Former presidential aide Reno Omokri has revealed that he and former Senator Ben Murray-Bruce played a key role in the selection of Peter Obi as Atiku Abubakar’s vice-presidential candidate during the 2019 general elections.
In a post shared on X (formerly Twitter), Omokri claimed that Peter Obi actively lobbied for the position, including sending his curriculum vitae (CV) without solicitation and persistently following up.
“Peter Obi sent me his CV and called to ask, ‘Reno, have you gotten the CV? Check. Refresh.’ He was sending me CV unsolicited,” Omokri wrote.
According to Omokri, Atiku personally asked him to recommend a running mate ahead of the 2019 elections.
Jonathan’s Directive and Omokri’s Role
He disclosed that after receiving the request, he immediately contacted former President Goodluck Jonathan, who instructed him to back Obi.
“Atiku called me and said I should headhunt a vice presidential candidate for him. As he dropped the phone, the next person I called was President Jonathan. And President Jonathan told me it is Peter Obi,” he said.
Omokri admitted that he did not particularly like Obi but obeyed Jonathan’s instruction out of loyalty.
“Senator Ben Murray-Bruce and I were responsible for Atiku Abubakar picking Peter Obi as his running mate. We packaged Peter Obi. I don’t particularly like Peter Obi. The reason I was doing that is that I was instructed by former President Jonathan… and I’m a loyal person.”
The former aide issued a strong warning to Obi, threatening to reveal more if the Labour Party leader denies the account.
“If he denies it, I will disgrace him,” Omokri wrote, reaffirming that his support for Obi in 2019 was solely due to President Jonathan’s directive.
Peter Obi, former Anambra State governor, ran as Atiku Abubakar’s running mate on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2019.
He later contested the 2023 presidential election as the candidate of the Labour Party.
As of press time, Obi has not publicly responded to Omokri’s latest comments.
