Omokri to Peter Obi: Your lies about Nigeria’s debt chasing foreign investors away

Former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, has accused the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, of spreading false claims about Nigeria’s debt profile, saying the statements are scaring off foreign investors and damaging the country’s economic prospects.

Speaking on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme, on Wednesday, Omokri said Obi’s assertions were not only misleading but were also influencing the decisions of international investors currently operating in, or considering entry into, the Nigerian market.

“That is not true. He doesn’t rile me up. I rile him up,” Omokri said during the interview. “The reason why I came here is because I’m a patriot. Peter Obi lied. You know, foreign direct investors are watching your programme, who are making investment decisions not to come to Nigeria. There are foreign investors in Nigeria that are making investment decisions to leave Nigeria because of the lie he told.

“One of the lies he told is that President Tinubu has borrowed more than the administrations of Yar’Adua, Jonathan, Buhari. That is a blatant lie.”

Omokri backed his argument with figures from the Debt Management Office, insisting that President Bola Tinubu has, in fact, reduced Nigeria’s external debt since assuming office.

ALSO READ: 2027: I’ll defeat Matawalle by 10am on election day — Gov Lawal

“I have here with me data from the Debt Management Office, and Nigerians who are watching can go to DMO.com and search Debt Management Office, Nigeria State of Indebtedness 2015,” he said.

“As of 2015, Nigeria was owing a total of $63 billion. When Buhari was leaving office, Nigeria was owing $113 billion. Today, from the DMO, our debt has gone from $113 billion to $97 billion, meaning that Tinubu has reduced our debt by over $14 billion.

“We should be appreciating this man. Yet Peter Obi came here and lied to the Nigerian people. He took the debts and translated them into naira to make it look like the debts have increased.”

ALSO READ TOP STORIES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE