U.S. Drug Case: ‘Deal With It’ – Worried Tinubu Directs Media Team

… Keyamo, Fani-Kayode React

The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Tinubu, is worried that the age-long allegation of his involvement in narcotic deals and allegation of money laundering have resurfaced during the 2023 election season, according to a member of his camp.

Tinubu, who has never personally reacted to the allegations, which continue to attract calls for him to come clean since he is a presidential candidate, has told his aides to “deal with it and handle it as they are tasked to do.”

The former Lagos State governor is said to be worried that there is a deliberate campaign against him in the media.

His spokesman, Bayo Onanugo, re-echoed that line while speaking with THE WHISTLER, accusing the media of unearthing what he called “long dead reports” in the attempts to keep the allegations alive.

He questioned the rationale behind the fresh report on Tinubu’s past asking, “Why is it that you journalists like to make a mountain out of a molehill? I said the certified true copy, is it different from what has been published since 1993 on this matter?”

Onanuga said, “It is the same kind of stories they have been recycling since 1993. It is nothing new.”

When pressed to explain why the allegations continued to resurface, he doubled down on his accusation angrily saying, “Oh it is you, journalists, you keep recycling it. There is absolutely nothing new in that so-called certified true copy.

“We have talked about it so many times, I am not ready for us to start repeating ourselves.

“The issue is this: there was an allegation. It was investigated. He never went to court. Mr Tinubu was never indicted. So, these are the issues.”

At the time, Tinubu had left the U.S. for Nigeria and could not have appeared in court in the country.

He lamented that, journalists “keep recycling, recycling, recycling, keep asking us. It is the same old story.”

The Allegations

The allegations of narcotic dealings and money laundering date back decades when Tinubu was residing in the U.S.

Court documents which were unpacked and made public a few months ago indicted the former Lagos State governor, which at the time of the indictment had left the country for Nigeria.

The 56-page document released by the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois indicted Tinubu in 1992 of money laundering.

Tinubu was accused alongside two other Nigerians simply listed on the court document as K.O. Tinubu and Alhaji Mogati, of being involved in banking proceeds of illicit drugs with Heritage Bank and Citibank in the United States.

The Internal Revenue Service, IRS, which indicted and filed the case in court against Tinubu and his accomplices did not seek Tinubu’s extradition, findings by this paper showed.

Rather, in order to prevent waste of resources and time in exchange for a soft landing, K.O. Tinubu and Alhaji Mogati believed to be Tinubu’s foster mother now late, Alhaja Abibatu Mogaji, widely held to be misspelled as ‘Mogati’ entered into a plea bargain.

Consequently, the IRS secured warrants in January 1992 to seize almost $2 million, according to court filings seen by this paper.

Court findings showing the indictment indicated that while living in Chicago between 1989 and 1991, Tinubu had deposited more than $1.8 million into one of the accounts, before transferring large sums to another bank.

The plea bargain was entered into finally in September 1993, where Tinubu agreed to give up $460,000 to the US government.

Keyamo, Fani-Kayode React

The Minister for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, who is one of the spokesmen of the Tinubu/Shettima Presidential Campaign, reacted on Twitter to the story, calling it “old, fake and recycled” story.

He directed the public to a screenshot of what he called “International reports over the matter,” while calling the Nigerian websites which published the report as “junk sites.”

However, the report which Keyamo directed the public to was made by Bloomberg which never exonerated Tinubu, rather establishing the fact that he was indicted and entered into a plea bargain alongside his accomplices.

Similarly, the Director Special Media Projects and New Media for the Tinubu Campaign, Femi Fani-Kayode, said some Nigerians were ignorant, pointing out that “BAT (Bola Ahmed Tinubu) was neither indicted or convicted of drug trafficking or anything else in the USA. This is a FACT and it’s the BOTTOM LINE.

“Those that have labelled him a drug baron due to an out of court settlement and repatriation of funds in the U.S. 30 years ago are ignorant and misinformed.

“If Asiwaju was a drug baron and if he was wanted in America I doubt the U.S. Ambassador would have visited his campaign office a few weeks ago to wish him well.

“If he was a drug baron that is wanted in America I doubt that he would have avoided extradition all these years considering the power, hatred, fury and venom of his numerous enemies and many detractors.

“If he was a drug baron he would not be the leading contender for the presidential election and the man to beat next year.”