An APC chieftain in Rivers State, Chief Tony Okocha
has condemned the owner of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, for using his
platform to propagate deliberate lies, propaganda, and attempts to defame under
the disguise of “activism.”
Chief Okocha in a statement titled “Sowore; The Unbridled Razzmatazz of a
Notorious Crisis Merchant”, noted that, “this is exactly what Omoyele
Sowore, publisher of Sahara Reporters has perfected over the years.”
Excerpt
of the statement is here below:
In every democracy, criticism is welcome, but what
Nigerians must reject are deliberate lies, propaganda, and attempts to defame
under the disguise of “activism.” This is exactly what Omoyele Sowore,
publisher of Sahara Reporters has perfected over the years. .
Sowore has built his entire career on lies. His
Sahara Reporters platform is notorious for publishing fabricated stories and
half-truths, often used as tools for blackmail and extortion.
Recently, Sowore launched another wave of falsehoods
against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, and the Honourable Minister of the
FCT, Chief Barr. Nyesom Wike CON. These baseless allegations are nothing more
than the bitter rantings of a man rejected by Nigerians at the polls and
drowning in political irrelevance.
What an infradig for a sane citizen of a country to
outburst that the President or whatever nomenclature used to refer to the
highest office holder, as a "Criminal”
Nigerians must stand up against this rascal and
nitwit desiring to rub the integrity of the country on the mud, rather than
give heed to or yield to the antics of a serial merchant of discord and
purveyor of "non~sequitous" half truths.
Omoyele Sowore is best understood as a blackmailer
whose stock in trade include blatant lies, forgery, and baseless incitements
To cut the chase, it becomes apposite to continue to
expose the dark side of Sowore and call for his immediate arrest and
prosecution.
1. Sowore As
A Merchant Of Falsehood And Blackmail Journalism:
Omoyele Sowore is not a journalist; he only relishes
in peddling fabricated stories.
His "Sahara Reporters" platform has for
years been accused of beehive of "blackmail journalism" publishing
malicious reports to malign reputations and allegedly demanding settlements to
retract them.
Just recently, the Nigerian Police charged him with
forgery and false publication for circulating a fake police signal designed to
undermine national security. This is not activism. It is outright criminality.
2.
Sowore's Criminal Charges Under The Cyber Crime Act:
Sowore currently stands trial for cybercrime
and defamation. The DSS filed multiple charges against him for transmitting
false, inciting and malicious messages against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on
social media.
His deliberate lies are aimed at inciting public
unrest, sowing distrust and discord in institutions with the poisonous
intention to destabilize Nigeria. A man standing trial for such grave offences
ought to rein in himself and consider himself as lacking in moral imperative to
insult credible leaders who are working extremely hard to build the nation.
3. Sowore's #Revolutionnow: A Thinly Veiled
Coup Attempt:
Nigerians remember clearly the #RevolutionNow
protests led by Sowore in 2019. He openly called for “days of rage” to topple a
democratically elected government. That reckless campaign was nothing but an
attempted insurrection, unwittingly packaged as activism.
No genuine democrat calls for the violent overthrow
of a legitimate government. Sowore’s actions then and his continued incitement
now prove that he is more of an anarchist and a psychopath than a patriot.
4. Sowore's
Dubious Finances and Shady Sponsorship:
Questions continue to trail the source of Sowore’s
wealth and the funding behind his political campaigns. Allegations of money
laundering and foreign sponsorship remain unanswered. Nigerians have every
reason to believe that Sowore acts as a hired mercenary, attacking respected
leaders while cashing out from his paymasters.
His refusal to provide transparency on his finances
only deepens suspicion that his so-called activism is driven by profit, not
principle.
5. Sowore’s
Hypocrisy and Political Failure:
Despite his noisy, nauseous and notorious presence
on social media, Sowore has consistently budded the very low rung of the ladder
at the ballot box.
To put differently, his repeated Presidential bids
have ended in humiliation, with laughable vote counts that reveal Nigerians do
not trust him with leadership.
Alas, what leadership does he seek? Is it leadership
over sane, sound and knowledgeable people or that of layabouts? What an
infantile ambition and a wild goose chase?
How his rejection by the people of Nigeria at the
polls that he willy-nilly ventures into, has turned him into a bitter critic of
every government, regardless of effervescent performance, as in the case of President
Tinubu and Minister Wike, is unthinkable.
Sowore represents the opposite of Democracy –
Autocracy, a Party Chairman and Presidential candidate at the same time.
6. He Who
Asserts Carries The Burden Or Onus Of Proof:
This principle is trite. It is sheer absurdity for
Sowore to dump unsubstantiated allegations of criminal acquisitions on
Nigerians without a scintilla of empirical or rational facts.
This style aimed at the jugulars of Mr. President
and Minister Wike is dead on arrival.
Nigerians are interested in concrete evidence and
facts, not wiled conjectures with the clear intentions to blackmail.
Provide cogent and verifiable facts leading to
certain apodethic conclusions and we join to escalate it to high heavens.
Ad~hominem or ad~misericodia are sheer fallacies, no
matter how beautifully they are couched.
President Tinubu is implementing his 10~points
agenda under the theme "Renewed Hope Agenda". The economy is booming!
Never in the history of Nigeria had over a trillion naira shared by the three
tiers of Government.
Naira now wields influence and stabilised against
the hitherto doldrums before the Dollar and other hard currencies.
Road infrastructure is verifiable. The trillion
naira Lagos/Calabar expressway which pundits like Sowore dismissed as a
well~nigh impossibility, is on the fast track. The blind can see it.
The Educational sector is better than what it was
predating 2023. Indigent students now smile to schools via the Students loan
largesse of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Over a million Nigerians receive
monthly stipends as one of the empowerment programmes of Mr. President.
The Agricultural sector is booming. Farms and
farmers are provided with farm implements and loans to aid more than
subsistence farming.
Security is looking up under President Tinubu. No
doubts, there are pockets of security challenges but they are responded to as
priority.
It should be noted that security challenges are not
akin to our clime and didn't stem from President Tinubu's administration. It is
a global concern.
Today, just today, President Trump of America signed
an Executive order declaring a certain dissident group operating in America, as
"Domestic Terrorist group”
Minister Wike of the Federal Capital Territory, who
is an Agent of Mr. President, is transforming the Federal Capital Territory
(FCT) Abuja with unmatched energy. Abuja can now favorably compete with capital
cities of the first and second world countries.
A little note and passing glance on HE, E.N Wike
trajectory
(1) Like him, hate him or maintain neutrality, you cannot but agree with the fact that
NYESOM EZENWO WIKE (NEW) is a profound development agent.
(2) He is a goal getter
(3)His curiosity for knowledge and learning drove
him to study Law at the University of Science and Technology (As it then was),
after graduating from the University of Port-Harcourt where he studied
Political science. He hails from a comfortable middle class family background
yet chose to be largely independent.
(4) He saw money at a very young age as a result of
personal endeavours and outshined his peers.
(5) He was first among equals to drive a Mercedes
Benz and maintained a rich fleet of cars.
(6) Nyesom Ezenwo Wike at a very young lad, took
interest in politics and functioned as Party Agent to candidates dating back to
the era of NPN and NPP.
(7)He joined the PDP at the inception of the party
in 1998.
(8)He contested the Local Government election as an
underdog but trounced giants to become the Chairman of Obio/Akpor LGA
(9) He was the first to break the jinx of one tenure
Chairmanship of the Obio/Akpor LGA, largely because of performance, hard work
and divine providence.
(10)He won back to back, best performing Local
Government Chairman Award as instituted by the Rivers State Government and won
official and personal laurels therefrom.
(11) Ezenwo Nyesom Wike is "Consistently
Consistent " Not "Consistently inconsistent".
(12)He had remained with the PDP from
inception/formation till date. He never bordered with the rough contours
typical of internal politics, but elected to keep faith with the party under
thick and thin.
(13) He was appointed Chief of Staff Government
House under HE, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, as then Governor of Rivers State in
2007.
This appointment was one supported by All CRA
supporters because of the overt and covert roles he played to enthrone that
Government after God. He turned down mouth watery overtures. He resisted
threats, humiliations and intimidations, one of them was the dissolution of
councils, six months before the expiration of tenure.
(14) He became the Director General of campaign to
usher in a second tenure and effectively delivered his candidate by landslide.
(15)He was one of the nominees from Rivers State for
Ministerial appointment.
(16) He was appointed and assigned to Minister of
State for Education and later became the Supervising Minister of Education,
upon the resignation of the then substantive Minister.
(17) His achievements both as Minister of State for
Education and the Supervising Minister of Education, still stand as monuments.
(18) He contested for the Governorship of Rivers
State under the hard nose of a Governor of then APC, was desirous to enthrone a
successor.
(19) He won the election under the platform of the
PDP with a landslide vote and became Governor of Rivers State
(20) He returned back for second tenure as Governor
amidst heavy undulations and pressures from an APC controlled Federal
government.
(21) His achievements as Governor of Rivers earned
him many cliche and awards including "Mr Project" "Mr Quality
Project" by no less the person of the Vice President who was on ground to
commission a horde of projects executed by Wike's Government in Rivers State.
(22)HE, Ezenwo Nyesom Wike won the prestigious Award
of Best Governor on infrastructure development.
(23) Not done yet, Wike threw his hat into the rings
and battled to become the Presidential candidate of the PDP but finished as
runner up.
(24) NEW is notable for his stance. He doesn't
vacillate between opinions.
(25) He is predictable on issues of politics
(26) He stands on principles.
(27) He is sold out to friendship and doesn't
betray.
(28)He is vociferous, bold and fearless.
(29) He didn't hide his preference and support for
Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the APC, when his party, PDP, undermined the
principles of justice, equity and fairplay.
(30) He engineered the breaking of a long-standing
jinx of PDP dominance in Presidential elections in Rivers State.
(31) He does not cry war and do peace.
(32) He is thorough and profound both at work and
home.
(33) Etc.
Just a tit bit of who His Excellency, Chief Barr.
Ezenwo Nyesom Wike CON, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory is, so that
he is no longer viewed from the lens of a neophyte or green horn or a beneficiary
of undeserved goodwill or a pauper.
Let's turn back to the main issues in point.
In my view, the administration of President Bola
Ahmed Tinubu ought to be applauded for thus a short while it has been.
Those who for political reasons propagate the
"Hunger Revolution", are too late for breakfast. Nigerians know their
unsavory antecedents and will never fall for their childish and cheap chicanery
Conclusion:
Much as Omoyele Sowore feels sure to adopt the uncouth
and uncanny style of unrepentant blackmailer, purveyor of blatant falsehood and
dangerous provocateur, as desperate attempts to gain relevance in Nigeria’s
political space, he should be mindful of the consequences.
The Federal Government must act decisively and
pointedly.
Nigerians should breathe heavily on the shoulders of
those whose activities are clearly antithetical to the progress made by the
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's two and half years in the saddle in government,
which in my well considered and dispassionate view, are intending for the
eldorado.
Activism is neither Rascalism nor Infantilism.
As Students union activists which Omoyele Sowore
played, he will recall the principle of the 3Cs (consultation, consolidation,
before confrontation) as a guide to any meaningful action or agitation.
Spreading fake news with clear intention to
overreach or defame the other's character or integrity is not on and crassly unacceptable.
Attempting to incite Nigerians against the
government with the crudity of style is treasonable felony.
Any action which is capable of undermining public
trust and potent enough to threaten Nigeria’s democracy, stemming from malice,
is unacceptable.
Signed:
Chief Tony C Okocha Ksc, DSSRS JP.
Chairman, APC Rivers State.
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