Femi, in Yoruba language of Western Nigeria, literally means love me. And there is one man who has lived out his name in the service of another.
Femi Adesina, a well-known Nigerian journalist and media personality, has been working with Buhari since he was first elected as Nigeria’s leader in 2015.
Born in Osun state, he worked as a journalist for several years before he was appointed as the Editor-In-Chief of The Sun newspaper. It was during his time at The Sun Newspaper that I started to read him. My dad (of blessed memory) loved newspapers and fell in love with the free flowing and engaging writing style of Femi Adesina that he introduced me to The Sun Newspaper. Almost every Friday, my dad and I would read the back page of Friday Sun newspaper. Over time, I started to send my reactions and contributions to the ‘kulikuli column’.
And surprisingly, almost all my reactions were published in subsequent editions.
Adesina’s job involves managing the President’s image, communicating his policies and achievements to the public, and serving as the spokesperson for the President. In promoting the president’s image, he had a most difficult task at hand and president Buhari couldn’t have chosen a better man. Femi Adesina has proven to be a man that can take a gun for the president. He attracted friends and enemies alike to himself because of his job.
Things I like about him include his large heartedness and way of spicing up his writings with scriptures. I have not met the SA but at a time I needed help, he came through for me. He always, always replies my messages and picks my calls when not busy. He reaches out to me when he does not hear from me for a while especially during festive periods.
Throughout his tenure as the President’s spokesman, Adesina has been both praised and criticized by Nigerians. Supporters of the President hail him as a loyal and competent aide who has helped to improve Buhari’s image and showcase his achievements. Critics, on the other hand, fault him for being too partial and defensive, and for failing to acknowledge the President’s shortcomings. He calls them wailing wailers. I had suggested to him one time that he should resign. Nigerians expected more from him and his boss.
However, he believed his boss meant well for the country and he would continue to serve his boss to the best of his ability.
The holy book says love covers a multitude of sins. The SA loves his boss. He admits that the president, like every other human, has his short comings but he chooses to magnify the good deeds of his boss.
Despite criticisms, Adesina has remained committed to his job and his loyalty to President Buhari remains unquestionable. He has been consistent in his defense of the President, often taking to social media, radio and TV programs to dispel rumors and misinformation about Buhari’s administration. In an interview with The Guardian, he once described the President as “a man who is firm in his convictions, a man of great moral strength, and a man who has a clear vision for Nigeria”. Adesina’s loyalty and dedication to President Buhari has earned him the respect and admiration of many Nigerians. He is seen as a trusted aide who has the President’s best interests at heart, and who is committed to representing him and his administration in the best possible light.
As the curtains fall on this current administration, President Buhari can take a good, long look at his SA on media and publicity and say ‘ well done, thou good and faithful servant ‘.
And we would always remember that there was a Femi who truly loved Buhari.
-Samuel Boaten writes this tribute to Femi Adesina, SA to President Buhari on Media and Publicity from Kumasi, Ghana.
