March 07, (THEWILL) – A former media aide to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Reuben Abati, has questioned the occupation of President Bola Tinubu’s sons, Seyi and Yinka, and their role in the recent trip of the President to Qatar.
Abati, now a TV anchor, voiced his concerns during Wednesday’s edition of Arise News Channel’s ‘The Morning Show,’ which he co-anchors with others.
THEWILL reports that President Tinubu had departed Lagos on Thursday, for Qatar to strengthen cooperation between the two countries in several areas, including security, cultural exchange, and economic development.
A statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, said the President’s visit is in honour of an invitation by His Highness, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar.
While the President’s two sons, Seyi and Yinka, were part of the delegation that accompanied him to Qatar, Ngelale had in his statement said President Tinubu “will be accompanied on the trip by senior government officials for the signing of agreements”.
Expressing disappointment over the development, Abati chastised Tinubu for allowing Yinka and Seyi as part of his delegation to Qatar and granting them diplomatic precedence over his ministers.
THEWILL reports that President Tinubu had recently said the number of delegations for his foreign trips will be cut down to reduce costs. Sometime in 2023, the President openly rebuked Seyi for having the audacity to join high-level meetings of government at the Aso Rock Villa uninvited, telling his security aides to stop further indulgence of his son at state functions.
But Abati, who also criticised Seyi and Yinka Tinubu for what he called their loitering around the Presidential Villa seat of power in Abuja like “jobless invalids”, described as disturbing a situation where the President’s two sons were reportedly put before ministers on protocol list in Doha, Qatar.
His words: “May we begin to ask, What do the President’s children do for a living? I don’t know specifically how old they are but looking at them, by the time I was their age, I was doing something concrete with my life. I got a PhD at 24. I wasn’t depending on any father.
“What I am saying is that first, Nigerians complain that they should not have been on that list. The issue raised there is that yes if their father is paying for them to be there, fine. I also raised the question if they have relevant qualifications, if they are business people in their own rights, they can bring investment and they will make contributions. Then you will say they have a reason to be there.
“What I found disturbing in that video that we just showed, we just showed the order of protocol. I spent four years studying diplomacy. They were coming on the order of protocol before the Minister of the Federal Republic, what are their roles there that they will be put before the minister?
“People must get to a stage in their lives when they will hold themselves together. I don’t want adults behaving like invalids hanging around just because your father is in a position.
“All these children of privilege sometimes overdo it, and these are boys that would probably have wives at home. Some of these girls, what they go through is very embarrassing. You can’t have a husband that’s just hanging around, that cannot stand on his two feet as a man.’’
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