A former presidential
aide, Doyin Okupe, has prostrated repeatedly before former President
Olusegun Obasanjo, begging the former head of state to forgive him over
insults he hurled at him while he (Okupe) served as spokesperson for
ex-President Goodluck Jonathan.
Mr. Okupe visited Mr.
Obasanjo on Sunday at his Hilltop G.R.A. residence in Abeokuta, the Ogun
State capital, those familiar with the matter told PREMIUM TIMES.
The
former presidential aide made the surprise visit to the former president
to seek reconciliation after remaining estranged from the former leader
for years.
One
source said security operatives at Mr. Obasanjo’s residence initially
blocked Mr. Okupe from accessing the former president’s home but that he
was allowed in after “baba came downstairs and told the boys to let him
in.”
Photographs of the visit obtained by PREMIUM TIMES show Mr. Okupe prostrating repeatedly and pleading for forgiveness.
Sources said Mr.
Obasanjo initially rejected Mr. Okupe’s plea, saying “you cannot abuse
me in the papers, on TV, on radio and on the streets and then come here
to privately apologise.”
“Why don’t you mount the same platforms you used in abusing me to apologise to me?” a witness quoted Mr. Obasanjo as saying.
“Baba
said he was baffled to see Okupe verbally assaulting him in the media
just because he was given appointment by Jonathan,” the source said. “If
he were a true son of Yorubaland, he would not have gone to that extent
because Baba was the first to appoint him a media aide over 16 years
ago.
“Baba
appointed him as one of his first aides when he became the first
president after democracy returned to Nigeria in 1999, only for him to
turn his back against Baba when he got a similar appointment from
Jonathan many years later. Now that he has gone to bite more than he can
chew, he’s desperate for Baba’s forgiveness.”
“There’s
an adage in Yoruba that says when a dog has gone to put itself into
fury inferno, it will become desperate to return to its owner,” the
source added.
After a
brief intervention by those present at the meeting, sources said, Mr.
Obasanjo agreed to forgive Mr. Okupe because he (Obasanjo) is an elder
statesman and father to many.
“Baba
said he has forgiven him because of his respected position as an elder
statesman, but that may not stop him (Mr. Okupe) from committing the
same offence in future,” the source said.
In an interview with PREMIUM TIMES, Mr. Okupe confirmed he visited Mr. Obasanjo to seek reconciliation.
“I went
to Obasanjo to settle and resolve my long-standing misunderstanding
with him,” Mr. Okupe said, adding that “Obasanjo is like my father and I
am his political son.In Yorubaland, when an elder is angry with you, the younger person begs. I am not ashamed to beg Obasanjo,” Mr. Okupe said.