Media magnate and Njenje Media CEO, Maazi Tochukwu Ezeoke, has dismissed reports claiming that Peter Obi told Nigerians living abroad to stop sending money to their relatives in Nigeria, insisting that the former Labour Party presidential candidate’s remarks were misrepresented.
In a statement, Ezeoke said he accompanied Obi on his United Kingdom trip and witnessed the remarks that sparked the controversy.
“Let me state this clearly: Peter Obi never told Nigerians in the diaspora to stop sending money to their relatives in Nigeria. That claim is false,” he said.
According to Ezeoke, Obi’s message was that Nigerians abroad should do more than send money home by encouraging their relatives and others to participate in efforts to change the country.
“There is a fundamental difference between ‘do not stop at sending money’ and ‘stop sending money.’ Presenting one as the other changes the meaning of what was said,” he stated.
Ezeoke said he was speaking from personal experience rather than hearsay, adding that Njenje Media possesses the full video recording of the remarks.
“I am not responding on the basis of hearsay or a second-hand account. I was there. I heard his remarks, and Njenje Media has the full video,” he said.
He argued that the disputed reports omitted the part in which Obi encouraged Nigerians in the diaspora to urge people back home to get involved in changing the country.
“His appeal was for engagement beyond financial assistance, not for Nigerians abroad to abandon their families or withdraw support,” Ezeoke stated.
He called on media organisations that published or repeated the claim to review the complete recording and correct their reports.
“Did they review the complete recording before publishing? If they did not, that is a failure of verification. If they reviewed it and still omitted the part that explains his message, that raises serious questions about their editorial integrity,” he said.
Ezeoke further stressed that headlines should accurately reflect speakers’ remarks rather than create a different impression for public attention.
“I condemn this misrepresentation and urge the organisations concerned to review the full video held by Njenje Media, correct their reports and give the correction appropriate prominence,” he added.
He concluded by urging media organisations to uphold their responsibility to provide accurate information and avoid sensational headlines or what he described as paid political mudslinging.
