I read Reno Omokri’s narrative on the Maiduguri Bombings and President Tinubu’s UK State Visit and it smacks of hyperbolic sycophancy, what Nigerians call “eye-service.” I’m not surprised by his long-winded essay, but I’ll take it in my stride as one who strives to check untruth to counter a lot of the inconsistencies cited, lest ignorant Nigerians take his words as Gospel truth.
His central thesis, that the Maiduguri bombings on March 16, 2026, occurring two days before President Tinubu’s UK state visit, warrant “alarm bells” and investigation into opposition collusion — rests on circumstantial timing rather than evidence.
Omokri commits “The Fallacy of Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc.” It’s a classic logical fallacy. This is not analysis; it is accusation by insinuation. If Nigerian intelligence agencies possess evidence linking opposition figures to terrorist attacks, they should by all means prosecute them.
However, demanding investigations based on “seeming coincidence” without prima facie evidence reverses the presumption of innocence and invites witch-hunts.
Omokri also went ahead to present an impressive array of economic statistics to argue that opposition figures are “brimming with envy” over Tinubu’s achievements. A responsible rebuttal must separate factual data from interpretive spin.
He correctly notes that the World Bank revised Nigeria’s 2026 growth projection to 4.4% and that the Managing Director of Operations of the World Bank praised Nigeria’s reforms. These are factual statements. But, as a detailed analysis in ZAWYA points out, this framing obscures a critical truth: “for a nation like Nigeria, 4–5 percent growth is not triumph. It is maintenance.
It barely prevents economic deterioration. With over 200 million people — 140 million living in poverty — these growth rates cannot meaningfully transform living standards.”
The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) projects 5.5% growth for 2026, but its chief economist, Olusegun Omisakin, simultaneously warns of “huge sectors that are not fulfilling the fundamentals of our consolidation goals in terms of job creation and inclusive growth.” Manufacturing grows at merely 1.5%, agriculture at 2%. These are the sectors that employ ordinary Nigerians.
When Omokri celebrates that “twelve cycles of GDP growth” and a $67 billion increase in nominal GDP, he deploys what economists call the fallacy of aggregation — using top-line numbers to obscure distributional realities. A trader in Maiduguri whose shop was bombed, or a market woman facing 30% food inflation, does not experience “GDP growth.” She experiences her own contraction.
He highlights that the Nigerian Exchange’s market capitalisation rose from ₦27.9 trillion pre-Tinubu to ₦122 trillion in January 2026, and the All Share Index hit 200,000 points. These are indeed remarkable figures. But market capitalisation measures the value of publicly traded companies—largely owned by institutional investors, foreign portfolio investors, and Nigeria’s wealthy elite.
A rising stock market benefits those with disposable income to invest. For the 63% of Nigerians engaged in informal employment, for the civil servant whose salary has not kept pace with currency devaluation, for the small business owner crushed by interest rates — the stock market is an abstraction.
Opposition figures who question whether this growth translates into broad-based prosperity are not “economically clueless;” they are asking the right distributional questions.
Now we come to the chief bone of contention: he frames the UK state visit as “the single greatest diplomatic feat that Nigeria has ever achieved in thirty-seven years.” This hyperbolic claim deserves scrutiny.
State visits are extended, ceremonial affairs hosted by the head of state — in this case, King Charles III. They are significant honours and can facilitate diplomatic engagement but to call this the “greatest diplomatic feat in thirty-seven years” erases numerous consequential achievements.
Perhaps it maybe argued that this invitation stems from the fact that Nigeria is the highest importer of British goods in Africa at present and the British government is an unabashed enabler of the principle “quid pro quo.”
Also see: Harry Confidence Demands Accountability From DAA-3 Cluster Development Board
Moreover, the fact that the UK hosts approximately one state visit annually suggests this is routine diplomatic practice among Commonwealth nations, not an unprecedented singular honour. Nigeria is a major Commonwealth country with historical ties to the UK; such an invitation is appropriate and welcome, but not epochal.
Kenneth Okonkwo raised a substantive point that Omokri dismisses: why did the President travel with the Minister of Defence, Christopher Musa, immediately following a major terrorist attack? This is a legitimate question about prioritisation.
Defence ministers have critical coordinating roles in emergency response. While the Vice President remained in Nigeria, security decision-making involves principals whose presence can accelerate resource deployment and signal national focus.
The Omokris of this world are not new; they embody the spirit of Vichy France and Quisling’s Norway. Such dastardly traits and human flaws possessed by these despicable beings mark the cardinal foibles of humanity.
It’s not right, but it’s the way of the world; even among the Twelve, there was Judas. It is an inescapable truth of human nature.
Abdullahi Hamza
