Senator Abdulfatai Buhari representing Oyo North Senatorial District, on Saturday, tackled a ministerial nominee, Bosun Tijani, over an unpatriotic tweet he posted over four years ago.

“On the 21st of July 2019, Dr Bosun tweeted against Nigeria that he does not appreciate the Nigerian passport and Nigeria as a nation,” the Oyo Senator said after 46-year-old Tijani, an Information Technology expert, read his profile to the lawmakers.

“I tweeted in anger,” the ministerial nominee from Ogun State admitted.

Senator Ishaku Abbo representing Adamawa North Senatorial District immediately rose to Tijani’s defense, saying that the nominee tweeted out of a mixture of frustration and love for Nigeria.

Also, Senator Solomon Adeola from Ogun West Senatorial District defended the nominee from his state, saying his “youthful exuberance” and “shortcoming” should be forgiven.

However, the spotlight on Bosun Tijani’s tweets did not end there. Senate Minority Leader, Simon Mwadkwon, raised another tweet he considered “non-patriotic,” this one allegedly posted in 2021. Similarly, Senate Majority Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, referred to Tijani as an “EndSARS protester.” Nonetheless, Bamidele lauded Tijani’s activism and advocacy for his generation.

Senator Bamidele urged his colleagues and the public not to overlook the contributions of young Nigerians like Tijani. He advised forgiveness for his past tweets, noting that the youth should be actively engaged in shaping the nation’s future.

Bamidele said his daughter also protested police brutality and extrajudicial killings in October 2020.

He said Tijani was trying to speak for his generation and should not be haunted for the tweet.

After the candid discussions and amid the scrutiny over Tijani’s tweets, the nominee expressed regret for his previous non-patriotic remarks. Senate President Godswill Akpabio accepted Tijani’s apology, acknowledging that everyone makes mistakes. He assured the Senate’s commitment to judging nominees based on their qualifications and potentials, regardless of past incidents.