Peter Obi Took Picture With Controversial Biafra Agitator, Simon Ekpa? Official Reacts

• A picture was aggressively shared on WhatsApp recently showing Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), and Simon Ekpa
• Diaspora-based Ekpa is a controversial pro-Biafra agitator who has been heavily criticised in Nigeria for his style of separatism
• Labour Party chieftain, Diran Onifade, has quashed social media posts suggesting Obi met and took a picture with Ekpa

FCT, Abuja - The head of the Peter Obi-Yusuf Datti Media Office, Diran Onifade, has said a picture in circulation that showed the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate with controversial Biafra agitator, Simon Ekpa, is fake.

Finland-based Ekpa has been consistently accused of being responsible for the oft-deadly sit-at-home exercise in Nigeria's southeast region.

LP, Obi deny photo shot with Simon Ekpa

A picture showed Ekpa and Obi on a flight, with the latter holding a book.

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However, Onifade said the photograph was photoshopped, Vanguard reported.

He said:

“This is all in a desperate move to drag Obi’s name into disrepute by linking him with the ugly story that Ekpa has become in Nigeria."

The Sun Nigeria also quotes the Labour Party official as saying:

“The memory may be short to forget that Obi was the first to describe the sit-at-home thing as an act being engineered and bred by a criminal that the system has refused to squarely tackle.”

Meanwhile, the source of the original picture also spoke.

Suraj Oyewale, a tax expert, clarified that he took the picture, which has now been manipulated with Obi in-flight.

Issuing a disclaimer via his verified Twitter handle, @SirJarus, Oyewale wrote:

"This in-flight picture Mr @PeterObi graciously accepted to take with me yesterday (July 21, 2023) when I presented to him a copy of my book has been photoshopped by some agents of fake news.

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"Aisha and Simon Ekpa were photoshopped into the picture, which I understand is now being shared on Whatsapp, the HQ of fake news.

"Please ignore. This is the original picture. Mr Obi was kind enough to allow me disrupt his quiet time on a plane to take this picture."

Peter Obi reveals what he looks forward to in his new Nigeria

In a piece of related news, Legit.ng reported that Obi emphasised the need for Nigeria to invest more in the education of the younger generation.

Obi said the government needs to invest in education because “without education, there cannot be meaningful development".

Source: Legit.ng