The family of the late sage, Dr. Olatunji Braithwaite, has criticised a former President of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, over his snide remarks about the late Dr. Braithwaite at the IBB book launch in Abuja last Thursday.

Chief Obasanjo, during the event, referred to Dr Braithwaite as “such a character,” which his family considered offensive and an “apparent attempt to tarnish his hard-earned reputation.”

Addressing a world press conference on Monday at his Lagos home, the only surviving son of the family, Olumide Braithwaite, declared that whoever dares to tarnish the late Dr Braithwaite’s name will have his children and other mass followers to contend with.

“We only fear God, not man. Obasanjo’s ‘bad belle’ charge against Tunji Braithwaite while cautioning IBB to ignore possible criticism that would assail his book is disrespectful.

“We take strong exception to the said comments and hereby join issues with former President Obasanjo, a man renowned for his unbridled penchant for courting trouble.

“As the only surviving son of Dr. Tunji Braithwaite, I will continue to defend the sound life and legacies of my father and mentor. There can’t be a greater responsibility. There can never be ‘bad belle’ for someone who, after descending into obscurity, is always seeking relevance and validation at ceremonial gatherings.

“Rather than extol noble virtues, ex-President Obasanjo prefers to demean revered personalities like my father with snide remarks.

“The legacy is already cemented without the need for man-made titles or self-aggrandizement. And by no means the least, Dr. Braithwaite has immense integrity,” he declared.

According to him, despite never holding any public office or appointment in his lifetime, his father inspired a generation that cut across ethnic-religious boundaries, including professionals, politicians, activists, philosophers, writers, poets, industrialists, and youths—both at home and abroad.

He explained that a more befitting reference to his late father by Chief Obasanjo would have been to describe him as an exemplary nationalist.

He warned Obasanjo to be more careful in his choice of words and more mindful of the context of such comments when discussing history, especially in the presence of military oligarchs and a teeming population of Nigerians watching on television.

The legacy of Nigeria’s military juntas, he said, is nothing to write home about.

“In terms of social justice and equity for its citizens, it is zero, while their penchant for corruption, abuse of the rule of law, state terrorism, and looting of the treasury is 100 per cent.

“There can never be a case of ‘bad belle’ from brave and courageous civilians like the legendary Tunji Braithwaite, who stood up to gun-wielding men in uniform.

“There can never be a case of ‘bad belle’ where former President Obasanjo is still struggling and battling with indictments of misappropriation of alleged billions of dollars that went missing under his regime for the NEPA project, which further sank Nigerians into stark darkness to this day.

“There can never be a case of ‘bad belle’ where, in 2013, his own daughter, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo, accused her father of all manner of atrocities,” he fumed.