How Obasanjo received rumoured involvement of son, Gbenga

Fears on Thursday gripped many residents of
Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital following
rumours of the involvement of Gbenga, the
first son of former President Olusegun
Obasanjo in the crash of the Associated Airline
plane in Lagos.
The news which was first circulated through
the social media filled many residents of the
state capital with fears and apprehension as
many started mourning with the Obasanjo
family over the tragedy.
Obasanjo himself received the news during a
photo session with primary school pupils who
had come for a leadership training
programme at the Olusegun Obasanjo
Presidential Library, Abeokuta.
The rumour of the involvement of his first son
in the plane crash came to his father as a
rude shock.
Obasanjo had just finished addressing over
400 head boys and head girls of primary
schools from Lagos, Ogun and Oyo states who
had converged at the Olusegun Obasanjo
Presidential Library, Abeokuta for the
workshop tagged “Leadership Training for
Young Leaders” when a caller informed him on
the phone about the rumoured involvement of
his son in the crash.
The ex-President was already seated in front
of the auditorium along with other dignitaries,
including the Chairman of the Governing
Board of the Centre for Human Security, Prof.
Akin Mabogunje; the director of the centre,
Prof. Peter Okebukula; and the participating
pupils for a photo session when his phone
rang and the caller at the other end informed
him of his son’s involvement in the plane
crash.
Our correspondent who was at the event
heard Obasanjo shouting on top of his voice
to the caller at the other end in Yoruba,
saying, “Gbenga wo! O wa ni Abuja!” meaning
“which Gbenga, he’s in Abuja.”
The former President, whose countenance
immediately changed, ended the call and
became uncomfortable throughout the few
minutes that the photo session lasted.
Immediately the photo session was over,
Obasanjo grabbed Mabogunje’s hand and
started moving to the left side of the OOPL
with Okebukola and other dignitaries and his
security aides in tow.
They went into one of the chalets at the end
of the library complex where they spent about
40 minutes and later drove off to an unknown
destination.
The programme however continued as many
of the workshop participants who apparently
were not aware of the tragedy returned to the
main hall.
When our correspondent later visited
Obasanjo’s Hilltop mansion, security
operatives at the entrance were seen going
about their normal duty, an indication that
nothing had gone wrong with the family.