Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, has launched a strong counter attack on former Osun State Governor and current National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Rauf Aregbesola.
Onanuga’s push back was over Aregbesola’s recent criticism of the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
Aregbesola had, during the ADC national convention in Abuja, on Tuesday, described the administration’s promise of renewed hope as unfulfilled, alleging that Nigerians have continued to wait without visible relief.
“Four years ago, this government promised Nigerians renewed hope. Now, three years into its tenure, it is still promising renewed hope. When exactly will this hope come into fruition?”, Aregbesola said.
He further dismissed the administration’s agenda as deceptive, stating, “The answer is simple, it is a scam,” and called on Nigerians to resist the “continued political deception”.
But in a swift response posted on his verified X handle, Bayo Onanuga dismissed Aregbesola’s comments, describing them as misleading and politically motivated.
“My attention has been drawn to Rauf Aregbesola’s attack on the Tinubu administration,” Onanuga wrote, adding that the remarks were made at “an opposition gathering lacking credible policy direction”.
Onanuga further accused Aregbesola of recycling opposition narratives against the government, particularly on the economy and security situation in the country.
He, however, shifted focus to Aregbesola’s public service record, saying his tenure as governor of Osun State was marked by economic hardship for workers and pensioners.
“His eight years as governor of Osun State were characterised by unmitigated hardship for the people,” Onanuga said.
He alleged that civil servants were owed salaries for months and that many received only partial payments.
He also claimed that Osun State became known during Aregbesola’s administration for salary reductions and financial strain, describing the situation as one that subjected workers and pensioners to severe difficulties.
On pensioners, Onanuga claimed that the delayed payments led to hardship and, in some cases, deaths, though he did not provide supporting data for the claim.
The presidential aide also extended his criticism to Aregbesola’s tenure as Minister of Interior under former President Muhammadu Buhari, where he accused him of presiding over repeated security breaches in correctional facilities.
According to him, the period recorded multiple jailbreaks, including the high profile Kuje prison attack in Abuja, alongside other incidents in several parts of the country.
The administration, he noted, struggled with inefficiencies in passport processing and internal security management during that period.
Onanuga maintained that the current administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda remains on course and is already delivering results across sectors, insisting that criticisms from opposition figures were politically driven.
“No, Rauf, the Renewed Hope Agenda is not a scam,” he said, adding that the administration remains focused on reforms aimed at national recovery.
He also took a swipe at the ADC, describing it as a platform driven by political ambition rather than a coherent national plan.