Former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s newly launched memoir, ‘Nigeria: Past and Future’, has come under fire for allegedly downplaying the significance of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s infrastructure projects, particularly the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway. 

In a sharp rebuttal, Dada Olusegun, Special Assistant to the President on Social Media, accused Obasanjo of attempting to rewrite history while neglecting his own failures in office.

In chapter six of his new book, ‘Nigeria: Past and Future’,Former President Olusegun Obasanjo  described the N15.6 trillion Lagos-Calabar Coastal highway project as wasteful and corrupt.

He equally slammed the President Bola Tinubu administration for having spent N21 billion on a new official residence for Vice President Kashim Shettima, calling it a misplaced priority and conduit designed to embezzle public funds.

The book was one of the two new books unveiled to mark Obasanjo’s 88th birthday last week.

However, in a post on his verified X handle, @DOlusegun, on Thursday, lambasted the former president, stating that his claims in the memoir would “further relegate his integrity as the leader who opened Nigeria to the cankerworms of corruption.”

Olusegun wrote: “By underplaying the importance of the Lagos-Calabar project in his latest book, President OBJ has not only affirmed to those who witnessed his administration’s several failures to address the needs of the country when he had the opportunity, but he has also put in written form a position which generations to come will indeed question.”

He accused Obasanjo of failing to deliver on key infrastructure projects during his eight-year tenure, particularly in his home state of Ogun. 

According to Olusegun, the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, one of Nigeria’s most crucial road projects, stagnated for 16 years under Obasanjo and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), until former President Muhammadu Buhari revived it.

Despite spending 8 years in government and failing in his attempt to force himself on Nigerians for a further four years as President, Baba Obasanjo failed woefully in addressing the infrastructural needs of his state.

“Indeed, it took former President Buhari just three years to deliver the first modern rail to pass through Baba’s backyard in Abeokuta”, he said.  Olusegun also accused Obasanjo of mishandling Nigeria’s power sector, failing to revive the nation’s refineries, and overseeing a fraudulent privatization of NITEL. 

He argued that Tinubu is now making the tough decisions that past leaders, including Obasanjo, failed to take.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, has gone digital in its efforts to rid the country of substandard and falsified pharmaceutical products.

During a two-day workshop and training session in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on Wednesday, NAFDAC introduced an app, Greenbook, an online platform for identifying the source of a product.

The Greenbook allows consumers to enter the product name, brand name, or registration number to search for information about its registration status.

If the product is listed in the Greenbook, it signifies that it has been registered by NAFDAC and is considered authentic.

The app serves as a tool to help consumers identify and avoid potentially fake or substandard products.

The Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, speaking at the workshop in Port Harcourt, stated that these fake products are “produced by our greedy businessmen and their international collaborators to get rich or make money,” describing it as the worst form of inhumanity of man to his fellow men.

Prof. Adeyeye, who was represented by the Director of the Post-Marketing Surveillance Directorate, NAFDAC, Fraden Bitrus, noted that the agency has, over the years, deployed various measures to combat falsified products.

She expressed concern that counterfeiters have adopted increasingly sophisticated methods to advance their trade but assured that NAFDAC “is poised to use technologies and modern means to mitigate the activities of counterfeiters, hence the need for stakeholder sensitisation.”

She added that the workshop aims to educate stakeholders and provide hands-on training on the NAFDAC Greenbook, the Traceability Regulation 2024, and the Paediatric Regulation 2024, ensuring that both the regulator and the regulated are aligned in the fight against substandard and falsified medical products.

Prof. Adeyeye revealed that the project is being implemented in phases, initially used for COVID-19 vaccine distribution as a pilot project, which yielded highly effective results.

She noted, “Within 24 hours, batches of substandard or defective vaccines distributed in the country were traced and recalled.”

She further stated, “We have implemented it for commodities in public health, such as antimalarial and narcotic products.

Over time, we will extend it to other products. Please note that with this technology, stakeholders can detect and reject SF products before they enter the supply chain.”

She called on all stakeholders in the healthcare sector to support these initiatives to combat fake products and ensure the availability of quality, safe, and efficacious medical products for the people of Nigeria.

Amid the controversy rocking the Nigerian Senate, the Red Chamber on Thursday passed a vote of confidence in the leadership of Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

This comes after Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele under Orders 40 and 51, moved a motion on the recent controversy surrounding the upper chamber, underscoring the need for clarity, adherence to legislative rules and a renewed focus on governance.

Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan representing Kogi Central was suspended by the Senate following allegation of sexual harassments against the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

She tagged her suspension as an injustice, reporting the matter to the United Nation’s Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) on Tuesday.

The Senate, however, responded to her complaint to the IPU on Wednesday, telling the international body that Senator Natasha’s suspension has nothing to do with her sexual abuse allegation against Akpbaio, but for gross misconduct and disobedient to Senate rules.

Speaking on the floor of the Senate , Senator Bamidele acknowledged heightened public interest in the matter due to allegations made by a fellow senator.

However, he maintained that at no point between August 2023 and the present was the Senate informed of any sexual harassment claims, adding that the issue at hand was purely about disciplinary measures related to breaches of Senate rules.

According to him, “I want to make it clear that the matter referred to the Committee on Ethics and Privileges had nothing to do with sexual harassment.

The Senate President did not preside over any case related to such allegations. What was addressed was a flagrant disregard for Senate rules and we followed due process as guided by the Constitution”.

He further defended the Senate’s authority to regulate its proceedings, including the decision to suspend a senator, stating that such actions were necessary to maintain order and uphold legislative integrity.

He refuted claims that the Senate acted beyond its constitutional rights, noting that suspension remains the only alternative to anarchy within the chamber.

“It was never an issue before us that any member of us was sexually harassed and we hold on to that point. We need to put the events of the last two weeks and concentrate.

There is work before us and we have done everything possible, ensuring that the electoral reforms and others have legislative expressions.

”Regarding international reactions, he further clarifies that the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) acted within its own rules, and that any statements made by the Senator in question at the IPU meeting were done in a personal capacity, not as a designated delegate representing Nigeria.

“It was never an issue before us that any senator was sexually harassed. We need to move past the events of the last two weeks and focus on our legislative responsibilities.

There is critical work before us, including electoral reforms, economic recovery, and tax reform bills.

“The 7th schedule of the 1999 Constitution is clear, and we all swore by oath that we will make laws for the good of this country. We swore to that oath and ensured everyone abides by that oath”.

The Senate leader also addressed the Civil Society Organizations, noting that Nigeria is making progress but still faces significant challenges.

He urged the public to be objective in their analysis and to reserve their energy for genuine cases of sexual harassment.

“We have heard you, but we need to concentrate in our work, so if we choose to be silent on this matter going forward, know that it is intentional on our part.

Please be objective in your analysis and save energy for those genuine victims of sexual harassment”.

To conclude, the Senate passed a vote of confidence in the leadership of Senate President Godswill Akpabio, commending the way the matter was handled.

The Deputy Senate President, Senator Barau Jibrin, who presided over Thursday’s plenary session, noted that with the budget which has now passed demands that the legislature focus on its oversight functions.

He reiterated that the matter is now before the courts, and as such, the Senate should allow the legal system to take its course.