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Obidient Movement biggest threat to national security – Reno Omokri
Obidient Movement biggest threat to national security – Reno Omokri
A former presidential spokesman, Reno Omokri has described the Obidient Movement as the biggest threat to Nigeria’s security.
He said their threat is to national security is more than that of Boko Haram and bandits.
In an X post, Omokri said “The biggest national security threat facing Nigeria today is not Boko Haram or bandits. Boko Haram is fighting to have an Islamic Caliphate, and their leadership has been decimated, while their ideas are being rejected and recruitment has dropped.
“Bandits are criminals, and their operations are purely for commercial gain.
“But the Obidient movement is different. They are fighting against democracy by refusing to accept the will of the Nigerian people as freely expressed during the #NigerianElections2023, and insisting that Peter Obi won an election in which he came third.
“They attack the integrity of the Independent National Electoral Commission, falsely claiming that the INEC was mandated by law to declare results electronically, thereby undermining the trust that the public has in that vital institution.
“Their fight against democracy is being escalated to the point that where anyone with an opposing view to theirs and who refuses to support their candidate and their movement has a brand, they use every means, fair or foul, to engage in reputation-savaging and to cancel that person and their brand as well as threaten their family members,” he said.
According to Omokri, they set up crowdfunding to report the social media profiles of their opponents and write bogus petitions against them to national and international organisations while coordinating on WhatsApp to use robotic devices to mass report their social profiles.
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“Working with Arise TV and several influencers, they spread fake news and propaganda against opponents of their movement and the Nigerian state. They have a confirmation bias against Nigeria, especially the North and Southwest. As a result, they question positive news about Nigeria, even where it comes with evidence and promote bad news about Nigeria, even where it has no basis.
“Not stopping there, they constantly de-market Nigeria by misrepresenting the true state of government policy, such as the Samoa Agreement, which an Obidient, Sonnie Ekwowusi, lied about, falsely alleging that it is to promote the LGBTQ agenda.
“And in the wake of the Kenyan protest, their leader, Peter Obi, in a post on social media, asked why Nigerians do not learn from Kenya, an obvious attempt to trigger Kenyan-style protests.
“Their movement is actively seeking to instigate ethnic strife in Nigeria when their leader, Peter Obi, falsely asserts that people of Igbo origin are being targeted for demolition in Lagos as punishment for not voting for the APC when not one person has shown that their structure was illegally demolished,” he stated.
Omokri said this is even as Peter Obi lied that a court had given a verdict ordering the release of the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu.
“However, contrary to Peter Obi’s IPOB-inspired lies, in a unanimous ruling on December 15, 2023, the Supreme Court ruled that Nnamdi Kanu had a case to answer for treason. After that, on May 20, 2024, the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled that Nnamdi Kanu should be denied bail.
“Finally, there is a sustained effort by Peter Obi and his movement to undermine President Tinubu personally, by making false claims about him, including that President Tinubu paid for 1411 people to go for #COP28 with government money. In fact, only 422 of the delegates of Nigeria were publicly funded. And not all of those publicly funded were financed by the Presidency.
“Unlike Boko Haram and bandits, Obidients are attacking the institutions that uphold our democracy, including free speech, the judiciary, and the Independent National Electoral Commission, and the corporate existence of Nigeria and her political stability are at risk if nothing is done, within the ambit of the law, to curb the excesses of this movement,” Omokri added.
Obidient Movement biggest threat to national security – Reno Omokri
News
Yahaya Bello reports to EFCC office with lawyers
Yahaya Bello reports to EFCC office with lawyers
A former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, on Tuesday visited the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to honour another invitation extended to him over alleged misappropriation of funds.
Bello went to the anti-graft office with his lawyers in the morning.
The ex-Kogi governor reportedly drove himself to the EFCC’s office in a black Toyota Hilux van with some lawyers.
He was said to have been taken by some operatives of the agency and are currently being grilled.
This is coming after the Supreme Court judgment which dismissed a suit brought by some state governments challenging the constitutionality of the agency.
The EFCC at the last hearing on November 14, sought the adjournment till November 27 in the fresh case it instituted against Bello.
It stated that the 30-day window was still running for the summons earlier issued.
News
Just in: Ebonyi governor suspends two commissioners, Perm Sec for misconduct
Just in: Ebonyi governor suspends two commissioners, Perm Sec for misconduct
Ebonyi State Governor Francis Nwifuru has announced the immediate suspension of two commissioners with a permanent secretary among others for gross misconduct.
Those suspended are the Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development Francis Ori, and the Commissioner for Health, Moses Ekuma, with the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health.
The suspension followed an incident on Saturday night, when the governor reportedly visited the Ministry of Health’s premises and was said to have found six officials diverting government materials.
Others suspended for three months are the Executive Secretaries of the State Primary Healthcare Development Agency and the Ebonyi State Health Insurance Agency
The suspension order was announced by the state Commissioner for Information, Jude Okpor, who cited alleged misconduct and dereliction of duties as the reasons for the disciplinary actions.
Okpor made the disclosure on Tuesday during a press briefing on the outcomes of the State Executive Council meeting held on Monday at the New Government House in Abakaliki, the state capital.
“Following cases of gross misconduct and dereliction of duties by some government officials and matters related thereto, the Chairman of Council directed the indefinite suspension of the Honourable Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development and three months suspension of the Honourable Commissioner for Health, respectively
“In view of the development, the Special Assistant to the Governor on Primary Health was directed to take charge of the ministry in the absence of the suspended commissioner.
Governor Nwifuru directed the suspended government officials to hand over all government properties in their possession including vehicles to the Secretary to the State Government.
News
Why we’re borrowing despite surplus revenues – FG
Why we’re borrowing despite surplus revenues – FG
The Federal Government has defended its decision to borrow to address budget deficits, despite surpassing revenue targets in 2024.
Finance Minister Wale Edun and Budget Minister Atiku Bagudu clarified this position during a session with the National Assembly’s Joint Committee on Finance, Budget, and National Planning. The meeting focused on the 2025–2027 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP).
Last week, the National Assembly approved President Bola Tinubu’s $2.2 billion loan request to fund the N9.7 trillion deficit in the 2024 budget partially.
During the session, key agency heads, including Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) CEO Mele Kyari, Customs Comptroller-General Bashir Adeniyi, and Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Chairman Zacch Adedeji, presented their revenue reports.
The agencies reported exceeding their 2024 targets.
- Customs Service: Generated ₦5.352 trillion by September 30, surpassing its ₦5.09 trillion target for the year. For 2025, the agency projects ₦6.3 trillion, with a 10% increase planned for 2026.
- NNPCL: Achieved ₦13.1 trillion in revenue, exceeding the ₦12.3 trillion projection for 2024. Kyari announced a ₦23.7 trillion revenue target for 2025.
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- FIRS: Surpassed multiple tax collection goals, including ₦5.7 trillion from company income tax against a ₦4 trillion target. Education tax collections also exceeded expectations, reaching ₦1.5 trillion compared to a ₦70 billion target.
Overall, ₦18.5 trillion of the ₦19.4 trillion 2024 revenue target had been achieved by September, indicating the goal will be exceeded by year-end.
Despite these surpluses, the government insists borrowing remains essential to cover budget gaps and support vulnerable populations.
Bagudu explained, “Even with agencies exceeding revenue targets, borrowing is necessary to address deficits and boost productivity, particularly for the poorest. This aligns with Agenda 2050, which aims for a GDP per capita of $33,000.”
Edun also reiterated that loans were critical for adequately funding the budget.
The committee, led by Senator Sani Musa, questioned the rationale behind the borrowing and demanded further transparency. The Immigration Service was specifically asked to provide documents regarding an “unacceptable PPP arrangement” before the end of the week.
The session underscored the government’s balancing act between increased revenues and fiscal challenges requiring external borrowing.
Why we’re borrowing despite surplus revenues – FG
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