By Daud Olatunji
In the last three weeks , the name of the Ogun State First Lady , Mrs Olufunsho Amosun, went viral on social media alleging that the fair complexioned woman has been arrested in London while attempting to smuggle a huge sum of foreign currency into the United Kingdom. In fact, the allegation was so widespread that many people in the state began to believe it. To worsen the situation, the First Lady was incommunicado in the heat of the rumour.
Olufunsho Amosun: Her first official appearance after the allegation
Vanguard’s findings revealed that, indeed the woman travelled out of the country at the instance of Nigeria’s first lady, Mrs Aisha Buhari on a trip simply described as national assignment. In fact, the purveyor of the allegation initially threatened to ‘expose’ the wife of the state Governor if she fails to either address the press or show her face at a public function to debunk the claim that she was in jail in a foreign land.
At the first round, the purveyors gave her 24 hours within which she should have come out and explained her role in the allegation. After the ultimatum, there was no denial, she was given another 48 hours, failure which they threatened that they would make public how she was arrested.
Brain behindallegation
After the expiration of the 48 hours, the brain behind the allegation made good their threats and unleashed their ‘expose’. According to them, Amosun’s wife was arrested in London by interpol as she was trying to stash $300,000 in a foreign bank . They confidently claimed that her husband,the governor of the state, Senator Ibikunle Amosun had been up and down to save his wife who according to them was trapped.
This allegation generated a lot of reactions from both pro and anti-Amosun public . Those for Amosun defended the first family while the opposition insisted that the family was capable of that criminal act. The vituperation continued on the social media while the State correspondents were sceptical about filing the report due to the fear of libel. The pin-dropped silence approach adopted by governor Amosun worsened the situation as his posture made many to believe the allegation was not too far from the truth.
The governor’s failure to appoint media aides who would have redeemed the image of the first family in the state added salt to the injury. But, few days after the allegation had gone viral, wife of the State Governor cleared the air on the rumour of her purported arrest and detention in London over alleged laundering of about $300,000.(US).
Mrs. Amosun said it was not true that she was arrested or detained in London or any other part of the world for the alleged money laundering offence or any other crime for that matter. The governor’s wife stated that the rumour of her purported arrest making the rounds on social media in recent times was a concoction and a figment of the imagination of mischief makers and the authors of such rumour.
The State’s First Lady who made her first appearance in public since the rumour of her purported arrest for alleged money laundering in London went viral on the social media, debunked the claim while answering questions from newsmen in Abeokuta, the state capital, shortly after distributing free milk and other items to hundreds of expectant and lactating mothers at the State Hospital in the Ijaiye area on behalf of the wife of the President, Hajia Aisha Buhari who was the donor.
Moneylaundering
Mrs. Amosun stressed that she had never been involved in money laundering or any other crime and would never contemplate anything like that, adding that her husband, Governor Ibikunle Amosun remained a man of integrity who would not condone such things. The governor’s wife said; “Well, I thank you for that and I’m glad that you called it a rumour. I never did anything of that nature. But as you can see me to the glory of God, it’s not my portion; it shall never be my portion and I believe that you know your Governor, His Excellency, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, I’m sure you know he’ll never be involved in anything that is associated with money laundering or anything negative like that.
So, as you said, it’s a rumour and it shall remain so. It didn’t happen, it hasn’t happened and it shall not happen.” However, the critics had refused to contradict the wife of the State Governor over the claim putting an end to the allegation. In what could be described as belated response to the weighty allegation, the Secretary to the State Government, SSG, Taiwo Adeoluwa, reacted to the spate of criticisms against the state government in the mainstream and social media.
According to Adeoluwa, the cynical opposition have now chosen this period to orchestrate a campaign of calumny not only against the governor but his family as well.
Oppositionelements
“The most unconscionable of the lies being peddled by these opposition elements is that the wife of the Governor was arrested in London. Nothing could be further from the truth. Mrs Olufunso Amosun is a paragon of decency and an example of all that is noble. These false allegations are totally condemnable. The quest for power need not descend to this level of infamy.
“While noting that government would not be deterred by the name-calling and malicious lies, the state scribe called on the public to be weary of mischief makers and failed politicians now in the borrowed regalia of public defenders and their media hacks.
“Adeoluwa said the state government would remain focused on its mission to rebuild Ogun and make its residents secure. Meanwhile, Amosun’s wife while speaking during the distribution of the milk supplement donated by the wife of the President, Mrs. Amosun assured that Hajia Buhari remained committed to the breastfeeding of babies by nursing mothers.
According to her, “That can only come from a woman of passion and empathy who is in the person of the wife of our President, Hajia Aisha Muhammadu Buhari who has decided to send milk which is called Frisomum which is actually like a nutritional milk for mothers because she likes breastfeeding babies, so she wouldn’t like to support a programme that would negate mothers breastfeeding their babies.
But this milk is actually of nutritional value to expectant mothers and nursing mothers and she has sent this milk to all the wives of the governors across the Federation and asked the wives of the governors to actually deliver them to expectant mothers in state hospitals and this is what I’ve come to do here today. I feel that is a worthwhile and passionate programme.” She assured that the mission to rebuild the programme of her husband’s administration would continue in his second term with a renewed vigour.
Renewedvigour
Amosun advised expectant and lactating mothers to eat a balanced diet and take care of their bodies to stay healthy during and after pregnancy, adding that this would aid development of their babies. Mrs Amosun said this during the second phase of the distribution of the Friscomum Gold nutritional supplement donated by the wife of the President of Nigeria, Hajia Aisha Muhammadu Buhari to expectant and lactating mothers at the State Hospital, Ijebu-ode.
At the occasion, Amosun’s wife advised the pregnant women to take good care of themselves during pregnancy and be committed to the use of the medications prescribed by their doctors. She noted that the donation was in line with the agenda of the All Progressive Congress to uplift the lives of women, saying the supplement shows that ‘Hajia Buhari, and the President are committed to the healthcare of women to reduce maternal and infant mortality. ‘
Responding the Permanent Secretary, Hospital Management Board, Mrs. Modupe Olurin, a pharmacist, commended the initiative of the wife of the President, saying it would go a long way to add value to the health of the mothers.
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