The Special Adviser to the President on Communications and Public Guidance, Sunday Dare, has said he did not backstab President Bola Tinubu to accept an appointment in former President Muhammadu Buhari’s government.

Tinubu last Wednesday appointed Sunday Dare as Special Adviser on Communication and Public Orientation.

The former Minister of Sports and Youth Development in the Buhari administration, insisted that accepting his appointment was in response to a national call to duty.

Dare, made the declaration on Thursday night’s Politics Today show on Channels Television, saying that Tinubu supported his appointment, having a role in the emergence of Buhari.

“For every meeting I took, I had his approval. Before I went to NCC, I had his blessing. I never stabbed him. This was a call to national duty, and it was not without his knowledge and support. This was a national duty and I had his blessings.”

“When you are appointed, it is not a political move, it is a call to duty. APC is a party. Go back and look at the role played by Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the emergence of President Muhammadu Buhari. I can say clearly, without Asiwaju’s role in forming the party, in making the platform there, in moving away from alliances, political alliances to mergers, President Muhammadu Buhari would not have emerged,” he said.

The presidential aide also claimed that he was not solely responsible for suggesting Buhari’s Presidency to Tinubu in 2015, instead noting that he was part of a team tasked with rebuilding the former president’s “democratic image”.

“I did not throw Buhari to Tinubu. There is a difference between pitching and when we have a candidate, on Sunday we work together to make that candidate acceptable. That’s the difference. I was part of rebuilding the democratic image of former President Buhari, so it couldn’t be just me. It was a team,” he said.

Dare also argued that Nigeria is “moving in the right direction” under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu despite the hardships in the country, adding that the “gestation period” for the administration’s policies will last between two and five years.