By Obinna Uballa
There is currently a heated dispute within the Nigerian Senate over the inclusion of former presidential aide Reno Omokri in the latest list of ambassadorial nominees, a development that has sparked open confrontations among lawmakers and even forced the shutdown of the Senate’s official WhatsApp communication channel, it was gathered.
Omokri, a fierce political commentator and one-time critic of President Bola Tinubu, was among the 32 names forwarded by the president for screening.
His nomination immediately revived past remarks in which he labelled President Tinubu a “drug baron,” sparking outrage among several senators who argue that such a figure should not be entrusted with a diplomatic role.
According to multiple parliamentary insiders, Senate President Godswill Akpabio played a leading role in pushing Omokri’s nomination as a political favour. However, Akpabio is now said to be urging loyalists to quietly move against the nominee, citing concerns that Omokri’s past comments could embarrass the administration on the international stage.
According to Sahara Reporters, an online medium, the fiercest opposition has come from Senator Osita Ngwu (Enugu West), who has been reaching out to colleagues to reject the nomination outright. He insists that anyone who made such allegations against the president, and has not retracted them, is unfit to represent Nigeria abroad.
Ngwu’s mobilisation triggered a heated exchange in the senators’ official WhatsApp group, which he co-administers. As tempers flared, he abruptly locked the platform and deleted contentious messages, a move that angered several lawmakers.
Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, it was gathered, openly confronted Ngwu, demanding that he reopen the group and restore deleted comments. Her pushback intensified the row, with senators accusing one another of attempting to manipulate the internal debate around the nomination.
Reports said Ngwu has remained unmoved, saying Omokri’s refusal to withdraw his past remarks is enough grounds for disqualification. His position has deepened fault lines among senators, splitting the chamber into pro- and anti-Omokri blocs.
Despite the turmoil, the Senate is expected to commence screening of all ambassadorial nominees on Tuesday. The controversy adds yet another twist to Omokri’s complicated history with the Tinubu administration.
While he was one of Tinubu’s most vocal critics during the 2023 election cycle. In at least two different interviews on Arise TV, as captured in the videos attached below, he accused Tinubu of being a drug lord. He also left a protest against the president in London, as seen in the video below. He had previously sworn never to work for the president, calling such a move incompatible with his values.
However, he later made a u-turn and began to support the president, and has since thanked him for nominating him as an ambassador designate.
