Reno Omokri and Omoloye Sowore
Former Presidential aide, Reno Omokri has explained why former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore cannot lawfully rely on his past statements to justify calling President Bola Ahmed Tinubu a drug baron, insisting that those remarks were long withdrawn after being found to be false.
Omokri made this known in a detailed statement addressing claims raised in court by Sowore and his lawyer, Mr. Abubakar Marshal, on Tuesday, January 27, 2026.
Reacting to the court references, Omokri stated: “With regard to the claims made by Mr Omoyele Sowore and his counsel, Mr Abubakar Marshal, in court on Tuesday, January 27, 2026, I do freely admit that I did make uncomplimentary remarks about the then Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, while believing those comments to be true at the time I uttered them.” He, however, clarified that the belief underpinning those statements later proved incorrect.
According to him, “Subsequent to making those statements, I discovered that they were not, in fact, true, and I publicly withdrew them in writing and on video at various times and through multiple platforms.” Omokri stressed that his change of position was neither secretive nor selective, but done openly and repeatedly.
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu. Photo credit: State House
He recalled that on the day President Tinubu was sworn in, “which was Monday, May 29, 2023, I released a statement affirming him as President of Nigeria and urging members of the public to put the past behind them and give him their full support.” He added that he reaffirmed this position on “Thursday, October 26, 2023, the day the Supreme Court of Nigeria ruled in favour of the President.”
Omokri noted that the apex court judgment was critical, stating: “In that judgment, the honourable court declared that there were no criminal charges or convictions against the President. It clarified what had happened in the past, which had been misrepresented by some media.” He said he immediately accepted the ruling and publicly reversed his earlier stance.
He further disclosed: “On the same day the judgement was rendered, I accepted it, applauded it, and stated that, based on that verdict, my stance on the statements I had made against the President had changed: not only was it wrong, but I fully believed it was fallacious.” Two days later, he said he reinforced this view during a TVC interview, describing the Supreme Court verdict as righteous.
Explaining his later media engagements, Omokri said: “When members of the Peoples Democratic Party, to which I was then aligned, continued to dwell on those unfounded allegations, I arranged to be interviewed on Newscentral Television on Thursday, March 27, 2025, where I said that the President had been ‘exonerated’.” He emphasised that the term was deliberate, noting his legal background and its precise meaning.
He added that on “Wednesday, June 11, 2025,” he went on Politics Today where he “admitted to the Nigerian public and the world at large during a live broadcast that I was wrong about those statements I made about the then candidate, and that I relied on false publications in the media in making them.” He specifically referenced “Mr Omoyele Sowore’s platform, Saharareporters, and from the mouth of Mr Sowore himself,” as sources of the false information he earlier relied upon.
Omokri also revealed a personal effort at restitution, saying: “Prior to that, I had sought a private audience with the President himself on October 1, 2024, where I flew into Nigeria from my home in California, and apologised to him in person, prostrating flat on the ground.” He stressed that his actions were based on misinformation, not malice.
Citing legal authorities, Omokri argued that Sowore’s reliance on withdrawn statements is flawed, stating: “Finally, in law, it is ultra vires, and well established by the rule against hearsay, to use previous statements made at a time when it was believed to be true to establish the veracity of a claim you yourself caused to be published.” Quoting Phipson on Evidence, he added: “‘Former oral or written statements by any person… may not be given in evidence if the purpose is to tender them as evidence of the truth of the matters asserted’.”
He concluded emphatically: “Therefore, Mr Sowore cannot rely on statements I made between 2022 and 2023… as a defence for statements he made in August 2025.” Omokri reaffirmed: “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not, has never been, and will never be a drug lord,” describing him as “a person of good character, high moral standing,” and declaring, “I make these statements voluntarily, freely and of my own volition… and I am fully prepared to testify to the above under oath in court.”
