The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) has denied reports that its executive chairman, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, bailed the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi out of detention in the United Kingdom.
KanyiDaily had reported how Peter Obi was detained and questioned at Heathrow Airport for a duplication offense which suggests that someone has been impersonating him in London.
The Head of Obi-Datti Media Office, Diran Onifade, who made this known in a statement issued on Wednesday, said Obi was harassed by London immigration officials and placed in detention where he spent the Easter holidays.
Onifade explained that Obi’s impostor may have all kinds of weighty crimes and other dubious acts that led to the harassment of the LP flagbearer who lived for over a decade in the UK.
He emphasized that since the impersonator is still at large, the scenario is unimaginable as Peter Obi could be implicated in a series of forbidden acts and even be framed in a manner that could be a huge embarrassment to him, his family, his party, the Obedient movement, and Nigeria, where he currently and remains the conscience of the people.
Dabiri-Erewa Allegedly Bails Peter Obi In UK
On Thursday, a photo went viral on social media showing the NiDCOM boss seated in an office with Obi and a UK law enforcement officer in order to secure the LP presidential candidate’s release from detention.
A former presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adamau Garba who shared the image on his Twitter page, claimed that the government, through Abike Dabiri, facilitated Peter Obi’s release.
He wrote, “Here is how the government of APC helped to recover Peter Obi from his detention cell in the UK over allegations of traveling to the UK with fake documents.
All thanks to Abike Dabiri. His campaign fake, manifesto fake, his motives fake, even his travel documents are fake. WHY?
Here is how the government of APC helped to recover Peter Obi from his detention cell in the UK over allegations of traveling to the UK with fake documents. All thanks to Abike Dabiri.
His campaign fake, manifesto fake, his motives fake, even his travel documents are fake. WHY? pic.twitter.com/CVNOiAwP0E
— Adamu J. B Garba II (@adamugarba) April 13, 2023
Also, the Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Digital Communications, Bashir Ahmad, also tweeted on Thursday, implying that the federal government secured Obi’s release.
Ahmad wrote, “I heard Aunty @Abike Dabiri has done it for the Compatriot that needed her intervention in the UK. God bless you and the services you have been rendering for our countrymen and women, especially this recent one, ma’am!”
I heard Aunty @AbikeDabiri has done it for the Compatriot that needed her intervention in the UK. God bless you and the services you have been rendering for our countrymen and women, especially this recent one, ma’am!
— Bashir Ahmad (@BashirAhmaad) April 13, 2023
Dabiri-Erewa Did Not Intervene In Peter Obi’s Ordeal
However, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, the spokesperson, and head of NiDCOM’s Media, Public Relations, and Protocol Unit, has denied facilitating Obi’s release, describing the viral photo as a media stunt.
He stated that the NiDCOM boss, Abiri Dabiri-Erewa, was not in the UK and was unable to secure the release of any Nigerian suspected of being detained in the UK.
He said: “Our attention has been called to the above social media stunt which has gone viral. Aunty Abike Dabiri-Erewa is NOT in UK and NOT in a position to secure the release of any Nigerian suspected to be under UK interrogation. So, members of the public should disregard the information in its entirety.”
KanyiDaily recalls that Bashir Ahmad had previously mocked Peter Obi over his detention, saying the LP presidential candidate was treated like a common criminal in the UK.