within a few days, he reported back to the public. That is responsive enough.”