Femi Fani-Kayode, former minister of aviation, and Reno Omokri, former aide of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, squared off on Twitter over the opinion of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar on how herdsmen should be referred to.
In an interview on March 8, Abubakar said it was wrong to refer to killer herdsmen as Fulani.
“It is a misnomer to use the term ‘killer herdsmen of Fulani extraction’ or ‘killer Fulani herdsmen,” Abubakar had said.
“The vast majority of Fulani people are peaceful and live in harmony with other ethnicities. When kidnappers kidnap, we do not identify them by their ethnicity. We identify them as kidnappers, pure and simple. There may be fringe elements with criminal tendencies. Some may be Fulani. Some may not even be. Let us identify them by their activities and not by their ethnicity.”
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But Fani-Kayode, on Saturday, said he was shocked by Abubakar’s assertion, adding that “it is most unlike him to speak in this way”.
“Is it so difficult for us to accept the ugly truth and to call a spade a spade?” he asked.
“Must we continue to mock the memories of those that have been slaughtered by shielding those who butchered them? Have we no shame or remorse? Are this childish semantics and infantile denials really necessary?”
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Replying to his comment, Omokri said Fani-Kayode misquoted Abubakar and put words in his mouth.
According to him, most of the herdsmen perpetrating the act are Mbororo, adding that they “differ from the Fulani as the Tiv defer from the Igbo”.
Citing an example of Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, suspected kidnapper better known as Evans, Omokri said Evans is known as a kidnapper, not “Igbo kidnapper”.
He asked Fani-Kayode to apologise, asking if he would like such to be done to him.
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“Read what you quote @Atiku as saying and read what @Atiku actually said. Note that they are 2 different statements. You misrepresented him. You twist his words. Your quote was dishonest. Quote Atiku. Don’t put your words in his mouth! You won’t like it done to you!” Omokri wrote.
“Actually, most of those involved in these killings are Mbororo also known as Bororo. I did a broadcast on this last year in London. If the Mbororo speak, the Fulani cannot understand them. The Mbororo differ from the Fulani as the Tiv defer from the Igbo.
“Recently the police arrested a notorious kidnappers known as Evans. Evans was even discovered to have been a billionaire. But neither the media or Femi Fani-Kayode described Evans as an Igbo kidnapper or a Yoruba kidnapper. He was just a kidnapper.
“Boko Haram became the deadliest terror group in the world in 2014. It has been established by independent sources that most Boko Haram fighters, are Kanuri from Borno/Yobe, but we do not call them Kanuri terrorists. We call them terrorists pure and simple.
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“It is obvious who is being dishonest here. Look at the 2 quotes. Nigerians can read for themselves. You misquoted @atiku. It is in black and white. Plain as day. Why did you not just quote what he said? Why did you have to add and remove to what he said?
“Let us face the issue at hand instead of trying to divert it. You dishonestly misquoted @atiku and this is the proof. Be man enough to accept it and apologize. Would you like it if it’s done to you? Look Femi, you lied. Deal with it. I will not follow you into the gutter. I don’t need to suck up to @atiku. I made a fortune in US dollars from just one bestseller! I suck up to the truth not to men! You told a lie. Fess up to your lie.”
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Dear @RealFFK,
Read what you quote @Atiku as saying and read what @Atiku actually said. Note that they are 2 different statements. You misrepresented him. You twist his words. Your quote was dishonest. Quote Atiku. Don’t put your words in his mouth! You wont like it done to you! pic.twitter.com/DZyrI1N7QV
Advertisement— Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) March 17, 2018
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Actually, most of those involved in these killings are Mbororo also known as Bororo. I did a broadcast on this last year in London. If the Mbororo speak, the Fulani cannot understand them. The Mbororo differ from the Fulani as the Tiv defer from the Igbo. https://t.co/ZqpMQuvgqS
— Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) March 17, 2018
Recently the police arrested a notorious kidnappers known as Evans. Evans was even discovered to have been a billionaire. But neither the media or Femi Fani-Kayode described Evans as an Igbo kidnapper or a Yoruba kidnapper. He was just a kidnapper.https://t.co/ZqpMQuvgqS
— Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) March 17, 2018
Boko Haram became the deadliest terror group in the world in 2014. It has been established by independent sources that most Boko Haram fighters, are Kanuri from Borno/Yobe, but we do not call them Kanuri terrorists. We call them terrorists pure and simple.https://t.co/ZqpMQuvgqS
— Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) March 17, 2018
It is obvious who is being dishonest here. Look at the 2 quotes. Nigerians can read for themselves. You misquoted @atiku. It is in black and white. Plain as day. Why did you not just quote what he said? Why did you have to add and remove to what he said? https://t.co/LjziqOXHAs pic.twitter.com/w3g7TJkk5O
— Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) March 17, 2018
Let us face the issue at hand instead of trying to divert it. You dishonestly misquoted @atiku and this is the proof. Be man enough to accept it and apologize. Would you like it if it’s done to you? https://t.co/Gd5glR36Oq pic.twitter.com/nXCiA3JuMW
— Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) March 17, 2018
Look Femi, you lied. Deal with it. I will not follow you into the gutter. I don’t need to suck up to @atiku. I made a fortune in US dollars from just one bestseller! I suck up to the truth not to men! You told a lie. Fess up to your lie. https://t.co/kqOXeqAxbo
— Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) March 17, 2018
However, Fani-Kayode hit back at Omokri, asking him to “be a man” and call a spade a spade.
He insisted that “ALL Fulani terrorists and herdsmen are Fulani”.
“@renoomokri ….for God sake stop sitting on the fence and hedging ur bets. Be a man, call a spade a spade and stop trying to suck Atiku’s Fulani rectum.Real pastors don’t eat arseholes. Trust me, Atiku will respect u more if u tell him the truth and tell him when he is wrong,” Fani-Kayode said.
“Bad choice.There is no comparison.Not ALL BH fighters are Kanuri but ALL Fulani terrorists and herdsmen are Fulani.They are represented by Miyetti Allah which is an org. with a Fulani leadership.Finally most of their own Fulani leaders call them Fulani herdsmen. READ MY ESSAY!
“Not only must we cage the Fulani terrorists but we must also identify and crush the traitors within our ranks that lick their arses for money and favour and encourage them to unleash genocide against our people.Those that do that are worse than vermin, vultures and cockroaches.”
@renoomokri ….for God sake stop sitting on the fence and hedging ur bets.
Be a man, call a spade a spade and stop trying to suck Atiku's Fulani rectum.Real pastors dont eat arseholes. Trust me, Atiku will respect u more if u tell him the truth and tell him when he is wrong.— Femi Fani-Kayode (@realFFK) March 17, 2018
Bad choice.There is no comparison.Not ALL BH fighters are Kanuri but ALL Fulani terrorists and herdsmen are Fulani.They are represented by Miyetti Allah which is an org. with a Fulani leadership.Finally most of their own Fulani leaders call them Fulani herdsmen. READ MY ESSAY! https://t.co/g2yNDQj0sV
— Femi Fani-Kayode (@realFFK) March 17, 2018
https://twitter.com/realFFK/status/975065103824510977
This is not the first time that both men will disagree in public. In 2016, they were involved in a public spat over a comment by Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder of Facebook.
Fani-Kayode had expressed reservations about Zuckerberg’s description of the Hausa language as unique but Omokri, who saw nothing wrong with what Facebook co-founder said, tackled the ex-minister.
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