… Berates opposition politicians for stirring controversy

… Says Tinubu deserves praise, not scorn

The recent controversy surrounding First Lady Oluremi Tinubu’s advice to Nigerians to engage in small-scale businesses such as selling akara, groundnuts and kulikuli has been described as a deliberate misrepresentation by political opponents.

A governorship aspirant, Abass Mimiko, who contested the Ondo State governorship election on the platform of the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), stated that the backlash was an orchestrated campaign by opposition figures to discredit President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

The younger brother of former Governor of Ondo State, Olusegun Mimiko, stated this while speaking with members of the Correspondents Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Akure, the state capital, on Wednesday.

According to Mimiko, the criticism directed at the First Lady was unfounded, stressing that her comments had been blown out of proportion by those with political motives.

The former governorship candidate argued that the primary responsibility of the First Lady is to provide support for the President and ensure stability on the home front while he concentrates on governing the country.

He emphasised that governing Nigeria was an enormous task, stressing that Tinubu was taking difficult decisions aimed at rescuing the country from what he described as economic, political and social bankruptcy.

According to Mimiko, reforms such as the removal of the fuel subsidy and efforts to ensure greater accountability in crude oil revenue had unsettled powerful interests that previously benefited from the system.

“You don’t remove the fuel subsidy; you don’t tell everybody that proceeds from crude oil must go into NNPC accounts before export without stepping on powerful toes. There are powerful syndicates, local and international, that are offended by all of these.

“So, for the First Lady to be there, staying strong for the president and keeping him safe, among other duties, we have to appreciate her.”

Mimiko, who harped on the interventions of the First Lady’s Renewed Hope Initiative, emphasised that it had recorded reasonable achievements in healthcare, women’s empowerment and humanitarian support.

He cited her contributions to breast cancer prevention and treatment; tuberculosis control; assistance to widows and orphans of military personnel; food and nutrition programmes for vulnerable Nigerians; as well as initiatives designed to create more opportunities for women.

The former governorship candidate insisted that the achievements deserved greater public attention than the controversy surrounding her recent remarks.

He further argued that the First Lady’s constitutional status differs from that of elected public officials and that Nigerians should appreciate rather than vilify her for her efforts.