NEWS
“Right There in Chicago, I Came Out… and I Said, Look, It Is Not True” — Reno Omokri Retracts ‘Drug Lord’ Claim Against Tinubu
Former presidential aide and ambassador-designate, Reno Omokri, has publicly acknowledged that he was wrong to describe President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as a “drug lord”, saying his position changed after he personally travelled to the United States to independently investigate the allegations surrounding the President’s academic records and alleged links to drug-related activities.
Omokri made the disclosure during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, where he recounted how his fact-finding mission to Chicago in 2022 compelled him to reconsider claims he had previously accepted based largely on reports circulating in the Nigerian media.
According to the former aide to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, he initially believed the allegations against Tinubu but decided to undertake his own investigation rather than rely solely on information available in the media.
He said he travelled to Chicago on September 18, 2022, and visited Chicago State University the following day to examine records concerning Tinubu’s time at the institution.
“I honestly believed what the media reported. Like most Nigerians, probably you who believe me, but I did something that no other Nigerian did. I went to Chicago,” he said.
Omokri said his visit to the university provided him with access to documentary and photographic materials which, according to him, confirmed Tinubu’s attendance and connection with the institution.
“They gave me documentary evidence, photographic evidence, newspaper clippings, and then they have a hall where the president is there because the president is an alumnus,” he said.
The information he obtained, he explained, forced him to reassess his previous position and publicly distance himself from the allegation, despite the potential political consequences of doing so at the time.
“Right there in Chicago, I came out, even though it was against my own political best interest, and I said, Look, it is not true,” he said.
Omokri also addressed records concerning Tinubu’s dealings with United States authorities, saying he examined information relating to a 2003 check and found no criminal arrest record or outstanding warrant against the President.
“The results of the checks were negative for any criminal arrest records, once, or warrant, for Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” he said.
His comments come against the backdrop of renewed public attention to historical documents concerning Tinubu’s past dealings with US authorities and longstanding political controversies surrounding his background.
Omokri stressed that the existence of an investigation in the United States should not automatically be interpreted as evidence that Tinubu was personally the subject of a criminal investigation.
“There was an investigation. Bola Ahmed Tinubu was not the subject of the investigation. The president was not the person that was being investigated,” he said.
The former presidential aide was also questioned about the longstanding controversy involving approximately $460,000 connected to accounts associated with Tinubu in the United States.
The issue, which dates back to the early 1990s, has remained a recurring subject in Nigerian political debates and has frequently been cited by opponents and critics of Tinubu.
Omokri, however, maintained that the US proceeding involving the funds should not be characterised as a criminal conviction against the President.
“The money was forfeited to the US government in a case connected to a wider investigation into heroin trafficking. The proceeding was a civil forfeiture case rather than a criminal conviction of Mr Tinubu.”
The clarification comes at a politically significant time, with Nigeria already heading towards another highly contested election cycle in 2027.
Omokri acknowledged that historical US records and the forfeiture controversy could still be deployed by Tinubu’s political opponents as campaign ammunition, notwithstanding his own decision to withdraw the “drug lord” description.
The controversy also resurfaced in Nigeria’s courts earlier in 2026. In January, a video in which Omokri referred to Tinubu as a “drug lord” was admitted as evidence at the Federal High Court in Abuja during proceedings involving activist and politician Omoyele Sowore. The video was tendered by Sowore’s legal team in the course of the proceedings.
Omokri has subsequently acknowledged that some of the claims he previously made about Tinubu were based on information he believed to be accurate at the time but later reconsidered following his own investigations.
He had also disclosed that he personally apologised to Tinubu after concluding that some of his earlier assertions were inaccurate. According to him, he met the President privately on October 1, 2024, and apologised for his previous statements.
His political position has since undergone a significant transformation, with Omokri becoming a supporter of the Tinubu administration and subsequently being nominated by the President as an ambassador-designate to Mexico.
Interestingly, Omokri also used the television appearance to revisit another controversial investigation he personally undertook, this time concerning allegations made against former Anambra State Governor and Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi.
He recalled travelling to Peru after allegations surfaced linking Obi to drug trafficking, saying he sought to establish the facts directly rather than rely on political claims or media reports.
According to Omokri, his investigation involved speaking with officials in Peru, after which he concluded that the information available to him did not substantiate the allegations against Obi.
“I went to Peru. When, if you remember, they accused Peter Obi of also being a drug lord. I went. I interviewed the Peruvian officials and I said, you know, Peter Obi is innocent. There’s nothing there,” he said.
Omokri’s latest comments have therefore placed renewed focus on the importance of independently verifying politically sensitive allegations, particularly claims involving criminal conduct and the reputations of major political figures.
His account also illustrates how his own political position evolved from making strong allegations against Tinubu, to personally investigating the claims in the United States, publicly withdrawing the “drug lord” description, apologising to the President, and eventually emerging as a supporter of t
he Tinubu administration and an ambassador-designate.