Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has suspended his Senior Special Assistant on Print Media, Wale Ajetunmobi.
The suspension was announced in a statement released on Tuesday, November 26, by the governor’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Gboyega Akosile.
The statement, titled “Governor Sanwo-Olu Suspends Aide,” cited the misrepresentation of facts on Ajetunmobi’s personal X account regarding a past incident as the reason for the action.
Akosile emphasized that the Sanwo-Olu administration strongly opposes any form of extra-judicial measures and is committed to upholding due process.
“This is not who we are,” he stated, reaffirming the government’s stance against actions that contradict its principles.
“That is not our way,” he added.
Wale Ajetunmobi’s X account, operating under the handle #Riddwane, no longer displays the controversial tweet, as it has since been deleted.
In the now-deleted post, Ajetunmobi claimed that individuals responsible for the arson attack on Television Continental, TVC, during the 2020 #EndSARS protests had been hunted down and executed.
The suspended aide further alleged that one of those executed was a young boy, whose name he withheld, a cooking gas vendor in the Ketu area of Lagos.
According to Ajetunmobi, the boy was found in possession of an AK-47 rifle.
The tweet read, “The full story of people who burnt down TVC in 2020 will be told one day, with gory clips and images. One thing to note: majority of them have been hunted down and executed.
“One of them, a young boy trading in cooking gas around Ketu, was found with an AK-47 at the site. Even his neighbours were shocked. But the full gist is better saved for later.”
Reacting to the tweet, an X user asked, “Are you in the know of extra-judicial killings?”
In his response, the suspended aide wrote, “Lol… you want to create a narrative in your head. What is extra-judicial killing here? Some of the people were chased by soldiers and an exchange of fire occurred. Then arsonists were overpowered and killed in the process. Others ran away. Is that an extra-judicial killing to you?”
In a tweet posted early Tuesday, Wale Ajetunmobi clarified that the term executed in his earlier post was erroneously used. He emphasized that the tweet represented his personal opinion and did not reflect the views of his employer or his office.
Ajetunmobi further stressed that there was no intention to suggest or imply any act of extra-judicial killing.
The tweet read, “This excerpt was quoted out of context and there were series of comments made under the same post, which better explained what was intended. Like I did further explained in the said tweet, no extra-judicial killing was insinuated. The word ‘executed’ was erroneously used and not intended in the context of that casual conversation.
“What was written in the entire conversation reflected personal opinion and not the position of any authority or the entity in which I work. The post and other comments had been taken down, even before this publication.”
At least 250 employees of TVC in Ikosi, Ketu, Lagos, were left unable to perform their duties after arsonists set the station ablaze.
The attack destroyed key facilities, including transmission equipment, state-of-the-art studios, production rooms, and operational vehicles. Staff members also lost personal cars in the fire.
TVC’s Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Hanlon, revealed that over 500 direct employees have been struggling to operate from temporary accommodations arranged by the company.
Hanlon shared these details during a visit by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to the station’s management and staff.
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