Former presidential aide and political commentator, Reno Omokri, has alleged that he has received multiple death threats from members of the Obidient Movement, naming Rufai Oseni, a presenter with Arise Television, and another individual identified as Justice Ozobi, as key culprits.
In a statement released on Tuesday, Omokri claimed that the Nigeria Police Force have launched an investigation into the threats against his life and said he is ready to assist authorities with concrete evidence, including recorded phone conversations.
“Once again, I thank the Nigerian Police Force for beginning investigations into the death threats made against me by members of the Obidient movement, including Mr. Rufai Oseni, and Mr. Justice Ozobi,” Omokri stated.
He further claimed that Rufai Oseni allegedly made several threatening phone calls to one of his relatives.
According to Omokri, the calls were recorded and revealed what he described as Oseni’s “true nature.”
“Mr. Rufai Oseni made several calls to my relative, which were all recorded. In those calls, he revealed his true nature, and the extent of his brutality and inhumanity will be transmitted to the police,” Omokri stated.
Omokri alleged that Oseni did not stop there. Upon learning that his calls had been recorded, Oseni reportedly called the same relative again to issue fresh threats, which were also documented.
“Not only did Rufai Oseni threaten to kill me, but after it was revealed that his calls to my relative were recorded, Rufai Oseni, foolishly, began calling that relative of mine to threaten him. The young man promptly recorded those calls as well,” he added.
The former presidential aide also sought to clarify public perception about his relationship with the Arise TV anchor.
“Contrary to his posturing and sermonising on Arise TV, Mr. Rufai Oseni is a vindictive human being, who by his own admission on a recorded line, is capable of killing another human being for no other reason than that that person exposed his hypocrisy.”
“Also, the public is alerted to the fact that, contrary to his claim that he is my cousin, Mr. Rufai Oseni is not a blood relative of mine. He is simply the recipient of my family’s charity during his indigent youth.”
Omokri also pointed fingers at Justice Ozobi, another alleged member of the Obidient Movement, accusing him of issuing public threats to kill him.
“As for Justice Ozobi, his threats to kill me on sight were made in the public domain, although he later deleted them from his social media profiles after they had gone viral.”
The Obidient Movement, a political support group aligned with the 2023 presidential campaign of former Labour Party candidate Peter Obi, has gained prominence for its vocal and sometimes controversial online presence. However, this is not the first time members of the movement have been accused of online and offline threats against political commentators and critics.
Neither Rufai Oseni nor Justice Ozobi has officially responded to Omokri’s claims as of the time of filing this report. Efforts to reach their representatives for comments were unsuccessful.
The Nigeria Police Force has yet to confirm the receipt of the recordings or petition written by Omokri.
Below is the petition by Reno Omokri:
