Former presidential aide Reno Omokri has dismissed attempts to rely on his previously withdrawn comments about President Bola Tinubu in the ongoing cybercrime trial of activist and former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore.
Omokri made the clarification in a statement released on Wednesday following developments at the Federal High Court in Abuja, where Sowore’s lawyer, Abubakar Marshal, questioned the Department of State Services over Omokri’s clearance for an ambassadorial appointment despite earlier remarks labelling Tinubu a “drug lord.”
The issue surfaced during proceedings on Tuesday, January 27, 2026, when Sowore’s counsel presented video clips showing Omokri making the allegation during a 2023 ARISE News interview, as well as another clip in which he stated he would never work with Tinubu.
Responding, Omokri acknowledged making the comments but said he later discovered they were untrue and publicly retracted them across multiple platforms.
“I freely admit that I made uncomplimentary remarks about the then presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress while believing them to be true at the time,” Omokri said. “Subsequently, I discovered they were not true, and I withdrew them in writing and on video.”
He said he formally recognised Tinubu as President on May 29, 2023, the day of his inauguration, urging Nigerians to move forward. Omokri added that he reaffirmed this position on October 26, 2023, after the Supreme Court dismissed petitions challenging Tinubu’s election.
According to him, the apex court’s judgment confirmed that there were no criminal charges or convictions against the President, prompting him to abandon his earlier claims.
“Based on that verdict, my stance changed. I fully believed my earlier statements were fallacious,” he said.
Omokri also disclosed that he publicly apologised during interviews on TVC, News Central Television and Channels Television’s Politics Today, and later travelled from California to Nigeria in October 2024 to apologise to Tinubu in person.
Addressing Sowore’s legal strategy, Omokri argued that statements he made between 2022 and 2023—already withdrawn—could not be used to justify Sowore’s publications in August 2025.
“Mr Sowore cannot rely on statements I publicly withdrew in 2023 as a defence for later statements,” he said, citing Phipson on Evidence to support his position.
He again denied the allegation against Tinubu, insisting that the President “is not, has never been, and will never be a drug lord,” adding that he was prepared to testify under oath if required.
The comments followed dramatic courtroom scenes during Sowore’s trial on a two-count amended cybercrime charge. During cross-examination of the first prosecution witness, DSS operative Cyril Nosike, Sowore’s lawyer tendered a flash drive containing Omokri’s past video statements.
Although prosecution counsel Akinlolu Kehinde objected to their admissibility, Justice Mohammed Umar overruled the objection and admitted the exhibits into evidence.
The court has adjourned proceedings until February 4 for continuation of trial.
