by Tola Adenle
I was going to see how I could lay my hands on the book by Mr. Segun Adeniyi, former spokesman to late President Yar Adua but changed my mind because THAT would be throwing my money – hard earned – away. We all must have seen this book coming when Adeniyi started the attempt at image-rehab in newspapers and news website, including the much-visited saharareporters.com during & after his “Harvard study” stint lately.
Adeniyi cannot deceive in spite of all the newspaper-laundering of image essays and now this book which may yield billions of Naira but will never clean an image that is already soiled beyond words because his Orwellian Squealer role has assured a place for him in Nigeria’s history; could be as a mere footnote.
This guy once defended rigging – yeah, as in justifying Alhaji Yar Adua becoming president; defended the rape of the Constitution when the late president’s wife, Alhaja Turai Yar Adua became the de facto president; among other travesties, for example, he did claim that President Yar Adua not only KNEW about his attending an Eagles’ pre-World Cup qualifier football match in far away East Africa but authorized it and would be watching; the poor man was in coma – all in attempts to prevent the then vice president, E.G. Jonathan from the constitutional provision of becoming president since his principal was no longer capable of continuing in that role.
Some of the quotes from the book: http://saharareporters.com/news-page/book-late-nigeria-president-umaru-yaradua-wilted-away-office-ap?page=1 as reported insaharareporters.com, are banal, especially coming from Adeniyi: “… the military officer assigned to Yar’Adua had to drape traditional robes over his arm to hide the fact he needed to nearly carry the president off a landing strip, the book claims”; “Signals from the military were also hazy, with fears that some soldiers could take out both Yar’Adua and Jonathan.”
Since Adeniyi knew this fact about how the late President was covered up in Togo and much more to prevent what Nigerians needed to know, and which could have changed the course of Nigeria’s history, why did this guy not open up or simply resign? That would be too much to expect from one who was aspiring to greater things within the ranks of “Nigeria, Inc”, wouldn’t it? If you haven’t, please check outhttp://emotanafricana.com/2011/09/13/nigeria-inc/.
I think the book belongs in history’s trash heap even before the billions roll in at what would be its massive Nigerian presentation where the late president’s loyalists, people of timber and caliber will fall over each other to see who pays the most – as usually happens at such events in Nigeria.
Mr. Adeniyi, you cannot deceive Nigerians; may be you should have waited another twenty years to write this book. Otherwise, you must accept all the vilifications already coming your way from bloggers on the saharareporters write-up.
Dear readers, here are just three of the many comments I must have made regarding Adeniyi’s tenure as presidential spokesman, including the near-treasonous role in the late Yar Adua saga about his illness; first, the one about the book onSaharareporters.com last Friday:
SHUT UP, Adeniyi!
Submitted by tola adenle on December 9, 2011 – 17:14.
If Adeniyi has any decency left, he should just shut up but then, he would not be a true Nigerian and I mean that in the sense of the Nigerian type that profits from all sides of any issue. This guy featured prominently among those who worked hard at deceiving Nigeria during the late president’s illness; I wrote about him several times in essays and blogs on this site, THE NATION, 234NEXT, etcetera. Now, he believes we’ve all forgotten. The book is a travesty borne of greed and another attempt to deceive not only Nigerians but to earn a name in the world after his diploma/fellowship at Harvard. It’s too early, Alhaji(?) Adeniyi to think we’ve all forgotten your disgraceful and ignominous role. emotanafricana.com
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FROM: “Hypocrite of a woman” stars in 1st Institutional Awards for non-excellence”. The Nation on Sunday, December 2009.
Pardon the back-dredging, I did reveal “hypocrite of a woman” in the awards of non-excellence as the Honorable Dora Akunyili, “Madam Great Nation”. And the “hypocrite of a woman” was borrowed from a line by a blogger.
“Aso Rock Propagandist Alhaji Segun Adeniyi, a.k.a. Senior Adviser on Media, SAM for black-same-as-white principles. CITATION: You seem to have lost your voice these days … ceding spokesmanship to PDP’s loquacious Alkali whose Northern Nigeria owns the country. You employ “media contractors”(MCs) to plant misinformation. Here’s only one: your claims and that of a suspected MC on NigComSat seemed to dovetail: suggested China superiority in satellite technology which I pointed out in ‘Borrowed robes’ last December “can hold water only in Nigeria because most who understand these things do not read such interviews … ”. Wear this medallion on top of your “borrowed robes” whenever you are among Nigeria, Inc. fellow travelers.”
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FROM: The Nation, 24 Feb 2010. Blog on news story, “Yar Adua returns”
TOLA ADENLE Unrated ( Author/Admin).
Now, let’s hear Black-Same-As-White Alhaji Segun Adeniyi Spin this disgraceful happening. Why would the same Nigerians from whom prayers were requested for Alhaji Yar Adua be barred from seeing his pictures even if carried from the plane? This man left in the night and came back in the night; what does that say of his rule of law mantra?
With the so-called FEC delegation, the cabal around the Alhaji knew the game was up and it was time for their last card. It won’t work. Yar Adua has to first present himself – even if on his sick bed and apologize to Nigeria for the embarrassment he has caused 150 million people …
Is this a country or a fiefdom? It is a blight on the soul to be numbered among whom a few deranged and selfish individuals control such power over.
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FROM: “Chile: ‘great country’, with incredible leadership & really ‘good people’, wows the world!” The Nation on
Sunday, October 2010 on the San Jose, Chile mine collapse and how its government handled the rescue as opposed to how Nigeria’s leader would have handled it.
“Camp Hope where families waited – and hoped – would be named for the Nigerian president, and the capsule, Fenix 2, would bear the unimaginative moniker, ‘Abuja 37’; [ Remember Obasanjo“Super gun” during his presidency?]. Meanwhile, the Senator in charge of finding a first-class driller would look East to China where it’s easier to do Nigeria’s type of business; [Remember Nigeria’s “lost” Made in China communication Satelite and Late Yar Adua’s spokesman, Adeniyi’s contention regarding China’s 'superior' satellite capability?]. Materials for the capsule would be ‘sourced’ from junk metals at Owode-Onirin, Lagos – sebi na di same! That hypertensive/diabetic would go first, having “settled” officials, and would die mid-tunnel which would cause panic among remaining miners. Or, the generator “sourced” from China to work the winch would not arrive [Remember the Outdoor Broadcasting equipment whose documents Rebranding Dr. Akunyili of “Great Nation” fame merely “submitted to FEC”? Not aware it ever arrived.] Anyway, another would be “sourced” from a ‘Do Your Worst Rental Co.’ at Abuja but would park up around the caisson, which would shatter from capsule impact, shower concrete down and kill the six rescuers underneath. The stuck capsule and tunnel would become useless, necessitating a new hole. The hypertensive/diabetic and other infirm would die of cardiac arrest; the others of despondency.
Oh, I nearly forgot: ‘religious leaders’, often indistinguishable from Political Excellencies, would ask Nigerians to thank God who has a reason for everything, and the president would solemnly proclaim: ‘the miners did not die in vain’!