On Saturday, Reno Omokri, a former presidential aide to erstwhile president, Goodluck Jonathan, posted a video on his YouTube channel, claiming that youths in Lapai town, Niger State, mocked Bola Ahmed Tinubu, presidential candidate of All Progressive Party (APC).
While Tinubu visited the town, Omokri, an ardent supporter of Abubakar Atiku, the presidential flag bearer of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), claimed that the youth were chanting “Ba mayi” (we are not doing).
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“Obviously, these are the best times for APC presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” Omokri said in the two minutes video posted on his YouTube channel. “Now, I got the video of his visit to Lapai, Niger State where his convoy along Umar Bago, APC gubernatorial candidate and Member of house of representatives.”
He later shared the video via his Facebook and Twitter handles.
Omokri, further claimed that Tinubu’s convoy was chased out of Lapai town, chanting “Ba Mayi” and throwing stones at his entourage.
“We don’t encourage any kind of violence but we have to tell the story as it happened,” he said. “This is indicative perhaps Bola Tinubu is not as popular as he thinks, he is in Niger.”
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“Anyway, watch this video, put a comment in the comment section. It is not about Bola Tinubu or to engage in gibberish like Balabloo. This time around, it is his people telling him that they want him,” Omokri added.
At press time, the footage had generated 15 reactions and 2, 472 viewers.
VERIFICATION
Checks by WikkiTimes showed that Abubakar Sani Bello, Niger State Governor alongside his entourage were in Lapai on December 17, 2022 where they had gone to commission female hostels and other projects in Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai, Niger State.
Jibrin Mohammed Lwafu, the students’ union leader in the institution, confirmed that the incident occurred in his school, adding that APC presidential candidate was not among the entourage of the state governor.
“Tinibu was not among the convoy that commissioned the project in the school,” Lwafu said. “It was APC gubernatorial candidate, Umaru Bago and incumbent governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello that came to commission newly built projects in the university.”
VERDICT
The claim by Omokri that youths were chanting “Ba Mayi” and chased Tinubu out of Lapai, is misleading and false.
The incident occurred in the state-owned university in Lapai where youths chanted “Ba Mayi” against APC gubernatorial candidate, Bago and Governor Bello, who is contesting for a senatorial seat come 2023.
