The Okoya family has rejected claims made by Fatai Okoya, the estranged son of billionaire industrialist Razaq Okoya, regarding his position as his father’s first child.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

It will be recalled that Fatai recently made a public appeal to reconcile with his 86-year-old father after being estranged from him for about four decades, describing the alleged rejection as painful.

He also claimed to be the industrialist’s first child and accused his father’s wife, Shade Okoya, of preventing him from seeing the billionaire on his birthday.

However, in a statement issued through Eleganza Industries Ltd and signed by the company’s Senior Public Relations Manager, Nathaniel Omeninwan, the Okoya family described Fatai’s public appeal as an attempt to gain sympathy and unfairly portray other members of the family in a negative light.

The family maintained that Fatai’s disagreement with his father began several years before Razaq married Shade, adding that Fatai is actually the billionaire’s third child.

It further stated that Fatai had received substantial financial assistance from his father over the years, including the provision of four flats in Ogunlana, Surulere, Lagos, where he currently resides. The family also disclosed that the billionaire had occasionally paid Fatai’s medical bills.

According to the statement, Razaq Okoya has supported all his children, including those who chose to establish independent businesses, and it would be unfair to overlook the assistance he has provided.

The family added that the billionaire had repeatedly stated that any of his children who refused to respect and abide by his wishes would have to take responsibility for themselves.

The statement read: “The Okoya family finds it regrettable that Fatai Okoya (who is in fact the third child of Aare Rasaq Okoya, CON) has dragged what are otherwise private family matters into the public domain to attract public sympathy, gain attention and unjustifiably discredit other family members. Fatai Okoya fell out with his father and stopped visiting him long before his father married Chief Mrs Shade Okoya, MON.

“Aare Rasaq Okoya, CON, has also publicly stated on numerous occasions that any child of his who is not prepared to respect, appreciate and abide by his wishes is on their own.

“Fatai Okoya has benefited immensely from his father and continues to benefit. He lives in, and has been given, four flats by his father in Ogunlana Surulere, and has at times been receiving payment for his medical bills.”

The family also recalled that more than 40 years ago, four influential friends intervened in the dispute between Fatai and his father in an attempt to resolve the disagreement.

According to the statement, the individuals held an overnight meeting and, despite their surprise at Fatai’s demands, recommended that Razaq settle him in accordance with what he had requested. The family said the recommendation was subsequently implemented.

The statement further addressed the incident at the medical outreach organised to mark Razaq’s 86th birthday, where Shade was introduced to Fatai.

The family explained that another relative advised Fatai that the birthday medical outreach was not an appropriate setting to discuss his unresolved issues with his father.

It said Fatai accepted the advice and left the venue. The family also insisted that Shade merely exchanged pleasantries with him and made no other comments, adding that several guests witnessed the encounter.

The statement continued: “Aare and Chief Mrs Okoya, and indeed the entire Rasaq Okoya family, are very quiet, private and easygoing citizens focused on their family, their charitable work and their businesses.

“Chief Mrs Okoya respects her husband and his wishes. They do not intend to turn private affairs into disputes to air or discuss on social media. No misunderstanding can be settled online.”

The family maintained that it had no intention of turning its private disagreements into a public controversy, insisting that family disputes should be resolved privately rather than through social media.

President Bola Tinubu will lead top chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to Kaduna on Saturday for the party’s first presidential campaign rally ahead of the January 16, 2027, election.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Former presidential aide Laolu Akande has claimed that some individuals within President Bola Tinubu’s inner circle do not want former Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola to be part of the current administration because he would not tolerate certain practices within the government.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

News reports that Akande made the allegation during an interview on the Naija Unfiltered Podcast.

Akande suggested that Fashola’s absence from the administration could partly be attributed to fatigue, but maintained that resistance from some people close to the President was a more significant factor.

According to the former presidential aide, Fashola is known for standing firmly by his principles and would not compromise to accommodate individuals engaging in practices he considers unacceptable.

He said, “I think the reason why Fashola is not in this government, two reasons. I think Fashola himself has a bit of fatigue, more importantly, I think there are people around the president who don’t want to see Fashola because Fashola is not going to tolerate many of those things that you are seeing around.”

Akande further described Fashola as someone who would not tolerate what he considered inappropriate conduct, suggesting that this attitude might have made some individuals within Tinubu’s circle uncomfortable.

He added, “Whatever you say about Fashola, he doesn’t take nonsense and the people who wanted to get some nonsense going, they didn’t want Fashola.”

The former presidential aide, however, noted that Fashola remained close to Tinubu and had not experienced any major public fallout with the President.

He suggested that although there had been no openly acknowledged confrontation between the two politicians, some underlying tensions might exist in their relationship.

Akande said, “Even somebody like Fashola, who is still very close to the president, no problems openly, although they are also under current which he will speak about, but at least he didn’t have any blowout problem with the man.”