Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, has said the president has “no case to answer” over the ongoing controversy surrounding FBI records linked to him.
Olusegun made the comment in a video interview circulated on X on Thursday, September 3, 2026, while accusing former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi of recycling allegations that failed to defeat Tinubu in previous elections.
Olusegun Defends Tinubu
Speaking in the approximately four-minute interview aired by News Century Television, Olusegun dismissed allegations concerning Tinubu’s past dealings in the United States.
He described the claims promoted by opposition figures as old narratives that were used during the 2019 and 2023 election campaigns.
According to Olusegun, similar claims would not prevent the president from winning again in 2027.
FBI Records Remain Under Scrutiny
The comments come amid renewed attention to US government records linked to Tinubu in an ongoing Freedom of Information Act case in the United States.
A sworn FBI declaration filed in late August 2026 stated that some responsive records were compiled as part of an FBI investigation involving multiple individuals over drug trafficking crimes in the early 1990s.
A US court had earlier ruled that the FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration could no longer rely on “Glomar” responses to neither confirm nor deny whether records concerning Tinubu existed.
What The FOIA Case Concerns
The FOIA requests, pursued by American transparency activist Aaron Greenspan, seek records including what has been described as the “entire FBI file” on Tinubu and interview materials connected to a 1992–1993 investigation.
The controversy also includes a 1990s civil forfeiture involving approximately $460,000 linked to an account in Tinubu’s name.
However, Nigerian courts, including the Presidential Election Petition Court proceedings in 2023, did not find that Tinubu had been arrested, arraigned, convicted or sentenced in a related US criminal proceeding.
Tinubu Team Opposes Further Disclosure
Tinubu’s legal team has asked the US court to reject further unredacted disclosure of the records, citing privacy protections and arguing that the requests do not meet the relevant public-interest requirements under US FOIA law.
His lawyers have also argued that the matter has political implications in Nigeria and maintained that the absence of an indictment and the civil nature of the forfeiture should not be interpreted as proof of criminal guilt.
Atiku, Obi Demand More Transparency
Atiku has called for greater disclosure of the records, arguing that broad claims about potential risks to individuals should not be used to prevent Nigerians from obtaining information relevant to public accountability.
Obi and other opposition figures have also continued to raise questions about Tinubu’s past and the contents of the US records.
Supporters of the president, including Reno Omokri, have maintained that Tinubu has no current criminal case in the United States and that the existence of government records does not automatically amount to a criminal record.
FOIA Case Still Ongoing
Olusegun’s remarks have generated mixed reactions online, with supporters backing the administration’s position while critics continue to demand the release of more records.
The US FOIA litigation remains ongoing, and no new criminal charge against Tinubu in the United States has been reported in connection with the decades-old investigation.
