Reno Omokri, the former adviser of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, was removed from Twitter on Friday by Nigerians on social media.
They claimed that Omokri's comments on the platform promoted ethnic and religious conflict ahead of the 2023 national elections.
Amidst accusations that he was "inciting ethnic and religious strife," some stated that his "resistance" to Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi and increasing popularity were making him lose his cool.
On Friday night, at least 67,000 people had signed a petition requesting that he be banned and his "Business Insider Influencer of the Year Award" be withdrawn from him. It was announced Thursday that the petition, which aims to gather 75,000 signatures, will go live on the website change.org.
According to the petition, former US President Donald Trump was banned from Twitter for statements he made during the 2016 presidential election deemed potentially violent.
Reno omokri tweeted this on July 6, 2022, in reaction to a television interview with a presidential candidate in Nigeria.
Obi is a pilot, and Kwankwaso a simple driver and replacement player, if you watch the interview with an open mind,' said Obi's Obedience. That was heard in Kano. That was heard in the North. As far as I know, other Nigerians were aware of the news!
The following is a retweet in Hausa to show that this was intended for the northern portion of Nigeria and to underscore his message.
‘Kwankwaso bashine Dan takaran shugaban kasa da nake so ba amma shi ba “Direban mota” da yake so ya “tuka jirgin nijeriya” ne ba kaman yadda Peter Obi ya fada yau a Arise.Kwankwaso ya gina abubuwa da yawa har da gina mutane.Jahilci ne a kwatanta shi da Direba mota.
Renoomokri's tweets pose a tremendous danger of instigating ethnic violence in the North of Nigeria and subsequent reprisals in the east, particularly because Kwankwaso has considerable support in the North and Peter Obi has a large following in the east.
Another factor that contributed to the civil war in Nigeria was the persistence of ethnic violence against ethnic groups in northern Nigeria. Multiple allegations of ethnic violence have emerged in different locations in Nigeria. There are a number of them aimed towards Ibos in particular. There has also been occasional violence towards northerners in the east.
"Given the history of Nigeria, it is risky and dangerous for @renoomokri to send such tweets to his 1.7 million followers, but it is also terribly heartless to attempt to incite ethnic bloodshed for political gain. If @renoomokri is any indication, he knows everything about Nigeria's past.
"We need to stop @renoomokri from using his Twitter power to incite ethnic or religious violence in Nigeria," the statement said. If an account tries to encourage violence, Twitter has already established a precedent for removing it. Trump has been banned!
On Friday, Omokri stated he merely told the truth and will continue to stand by his viewpoint.
I don't know what I said. What precisely did I say? Previously, I argued that Peter Obi was incorrect to characterize other presidential contenders as "mere drivers" or "substitute players," and I stood by that assertion. That's why they're threatening my life with a death sentence. If I had been in Nigeria, they would have dispatched unknown gunmen to pursue me!
There is no desire to replace Buhari's government with effective administration among these Obi hordes" They'd want to take its place with a dictatorship of their own making. If you don't support Peter, you're an enemy of Nigeria and should be wiped off the face of the earth!
They're doing terrible things to me. If Peter Obi becomes President, they'll do the same to everyone who criticizes him. Speaking freely will not be permitted. Mob justice alone. My one-year-old kid was in danger. Why? Their god and messiah!"