Rumours are toxic narratives by political opponents, says presidential aide
The Presidency has debunked a rumour that President Bola Tinubu is planning to move the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to Lagos.

It said this on the heels of a rumour that surfaced on social media that the President plans to move the FCT to Lagos State after a department under the Ministry of Aviation, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) moved some of its departments to Lagos.

In a statement, yesterday, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, noted that the rumour started during the 2023 general elections campaign and was trashed.

The statement read: “We have noticed how mischief-makers, bent on fueling needless ethnic mistrust, have deliberately misinterpreted the decision of the Central Bank of Nigeria to relocate its Department of Banking Supervision to Lagos and the directive of the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development that the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) should relocate its head office back to Lagos.

“We consider it necessary to inform Nigerians that there is no iota of truth in the interpretations given to the directives in some quarters and the unfounded claims and rumours that President Bola Tinubu is planning to relocate the Federal Capital back to Lagos.

“These rumours, which first surfaced during the electioneering last year, were sponsored by political opponents looking for all manners of weapons to prevent Asiwaju Tinubu from being elected as president by a section of the country.

“Using the recent decision of the CBN and FAAN as pretext to start another round of toxic opposition, we want to state, unequivocally, that those behind this sordid narrative are dishonest ethnic and regional champions, trying to draw attention to themselves.”

“The movement of FAAN, an agency of the Aviation Ministry, to Lagos, where it was located before former Minister of Aviation, HadiSirika, moved it to Abuja during the last administration, does not amount to moving the Federal Capital to Lagos.

“The administrative move should have ordinarily attracted scant attention, as Lagos is the commercial capital and the hub of aviation business in Nigeria. FAAN will still maintain some presence in Abuja. It is not a wholesale movement.

It added: “Similarly, the movement of the Department of Banking Supervision of the CBN to Lagos should not trigger any discord within the polity. The department deals with commercial banks, almost all of which have their headquarters in Lagos.

“All those pushing this campaign of falsehood and misinformation know they are merely playing politics, albeit a dangerous one, to pit the North against the South.

“There are many parastatals that are not based in Abuja depending on their mandate.

“It must be pointed out that these decisions are purely administrative and should not be politicized by people of goodwill and those who wish our country well.

“President Tinubu-led administration is working tirelessly to be just and equitable to every section of the country. We urge restraint on the part of those whose stock in trade is to create all manner of dangerous rumours to distract every government from the noble objective of meeting the yearnings and aspirations of Nigerians.

“Our citizens desire nothing but good governance that positively impacts their lives. Rumour-mongering is a pernicious disservice to this ultimate expectation of our people.”