Atiku Abubakar: Reno Omokri, Fani-Kayode 'Fight' Over Akitu's Comment on Social Media | CNR

Former President Goodluck Jonathan's aide, Reno Omokri and former Minister of Aviation and Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Femi Fani-Kayode has clashed on social media over comment by former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar concerning herdsmen activities.

Atuki Abubakar, a Fourth Republic Vice President of Nigeria and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party had during an interview with ThisDay on Saturday March 10 expressed displeasure over the manner in which killer herdsmen are identified by their tribe instead of their activities.

The ex-Vice President said the following during the interview with ThisDay.

"However, let me also say that it is misnomer to use the term killer herdsmen of Fulani extraction or Fulani killer herdsmen. When kidnappers kidnap, we do not identify them by their ethnicity. We identify them as kidnappers, pure and simple.

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"The vast majority of Fulani people are peaceful and live in harmony with other ethnicities. There may fringe elements with criminal tendencies. Some may be Fulani. Some may not even be. !et us identify them by their activities and not by their ethnicity", he said.

But reacting to the statement by the former Vice President, Femi Fani-Kayode, in a post on his Facebook account said that though he has enormous respect for the former number two citizen of Nigeria, his (Atiku's) position on killer herdsmen activities shocked and surprised him (Mr. Fani-Kayode).


Fani-Kayode wrote: "Is it so difficult for us to accept the ugly truth and to call a spade a spade? Must we continue to mock the memories of those that have been slaughtered by shielding those who butchered them? Have we no shame or remorse?  Are these childish semantics and infantile denials really necessary?

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I have immense respect and affection for Vice President Atiku Abubakar and it stretches back for many years but this assertion shocks and surprises me. It is most unlike him to speak in this way. And I happen to know that he is far bigger and better than this.

There are however some ugly realities that we have to accept and live with in this country and this is one of them. Living in denial cannot solve the problem: it can only aggravate it and make it worse.

Mr. Fani-Kayode's remarks about the comments by the former Vice President did not get down well with Reno Omokri, a former Presidential aide who took to his Facebook account to correct what "a shocking misquotation of the Vice President comments by Mr. Fani-Kayode".

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 Omokri wrote: "I see Femi Fani-Kayode as a comrade of mine even though he has had occasion in the past to attack me. But I have moved on from that and I hope both FFK and Mark Zuckerberg have too.

"What I want to remind Mr. Fani Kayode of today is the quote by the late Daniel Patrick Moynihan that "You are entitled to your opinion. But you are not entitled to your own facts."

"You see Femi Fani-Kayode and I share a desire for a more progressive Nigeria with a level playing ground for all, where your tribe, religion and gender are not as important as your character and intellectual abilities and in fighting for this just and utopian society, we both have to guard from becoming like those we fight against.

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"Probably no one has written against killer Fulani herdsmen as I have. I have taken my advocacy to the US Congress, to the international media and to ranking evangelicals in America.

"But what I will not do is lie, misrepresent or twist what anyone says in propagation of my beliefs and in defense of what I stand for, and I urge those who I would want to believe are my comrade to have similar scruples.

"Indeed, I was shocked to my marrow upon waking up today and reading Mr. Fani-Kayode’s essay titled ‘The herdsmen are not Fulani, they are from the moon’.

"In that essay, Mr. Fani-Kayode falsely quoted former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to have said “Labelling the attackers as Fulani is wrong. Fulani people are peaceful and live in harmony with other ethnicities. To call the killer herdsmen Fulani is a misnomer. They are just criminals and not Fulani criminals”

"The above quote is not only dishonest, it is wicked. Mr. Fani-Kayode hates to be misquoted and will usually respond with venom if anyone is unfortunate enough to have been caught misquoting him.

"So why would a man so sensitive to being misquoted go ahead to misquote others?

"For the avoidance of doubt, this is what former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar said to Saturday ThisDay on March 10, 2018:

"Turn this crisis to an opportunity. New challenges require new thinking. If I were to advise the Federal Government, I would counsel them to learn from Rico Gardo. Just as Nigeria has built government and privately owned Fertilizer plants, the government should build and encourage the private sector to build animal feeds factories.

"Sell the feeds to the herdsmen and make money from them. The value chain of this industry will create will generate jobs for Nigerians and revenue for the government. But most importantly, it will end these clashes.

"I am not telling you of what I have heard. I am telling you of what I am doing. And what I am doing is working in the area where Rico Gardo is operational. My plan for the future is to expand nationwide.

"HOWEVER, LET ME ALSO SAY THAT IT IS A MISNOMER TO USE THE TERM KILLER HERDSMEN OF FULANI EXTRACTION OF KILLER FULANI HERDSMEN. WHEN KIDNAPPERS KIDNAP, WE DO NOT IDENTIFY THEM BY THEIR ETHNICITY. WE IDENTIFY THEM AS KIDNAPPERS, PURE AND SIMPLE.

"THE VAST MAJORITY OF FULANI PEOPLE ARE PEACEFUL AND LIVE IN HARMONY WITH OTHER ETHNICITIES. THERE MAY BE FRINGE ELEMENTS WITH CRIMINAL TENDENCIES. SOME MAY BE FULANI. SOME MAY NOT EVEN BE. LET US IDENTIFY THEM BY THEIR ACTIVITIES AND NOT BY THEIR ETHNICITY.”

"The capitalized portion of the quote is what Mr. Fani-Kayode extrapolated, misquoted and twisted to serve his own ends.

"But why would he do that? Honestly, I do not know. But what I know is that no matter how far and fast falsehood has traveled, it must eventually be overtaken by truth!" Reno Omokri insisted.