Aso Rock dismisses viral claims of Gbajabiamila’s replacement as false and misleading
The Presidency has dismissed circulating reports claiming that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has replaced his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, with his Principal Private Secretary, Hakeem Muri-Okunola.
The clarification followed a wave of social media posts alleging, without evidence, that a leadership change had occurred within the Presidency. Some of the posts cited unnamed “insider sources” as the basis for the claim.
Reacting on Thursday, the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, described the reports as completely false and urged Nigerians to ignore them.
“The attention of the Presidency has been drawn to a viral falsehood circulating on social media suggesting that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has replaced his Chief of Staff, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, with his Principal Private Secretary, Hakeem Muri-Okunola,” the statement read.
“There is absolutely no truth to this story. We advise Nigerians to disregard it entirely.”
Onanuga reaffirmed that Gbajabiamila remains the Chief of Staff, while Muri-Okunola continues in his role as Principal Private Secretary, stressing that no changes have been made to either position.
“The Chief of Staff remains in his position. The Principal Private Secretary likewise remains in his role. Hakeem Muri-Okunola has not replaced Femi Gbajabiamila as Chief of Staff,” the statement added.
The Presidency accused the originators of the report of deliberately spreading misinformation in a bid to create tension within the government.
Onanuga also issued a caution to media organisations and social media users, urging them to verify information through credible sources before publishing or sharing reports.
“The viral claim is a fabrication by mischievous purveyors of fake news whose sole aim is to sow disharmony within the government,” he said.
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