Laolu Akande, a seasoned journalist and former media adviser to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, has publicly expressed his disappointment and embarrassment over the Buhari-led administration’s inability to fulfill its promise to tackle corruption. 

In a recent online Space, Akande acknowledged that the government squandered the opportunity to address corruption, despite his own involvement in the administration. 

He clarified that his role was limited to speaking on behalf of the Vice President and government, and did not involve executive powers. 

Akande emphasised that President Buhari, as the Minister of Petroleum, bore responsibility for addressing corruption in the oil sector. 

He now urged the new administration under President Tinubu to make up for lost time and fulfill the promises made in 2015, particularly in combating corruption.

“The reality of what happened during the Buhari administration was that when it came to fighting corruption, the government failed. The administration did not fulfill its promise to eradicate corruption, and it’s very embarrassing. Now, people say, “Hey, you are part of it.” But yes, I served as the media head for the vice president. You might ask, did you try to address the issue while you were there? Well, my job was to speak for the Vice President and, by extension, for the government. I didn’t have an executive role, okay?

“The President himself was the Minister of Oil, so I’ll admit, the administration missed the opportunity to solve the problem, and I’m personally embarrassed about that. I’ve said it publicly before. This is not the first time I’m mentioned it, but the truth is, we have to face it. I’ve even gone as far as explaining that. Now, what has happened is that the Nigerian electorate has given the APC another chance to ensure that the promises made in 2015 are fulfilled.

“I believe that the APC has wasted eight years of Nigeria’s time, and I’m personally disappointed. But the reality is that this is what we have to deal with. I’ve publicly stated that President Tinubu is the one who has the opportunity now to make up for all that for the party and the country. So I’m not going to make excuses. I mean, many of us joined the campaign in 2015. I personally joined the campaign in 2014 because I supported the idea that Buhari was coming up, okay? We all felt that he was not corrupt and would work to solve the country’s problems. I personally got involved when they picked Osinbajo as vice president. I said, “Okay, if these people chose someone like Osinbajo, they must mean business.” And I went to serve with him.

“But today is not the day to talk about everything that happened during that time. Nigerians who paid attention saw the difference when we took action in this country. But I don’t want to get into that because it will open up a whole lot of other things. But to answer your question, yes, the government that I served in did not solve the problem of corruption. That’s the truth,” Olaolu stated.