Aregbesola, Banire’s Unresolved Feud
Until recently, both the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, and Muiz Banire, a former Chairman of the Board of Directors, Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria, AMCON, could be said to have a lot of things in common.
Apart from the fact that they are both chieftains of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, they were once top cabinet members of the former Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led administration in Lagos. While Banire was the commissioner of transportation, Aregbesola was Commissioner for works.
But today, both men no longer see eye to eye, and the reason for the enmity is not far -fetched.
A source disclosed that Aregebesola parted ways with Banire, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, owing to his perceived disloyalty to Tinubu and, by extension, the party.
Many will recall how Banire had kicked against some of Asiwaju Tinubu’s decisions, and also frowned on his godfatherism.
In fact, he reportedly lambasted his former boss in the build-up to the 2019 governorship election.
This got many of Tinubu’s loyalists angry. It was so bad that it nearly caused him the AMCON chairmanship position.
Although he has since been forgiven by Tinubu, some of his loyalists still have an axe to grind with him.
Society Watch gathered that, when Banire lost his mother, Alhaja Sarat Banire in 2019, Tinubu paid him a condolence visit at his GRA Ikeja residence.
But Aregbesola, who lives a stone’s throw from Banire, reportedly refused to pay him a condolence visit or called him on the phone to commiserate with him. ‘’That is how bad the enmity is, “a source noted.