Akande calls Lawal's Osinbajo church appointment claims 'total fabrication'
Former presidential aide Laolu Akande has dismissed as "complete fabrication" allegations by ex-SGF Babachir Lawal that former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo stacked key appointments with Christians from his church. Lawal, now a Nigeria Democratic Congress chieftain, claimed Osinbajo submitted a list of 28 names for positions—26 of them Christians.
Speaking on Symfoni TV Friday, Akande—who served as Senior Special Assistant on Media in the VP's office from June 2015—said no such list existed. "There was no time for him to do a 28-name list. It's a lie, and I'm shocked Babachir Lawal will tell such a lie. I challenge him to bring out that memo."
Akande described a different process: Osinbajo had direct access to President Buhari, hand-delivered memos for immediate approval, and faced no three-month delay as Lawal suggested. "Anytime the Vice President had a memo, he took it there by hand, and the President would approve it."
The dispute centers on religious balancing in Buhari-era appointments—a sensitive topic in Nigerian politics. Lawal's unverified claim feeds narratives of sectional favoritism; Akande's denial, from inside the VP's office, carries weight but remains uncorroborated by independent records.
With no public documentation of the alleged list, the claim rests on Lawal's word against Akande's. For citizens, the episode underscores how unsubstantiated allegations from senior figures can inflame religious tensions without accountability.
Will political actors face consequences for unverified claims that deepen sectarian divides, or will such rhetoric remain cost-free ahead of 2027?