Former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, has criticised the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, for visiting Daura only after the burial of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
In a statement on his verified Facebook account on Wednesday, Omokri likened Obi’s visit to Daura to “medicine after death.”
He criticised Obi for making the trip only after receiving backlash on social media for not attending the funeral, arguing that Obi’s absence at the burial had already sent a negative message to the North.
He wrote, “Going to Daura a day after Buhari’s burial because you were dragged on social media for your absence at the funeral is medicine after death! The message to Arewa has already been passed and understood!”
Omokri had earlier, on Tuesday, questioned Obi’s priorities, contrasting his presence in Ilorin for a political event with his absence at Buhari’s funeral.
“What was so important to Peter Obi that he chose not to turn up at Daura for General Muhammadu Buhari’s funeral today? This was a man who was only yesterday in Ilorin, attending the 2nd Annual Colloquium of Associate Professor Abdulmumin Yinka Ajia, where he gave a speech asking the North to zone the ADC Presidential ticket to the South.
“Campaigning to be President was important enough for him to visit Ilorin, but Buhari, the modern-day Ahmadu Bello of the North, was not important enough for him to visit Daura. And he wants to North to vote for him in 2027? The same man who promised to unleash “religious war” on the Muslim Ummah?
“And if you are Arewa, I urge you to read the comments under this post carefully. If you do, you will know who your true friends are. I hope the North remembers this in 2027.”
Tribune Online reports that President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima, on Tuesday, led a high-powered delegation of Nigerian dignitaries, including former presidents, to attend the final rites of the former military ruler and two-term civilian president.
Tinubu personally received Buhari’s flag-draped remains at the Umaru Musa Yar’Adua International Airport in Katsina shortly after 2 p.m., following their arrival from London aboard the Presidential Aircraft, which the late leader had used during his tenure.
The burial was conducted in Daura according to Islamic rites by the Chief Imam of Daura, Sheikh Salisu Rabiu.
Among the international dignitaries in attendance were President Umaro Sissoco Embaló of Guinea-Bissau, Prime Minister Ali Zeine of the Republic of Niger, and former Nigerien President Issoufou Mahamadou.
Other prominent attendees included former Vice Presidents Yemi Osinbajo and Atiku Abubakar, as well as the leadership of the National Assembly.
