Muraina Taiwo, a member of Lagos State’s Governance Advisory Council (GAC), verified that the supposed feud between President Bola Tinubu and Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had been resolved.
Taiwo, who spoke with Punch by phone on Sunday, said the misunderstanding had been resolved.
“God has resolved everything they have spoken. The father (Tinubu) has dragged his son (Sanwo-Olu) closer, and the son has hugged his father; we have become one in Lagos State.
“It only looked like that, but currently, we are in the meeting, and God has done it,” he told me.
Olusegun Osoba, former Ogun State Governor and APC chieftain, also commented that party leaders were actively attempting to repair the rift between the two leaders.
“You don’t expect an elder like me to reveal what we’re doing. However, rest assured that we will not remain silent and allow the situation to spiral out of control.
“After all, I’m connected with the Lagos and Rivers situations. “We are assuring the nation that everything will be fine,” Osoba stated.
The reconciliation comes after widespread speculation about the President’s icy tone toward Sanwo-Olu during his recent visit to Lagos.
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On May 31, during the inauguration of the 30km stretch of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, footage leaked on social media showed Tinubu reportedly ignoring Sanwo-Olu when welcoming him.
The governor was also absent at the commissioning of the 27-kilometer Lekki Deep Seaport Road two days before, raising fears about a fractured relationship.
Obafemi Hamzat, Sanwo-Olu’s deputy, attended the ceremony but did not make a speech on behalf of the state, which is unusual for official state ceremonies.
To add to the uneasiness, Sanwo-Olu was not in Lagos for the President’s Sallah celebrations, instead heading to Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, to welcome Governor Umo Eno to the APC.
Meanwhile, images of Lagos Assembly Speaker Mudashiru Obasa prostrating before Tinubu in Lagos went viral on Saturday, indicating a deepening split.
However, on Sunday, the President’s media aide, Bayo Onanuga, posted a group photo of Tinubu with Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat, Obasa, and GAC members on X, implying a restoration to normalcy.
According to sources within the Lagos political apparatus, the schism precedes the recent Lagos Assembly crisis, which saw Obasa momentarily removed as speaker before being reinstated.
According to a Punch source, Tinubu’s resentment grew amid reports that Sanwo-Olu supported Atiku Abubakar’s 2023 presidential campaign, which both the Presidency and Atiku’s camp fiercely disputed.
The source stated, “It is established that there is a schism (between the President and the Governor).” According to my understanding, this was due to Sanwo-Olu allegedly giving Atiku money during his campaign.
“Recall that at some point, Sanwo-Olu asked the court to obtain an order prohibiting the EFCC from investigating him. “The next day, Sanwo-Olu denied it.”
He said that the governor’s decision was motivated by their deteriorating relationship.
“The Obasa’s issue is just the last straw that broke the camel’s back,” according to the source.
While some reports suggested a financial link between Sanwo-Olu and Atiku, the Presidency, Atiku, and the EFCC all denied the charges.
Atiku, through his media adviser, Paul Ibe, described it as a “baseless smear campaign.”
In 2024, news circulated that Sanwo-Olu had launched a lawsuit against the EFCC to avoid a probable post-tenure arrest. However, the Lagos State government, through its Attorney General, Lawal Pedro (SAN), disputed the accusation.
The EFCC further disputed that its ongoing case against Aisha Achimugu, a socialite wanted for alleged money laundering, was linked to Atiku or Sanwo-Olu.
