Late Akingboye’s son to aide: Stop dishonouring my father’s memory with lies

Zion Akinbamidele Akingboye, son of the late governorship candidate and businessman, Otunba Bamidele Akingboye (OBA), has issued a rebuttal to claims by his father’s former aide, Mr. Oyeniyi Iwakun, accusing him of spreading falsehoods and deliberately dishonouring his father’s memory.

In a statement, Zion described Iwakun’s recent press statement as “a brazen compilation of lies, distortions and deliberate suppression of verifiable facts,” insisting that his public denial of OBA’s medical history was reckless and dishonest.

Reacting to Iwakun’s assertion that OBA never suffered from mental illness, Zion said the claim exposed “either a shocking ignorance or calculated deceit” by someone who purported to be close to the deceased.

“For the avoidance of doubt, my father was medically diagnosed as far back as 2019 with Bipolar Affective Disorder with psychotic symptoms by qualified psychiatrists in Nigeria,” he stated, adding that he was compelled to speak publicly only because of what he called “the reckless weaponisation of lies.”

Zion disclosed that medical records exist and are available to confirm the diagnosis, stressing that Nigerian health facilities, including Southern Gem Hospital, can independently attest to his father’s condition and treatment history.

He added that upon OBA’s return to Nigeria at the time, he was assessed at Synthesiz Psychological Health Consultants by Dr. Femi Olugbile, a former Chief Medical Director, who independently diagnosed him with Bipolar Affective Disorder, Manic Phase, a finding consistent with earlier Nigerian medical evaluations.

According to Zion, throughout his father’s political activities and election campaigns, the family took deliberate steps to ensure proper management of his mental health, including medical supervision, treatment, rest and controlled public engagements.

He accused Iwakun of hypocrisy, alleging that he was fully aware of OBA’s condition. Zion stated that in July 2019, Iwakun personally brought his father home after a youth meeting where he was experiencing a manic episode while addressing the audience.

He further alleged that on the same occasion, Iwakun recorded a video of OBA speaking incoherently in public, which he described as “demeaning and exploitative,” and said the video was only deleted after the intervention of a family friend, Mr. Wale Kalejaiye, to prevent it from being used for blackmail.

Describing Iwakun’s current posture as “wilful and morally indefensible,” Zion further alleged that he was working with “mischievous and self-serving family members pursuing pecuniary gains” by pushing false narratives surrounding his father’s life and death.

He stressed that acknowledging OBA’s medical condition does not diminish his achievements or legacy, but warned that the deliberate falsification of medical facts and public misinformation would not go unchallenged.

“The truth will not be buried, and lies will not stand,” Zion declared, calling on Iwakun to stop “dishonouring my father’s memory with falsehoods.”