A member of the Governance Advisory Council (GAC) in Lagos State, Muraina Taiwo, has confirmed that the alleged rift between President Bola Tinubu and Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has been resolved.
Taiwo, who spoke with Punch in a telephone interview on Sunday, said the misunderstanding was now a thing of the past.
“Everything they are saying, God has resolved it. The father (Tinubu) has drawn his son (Sanwo-Olu) closer, and the son has also hugged his father; we are now one in Lagos State.
“It only looked like that, but currently, we are in the meeting, and God has done it,” he said.
Also weighing in, former Ogun State Governor and APC chieftain, Olusegun Osoba, said party leaders had been actively working to mend the cracks between the two leaders.
“You don’t expect that an elder like me will divulge what we are doing. But know that we will not keep quiet and allow the whole thing fester beyond control.
“After all, I am involved in the Lagos and Rivers issues. We are assuring the nation that all will be well,” Osoba said.
The reconciliation follows widespread speculation over the President’s cold disposition toward Sanwo-Olu during his recent visit to Lagos.
At the inauguration of the 30km stretch of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway on May 31, videos circulated on social media showed Tinubu allegedly snubbing Sanwo-Olu during greetings.
The governor was also absent at the commissioning of the 27km Lekki Deep Seaport Road two days earlier, further fuelling concerns of a strained relationship.
Sanwo-Olu’s deputy, Obafemi Hamzat, was at the event but made no speech on behalf of the state, an unusual occurrence in official state functions.
Adding to the unease, Sanwo-Olu was not in Lagos for Sallah celebrations with the President, instead traveling to Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, to receive Governor Umo Eno into the APC.
Meanwhile, pictures of Lagos Assembly Speaker, Mudashiru Obasa, prostrating before Tinubu in Lagos went viral on Saturday, suggesting a growing divide.
However, on Sunday, the President’s media aide, Bayo Onanuga, shared a group photo of Tinubu with Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat, Obasa, and GAC members on X, suggesting a return to normalcy.
Sources close to the Lagos political structure claim the rift predates the recent Lagos Assembly crisis that temporarily saw Obasa removed as speaker before being reinstated.
A source told Punch that Tinubu’s grudge deepened over allegations that Sanwo-Olu funded Atiku Abubakar’s 2023 presidential campaign, an accusation both the Presidency and Atiku’s camp have strongly denied.
The source said, “It is established that there is a rift (between the President and governor). From what I gathered, it was because Sanwo-Olu was said to have given Atiku money during his campaign.
“Recall that at some point, Sanwo-Olu also approached the court to seek an injunction against the EFCC from probing him. The following day, Sanwo-Olu denied it.”
He alleged that the strained relationship led to the governor’s move.
“The Obasa’s issue is just the last straw that broke the camel’s back,” the source added.
While the claims of financial links between Sanwo-Olu and Atiku gained traction in some reports, the Presidency, Atiku, and the EFCC have all dismissed the allegations.
Atiku, through his media adviser, Paul Ibe, called it a “baseless smear campaign.”
In 2024, reports surfaced that Sanwo-Olu had filed a suit against the EFCC to prevent a possible post-tenure arrest. But the Lagos State government, through its Attorney General, Lawal Pedro (SAN), denied the claim.
The EFCC also denied that its ongoing case against Aisha Achimugu, a socialite declared wanted for alleged money laundering—had any connection to Atiku or Sanwo-Olu.