Kperogi’s false claims on Osinbajo

By Fejiro Johnson

For one who prides himself as a “professor, journalist, newspaper columnist, author, that earned a Master of Science degree in communication and Ph.D. in communication,’ Farooq Kperogi should know better.

One can say Kperogi has rightly earned his stripes as an academic. But attempting to amplify fake news and falsehood on any platform is definitely another low for someone who has a PHD in communications!

Kperogi claimed in his article “Pantami is My Friend, But He Can’t Be Defended” he published on Saturday, April 17, that “Yemi Osinbajo, for instance, has been accused of being an intolerant, narrow-minded Christian extremist who wallows in his Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) bubble, who employs only Yoruba people who belong to the RCCG…”

Mr. Kperogi must have penned these in a blur of incomprehension as this is acutely inaccurate.

He did not hide his unfounded bias when he went further in his attempt to rehash false claims on Osinbajo in his follow-up article on Sunday, April 18, “When You Piss Off Two Extremist Groups on Opposite Ends”

Kperogi wrote, “The Pentecostal partisans, particularly of the RCCG crowd, are ticked off that I mentioned Yemi Osinbajo’s name in the column, even though I made it clear that while he (Osinbajo) has been accused of RCCG bigotry with solid evidence, to his credit, he hasn’t been associated with extremist and exclusivist religious rhetoric in his past homilies.”

This is another false representation of VP Osinbajo by Kperogi in his article, and that it was on a subject matter that has no remote bearing to the VP or his person reeks of some sinister motives. But expectedly, the author was called out on social media by many Nigerians who knew better than to gulp his cock and bull tales on the VP.

It is clear that Kperogi based his ridiculous comments on the VP on another ridiculous writeup by one Dr Musbau Akinbode titled “Osinbajo’s Stealth Christianization Agenda”, which was a regurgitation of spurious claims made in 2017 by one Dr. Ismaila Farouk. The claims made against Osinbajo in both articles are dead in the water.

Kperogi’s comments on the VP are not only riddled with inaccuracies and outright falsehood, his attempt to subtly give wings to discredited opinions by fake news merchants should be condemned for what is it, a communication gaffe.

VP Osinbajo respects and sees everyone first as Nigerian, regardless of tribe, ethnicity or faith and this shows in the composition of staff in the Office of the Vice President, which has already been described as a mini-Nigeria.

Like Dr. Balkisu Saidu, a Muslim Presidential aide in the VP’s office, rightly put it, “The level of diversity accomplished in the office (of the VP) reflects all segments of the society – geo-political, ethnic, religious, gender and youth representation. It is therefore inconceivable for anyone to suggest marginalisation or “Christianization” in appointments and religious bigotry.”

“Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is as authentic as he presents – he is a humane, compassionate, detribalised patriotic Nigerian, who is committed to the service of Nigeria and Nigerians in a fair, honest, transparent and accountable manner.”

This is not the first time Kperogi would pen article based on hearsays or outright falsehood. But this is one gone too far. As a supposed communications professor, Keprogi should be familiar the timeless quote by C. P. Scott in his 1921 essay: that “Comments are free but facts are sacred.”

It feels needless to point out the superiority of facts over fiction and baseless claims, especially to one who is expected to know about the validity of facts in communications. But, as it seems, Kperogi might need further schooling in this area.

Indeed, as Kperogi stated in his article, it is his “choice whom he choses to reference in his own column”, but responsibility and simple decency demands that you do not give voice to falsehood to drive home a disjointed point.

Kperogi should have realized that he was clutching on straws when he based his jaundiced comments on the VP on baseless claims by fake news merchants and promoters on social media. He would do well to jump off that fake news train as it would only leads to ignominy, especially for someone in the academia.