Spokespersons and family members of ex-President
Obasanjo allege presidency officials forged the letter
as a way of getting back at Mr. Obasanjo over his
acerbic letter to President Jonathan.

A shocking letter purportedly written by Iyabo
Obasanjo-Bello, daughter of former President
Olusegun Obasanjo, in which she mocked her father
as a liar, an abuser and a hypocrite, is fake, family
members, and aides to Mr. Obasanjo have told
PREMIUM TIMES.

In the 11-page letter, published by Vanguard
newspaper Wednesday, Ms. Obasanjo-Bello
denounced her father as a self-seeking man lacking
in all key expectations of a father and a leader, but
often appearing quick to accuse others of the same
ills.

Mrs Obasanjo-Bello, a former senator, purportedly
said her father confirmed to her his failed effort at
securing a third term as president. She spoke of her
father’s “stupidity and cruelty”, and deplored him for
all the “many atrocities” he has been able to get
away with.

“Nigerians were your enablers every step of the way.
People ultimately get leaders that reflect them,” Ms.
Obasanjo-Bello was quoted as saying by Vanguard.

She said the letter came in the spirit of open letters
since Mr. Obasanjo had last week penned an acerbic
piece to President Goodluck Jonathan. But she made
it clear her writing was not in support of Mr.
Jonathan, or the opposition All Progressive Congress,
APC, but an “outpouring from my soul to God.”

But in multiple interviews early Wednesday, close
family members of Mr. Obasanjo, who claimed to
have spoken to the former President about the
matter, and two of his close aides called the letter a
forgery and vowed Ms. Iyabo-Bello would not write to
her father that way. One family member said Mr.
Obasanjo spoke with Iyabo only two days back and
apparently both related as cordial as always.

“I can tell you that such letter never existed. I can tell
you authoritatively that it only existed in the
imagination of those who forged and published it. It
is the height of desperation by those who
masterminded it,” Tunde Oladunjoye, an aide to Mr.
Obasanjo, told PREMIUM TIMES.

Mr. Oladunjoye said he could confirm that Mr.
Obasanjo had not received any such letter from his
daughter.
One senior family member, refusing to be named for
security reasons, said with all of Mr. Obasanjo’s
faults, he knows his children and their likely
behaviour, and that the letter does not fit into any of
their behavioural pattern.

A former aide to Mr. Obasanjo and former aviation
minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, said based on his
knowledge of the two individuals, it was impossible
for Ms. Obasanjo to have sent her father such mail.

“I can tell you the so-called letter was forged by
those in government,” Mr. Fani-Kayode said. “They
think they can get at Baba that way. But they are
mistaken. One thing is that if they want to fight
Baba, they should face him and leave his family out
of it. Baba has spoken the truth and they should
respond to the issues he raised.

Ms. Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello could not be immediately
reached. She is yet to respond to multiple emails
sent her by this newspaper.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt she is currently in the United
States.
However, all family members and aides who work
closely with Mr. Obasanjo quickly placed the blame
for the allegedly “forged” letter at the doorsteps of
the presidency as a desperate response to Mr.

Obasanjo’s own stinging letter to President Jonathan
last week, in which he accused the president of being
inept, corrupt, and clannish.
In the 18-page letter exclusively published by
PREMIUM TIMES, Mr. Obasanjo accused Mr. Jonathan
of making plans for a violent election in 2015 and
preparing to launch snipers against the opposition
and critics, of whom at least 1,000 are currently on
the government watch-list.

Mr. Obasanjo’s letter has stirred a swell of reactions
with calls for investigation into the many allegations.
Many Nigerians have also dismissed the former
president as lacking the moral authority to condemn
his successor.

Beyond asking Mr. Obasanjo to substantiate his
claim that the government is training snipers, the
presidency has yet to fully respond to the letter. An
earlier statement said Mr. Jonathan had directed
aides not to respond, as he will personally do so at
the “appropriate time.”

Regardless of the directive, groups believed to be
loyalists of the president have in the past days
launched what appears to be a massive campaign of
calumny against Mr. Obasanjo.





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