Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has downplayed the uproar that followed her brief exchange with Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, during the 10th coronation anniversary of the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi.
In a statement shared on her official Facebook page Tuesday, Mrs. Tinubu said the online reactions were exaggerated and driven by those who “magnify minor issues.”
According to her, “Those entrusted with leadership understand their duties and how to steer the affairs of society. More often, it is the followers and critics who scrutinise every step, amplify minor missteps, and turn them into needless controversy. Ọṣun lè tèǹtẹ̀ — Osun is ahead.”
The comment comes days after a video from the event went viral, showing Governor Adeleke momentarily stopping his speech after he launched into a brief song. In the clip, the First Lady approached him at the podium and whispered to him, a gesture that ignited a storm of interpretations across social media platforms.
Tuesday’s statement is the First Lady’s first public reaction to the trending footage.
Reactions Split Across Political Lines
The moment has continued to draw mixed responses.
Akintunde Bello, Senior Special Assistant to Governor Adeleke on the Bureau of Social Services, condemned the First Lady’s action, describing it as disrespectful toward an elected governor.
Similarly, African Democratic Congress (ADC) chieftain, Dele Momodu, accused Mrs. Tinubu of embarrassing Adeleke “before a global audience,” calling the intervention unnecessary and heavy-handed.
On the other hand, supporters of the First Lady dismissed the outrage as overblown.
Dayo Fashola, an aide to former Osun State governor Adegboyega Oyetola, argued on Facebook that the exchange was “light-hearted” and had been misinterpreted for political purposes.
“The situation is not as serious as people are trying to paint it,” she wrote.
As reactions persist, both camps continue to frame the incident through sharply different lenses — a testament to the highly politicised atmosphere surrounding public officeholders in the country.
