Kehinde Akinyemi special assistant on media to former President Olusegun Obasanjo has threatened legal action against AFP for misquoting him on Obasanjo’s trip to Ethiopia.
Mr Akinyemi in a statement said AFP quoted him on Monday as saying Obasanjo was heading to Ethiopia for mediation.
The media aide said he never told the reporter the mission of his boss to the Northern African country.
Akinyemi said the reporter called him on phone around 10 am on Monday to confirm Obasanjo’s destination to Ethiopia after giving a background of the visit, “and, I responded that, ‘he is already on his way’ to the country. No more, no less.”
The media aide continued: “He wanted to know how long the visit would take and I was not happy with such question, which he immediately apologized and bidded me bye.
“It came as a rude shock few hours later, when my boss called me telling me to go and withdraw what a newspaper published about me of having said of his trip. I was surprised and confused.
“I rushed to the site mentioned and to my amazement, I started reading my quoted words, as having said what the former President was going to Ethiopia to do. This is high point of jungle journalism.
“These were the words: ‘He is on his way to Addis Ababa for ‘talks’….’He is going there for mediation.’”
Akinyemi demanded an immediate retraction and apology from the news organisation or he would “approach the courts to seek redress.”
