“He is speaking from limits of his imagination” – Tinubu’s media aide blasts Aregbesola

The Special Adviser on Media and Public Communications to President Bola Tinubu, Sunday Dare, has criticised Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, former governor of Osun State, over his remarks on the administration’s Renewed Hope agenda.

Dare, in a statement on Wednesday, described Aregbesola’s comments at the African Democratic Congress (ADC) convention as “self indicting”.

His words: “Rauf Aregbesola’s recent declaration at the ADC convention, that after three years President Bola Tinubu is still promising renewed hope, belongs in that category.”

Dare criticised Aregbesola’s tenure as minister of interior, alleging that it was marked by poor outcomes.

He said: “The results had the predictability and surefootedness of gravity. Jailbreaks like seasonal festivals. A demoralised workforce. A passport system that functioned like a national hazing ritual.

“Borders so porous they could have been designed by a conceptual artist exploring the theme of absence.”

He said Aregbesola lacks the capacity to assess ongoing reforms under the Tinubu administration.

“So when Aregbesola now claims that the Renewed Hope Agenda of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is a scam, one must extend compassion. He is speaking from the limits of his own administrative imagination,” he said.

Dare defended reforms introduced under Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, minister of interior, stressing that the ministry has cleared passport backlogs, introduced automation, and strengthened border control systems.

Dare also cited reforms in the correctional service and improved coordination among security agencies.

The presidential media aide said infrastructure and economic reforms under Tinubu contradict claims that the Renewed Hope agenda is ineffective.

He added: “Aregbesola says Renewed Hope is a scam. And he is right. All the roads being fixed across Nigeria are a scam. The Lagos Calabar Coastal Highway is a hallucination. The Sokoto Badagry super corridor is a pipe dream.

“The Renewed Hope agenda that has paid school fees and stipends for over 1.16 million Nigerian students is a scam.”

“When Tinubu took office, Nigeria’s net foreign reserves were under 4 billion dollars. Today, they exceed 34 billion dollars,” he added.