Saturday, July 18, 2026

Tinubu’s spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, attacks mourning Buhari’s supporters in social media post

Mr Adeyanju said, “Onanuga is too insensitive and immature.’’

• July 15, 2025
Bayo Onanuga
Bayo Onanuga

Amid mourning of former President Muhammadu Buhari, Bayo Onanuga, spokesperson for President Bola Tinubu, has attacked pro-Buhari supporters in a social media post on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, during preparation for the burial of Mr Buhari, an X user, @DeeOneAyekooto, recirculated a video of Mr Buhari’s campaign in Ibadan, Oyo State, describing it as an “unforgettable” experience.

However, Mr Onanuga, who was at the forefront of a heated debate on the role Mr Tinubu played in the emergence of Mr Buhari as president, took advantage of the post to hit back at mourning pro-Buhari supporters.

Reposting @DeeOneAyekooto’s post, Mr Onanuga said, “A video to rejig the memory of those who claimed only Buhari’s 12 million votes gave him the presidency in 2015 and 2019.”

The presidential spokesperson’s post countered a claim by a former secretary to the government of the federation, Boss Mustapha, that Mr Buhari’s integrity won him the 2015 presidential polls, downplaying the role Bola Tinubu’s party merger played.

Mr Mustapha suggested that the merger only contributed 20 per cent of the 15.4 million total votes polled by the late Daura, Katsina-born politician.

Mr Onanuga’s post followed an earlier scathing tribute to Mr Buhari by the Chairman of the editorial board, The Nation newspapers, Sam Omatseye, an ally of Mr Tinubu, who described Mr Buhari as a man “dead of ideas, selfish and hypocritical serial losers.”

Criticised for his politically charged post amid mourning of Mr Buhari, who passed away on July 13, Mr Onanuga deleted the post.

Reacting to Mr Onanuga’s post that saw his name trending on X on Tuesday, some netizens berated him as an insensitive and immature person.

A lawyer and activist, Deji Adeyanju, said, “Onanuga is too insensitive and immature. That post was totally unnecessary, and the timing was bad.”

An X user, @Dangbanamanager said “Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu’s right-hand man didn’t even wait for Buhari to be buried before tearing down his legacy. That tells you everything you need to know about the kind of people Tinubu surrounds himself with. No loyalty, no honour. And if you’re wondering what the South-West really thinks of General Buhari, look no further than silence while he was in power, disrespect the moment he’s gone.”

A spokesperson for former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, Paul Ibe, lashed out and Mr Onanuga, saying “It is such a shame that President Bola Tinubu’s aide, Bayo Onanuga, does not have respect for the dead. To imagine that @aonanuga1956 would post and then delete this ahead of the burial of Buhari.”

We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.

More from Peoples Gazette

farmers

Agriculture

FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology

The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Katsina State

Politics

Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku

“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria

NationWide

Chartered insurance institute inaugurates Orimolade as 53rd president

The new president said his administration would build on the achievements of his predecessor, Yetunde Ilori.

Nigerian Navy

NationWide

Navy’s intelligence-driven operations boosted oil production to 1.7 million bpd: Official 

Mr Folorunsho said that one of the major operational successes recorded was the arrest of the motor tankers MKPODU, WESTAF, and STELIOS K.

Apple and Nvidia logo

World

Apple overtakes Nvidia briefly to become world’s most valuable company

Apple’s leap on Friday briefly made it the first time that the hardware and software manufacturer had the biggest capitalisation’s title for the first time since April 2025.

WHO health workers in protective gear .

Africa

DRC recorded 828 Ebola deaths, 2,124 cases: WHO

The WHO noted that the latest patient was discharged on July 16 after testing negative twice.

Icerberg lettuce and Taco Bell outlet.

World

Taco Bell’s iceberg lettuce responsible for cyclospora infections in five U.S. states: CDC

In a separate health advisory, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said cyclospora is a parasite that can only be seen under a microscope.