To Yinka Odumakin And His Fellow Travellers By Nduka Obaigbena

http://saharareporters.com/article/yinka-odumakin-and-his-fellow-travellers-nduka-obaigbena


By Nduka Obaigbena
Nduka Obaigbena has had a very busy 48 hours hosting global statesmen, patriots and everyday heroes at the THISDAY Awards, 2011 and has had no time to read and react to the pinheaded response of Yinka Odumakin (the  clueless and uneducated Assistant to CPC Flag bearer, Muhammed Buhari), who again exposed his low life in his recent posting on SaharaReporters.com.

To be clear, several friends and family have advised Obaigbena not to dignify Yinka Odumakin with a response. True they have a point that Odumakin is a low lifer. But a non response will allow the untruths remain unchallenged. More importantly, this response is not personal; it is  to the Media Assistant to Candidate Buhari - who put a man without a clear means of income at the pinnacle of his campaign. When you give a simple mind with a small brain a job that is much bigger than he is, he tends to abuse it, as has happened all through our history.

[b]Just before the case against the Odumakin and his co travellers begin in court, here is why a response is important: one of the low points of the Buhari Military Regime between 1983 to 1985 was the draconian Decree 4 which jailed respected journalists, Nduka Irabor and Tunde Thomson for publishing the truth, deemed embarrassing to the then Buhari regime. And now in Year 2011, THISDAY publishes an opinion poll conducted on its behalf by the world renowned, IPSOS. What is the response of the Buhari Presidential Candidacy? Get ICPC to investigate the Publisher; to investigate the perceived wealth of a private citizen for daring to "embarrass" candidate Buhari and the CPC with an opinion poll! Seems familiar? What does this mean for the free press and freedom of expression should Buhari become President? Imagine Buhari and the Odumakins around him were in power today and THISDAY published the THISDAY IPSOS poll results,  the rest is better imagined.  Should we then be afraid? Be vey afraid of the  Buhari / Bakare/ Odumakin presidency? So for the records, this response is not just for the education of the pinheads with small brains that Odumakin represents but for the many who look to this website for news and commentary as Obaigbena believes that once you are in the public arena, you must be accountable for your actions. This response is thus about our collective free press and the freedom of expression which the Buhari Campaign organisation and their co travellers are attempting to muscle because they are "embarrassed" by a public opinion poll published by THISDAY.[/b]

On Wednesday, March 24. 2011 Obaigbena had made a few points to Odumakin which have remained unanswered;

1. That Yinka Odumakin has no clear means of livelihood; he did not respond to that. We need a simple answer to a simple question: Mr. Odumakin, what has been your source of income since you left school; politics?  Are you fit for purpose? What experience  qualifies you for the job of Spokesman for Candidate Buhari? One then wonders how a man with no experience and a clear means of livelihood will end up as a principal spokesman of a major Presidential candidate;

2. That Nduka Obaigbena has never been an "associate of past and present government officials" as you FALSELY claim, where is your evidence to the contrary? Is your campaign organisation built on lies?

3. That THISDAY Editors and Journalist were paid to conduct the critically acclaimed  THISDAY/ IPSOS polls, where is your evidence? Is your campaign organisation built on lies?

4. When you are confronted with unassailable facts, you resort to name calling: "blackmailer"!, "fraud"! "Lack of integrity"! Etc,  Etc,  Where is your evidence on any shred of your claims on blackmail, fraud or lack of integrity? If you have them bring them on here and now or in court! Is your campaign organisation built on lies?? And for your information, THISDAY South Africa, or its officials had ABSOLUTELY NO iISSUE with the law! The business was conducted in the best possible manner under difficult  xenophobic circumstances. When the losses became too much we closed the operations, settled all creditors and reworked our business model. And from the ashes of THISDAY SA  we moved on to found the award winning style and culture magazine, ARiSE published from New York, London and South Africa  - And ARISE Magazine was recently named top seller in Barnes and Nobles bookshops across the USA!

[size=14pt]5. We claim you, Yinka Odumakin came to Obaigbena's Ikoyi, residence to beg for money after bad mouthing Bola Tinubu and co. [/size]We have given you the day and time, if you dispute this claim, take us to court, we will prove our claim. So stop blaspheming with the name of God who'll reserve the hottest place in hellfire for liars and pretenders like you!




6. What areas of the THISDAY/ IPSOS Poll do you disagree with? Where and  what are the facts to support your claims? If you have them, we will publish in a civilised manner under our RIGHT of REPLY COLUMN!

7. Then you claim in a half truth without context,  that we invited Buhari to our Board of Editors forum and you blocked it because we offered Buhari transportation. How shallow can you be?  First let us deal with the principle: You think you are doing us a favour? Where were you when Buhari was interviewed by Nduka Obaigbena for TIME Magazine in 1985? Buhari needs our readers more than our readers need him. So if even we were enemies of Buhari , which we are not, it is your job to get his message to our readers in print and online! After all, he seeks our votes (or he does not need them)? Does Odumakin even know the difference between the message and the messenger? Do you understand the role of the media or comprehend the psycographic analysis of media reach and audiences? When then Candidate Barrack Obama went to the lions den for an interview with Bill O'Reily of Fox News, is it because he loved Bill O'Reily or Rupert Murdoch? It is because Obama was targeting independents, moderate Republicans and swing voters who are among the key audiences of Fox News to ensure victory,  Do you now agree that this job is bigger than your small brain? Now let us deal with the facts: THISDAY has scores of independent minded senior citizens across Nigeria to whom we go for feed back and independent perspectives on our daily news coverage. One of them is Wada Maida, a respected media leader,  former Chief Press Secretary to then Head of State Mohammed Buhari and now Chairman of The Peoples Daily, amongst others, including being a one time non-executive Director of LEADERS & COMPANY LTD., publishers of THISDAY.  In our continuing dialogue, on THISDAY coverage of all candidates to ensure even unbiased coverage, Maida would offer his critique and perspectives. On a few occasions he would convey the Buhari Campaign displeasure on one coverage or the other. After a few complains, Obaigbena then offered the THISDAY Editorial Board forum to Buhari in Lagos. Because of tight campaign schedules in the north at that time, he could not break away. To demonstrate good faith that we had nothing against Buhari, we then offered a private jet to bring him to Lagos for the interview and return him to his campaign. Wada Maida later told me that Odumakin was handling it!  The outcome? Your guess is as good as mine! Our invitation to Candidate Buhari remains open.

We have gone the whole nine yards to explain  because we believe in openness, accountability and full disclosure. We will meet Yinka Odumakin and his co travellers in court who have nothing to show but envy at the unqualified success of THISDAY and its brands nationally and globally. Finally, we must point out that given the rigorous and intensive vetting process of the US Secret Service, The State Department and The White House,  If THISDAY's Nduka Obaigbena is not a man of unblemished integrity, he would not be standing shoulder to shoulder with President Bill Clinton ( husband of a serving US Secretary of State), President George W Bush, Prime Minister Tony Blair, Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Chancellor, Gerhard Schreoder, Prime Minister John Howard, former Secretaries of State: Henry Kissinger, Colin Powell and Condelezza Rice and several other world leaders and statesmen who are guests os THISDAY Events worldwide!

Lies have short legs, they do not run far, this time the lies of the Yinka Odumakin's and Joe Igbokwes of this world would be cut short in court.

Many thanks,

Office of Nduka Obaigbena

Look at the type of people our would be leaders romance with. Because something doesnt favour you, you resort to name calling and stuff. Sad.

I once worked in thisday as a journalist in Abuja but I just walked out after three months without a salary. I was even tolerant for 3 months since I had started counting my days from the first day we the new entrants were having a meeting with Kayode Komolafe and this brusque man open the door, scanned everybody's face and asked KK 'what are they still doing?' And then added, 'please send them to their respective states to start work immediately'. No courtesy, no smile, no welcoming comments, he sounded like an employer of slaves and what I faced in the next 3 months made me ran away. Nduka neva cares about his staff, believing the brand is enough for them to hjave access to a good life, as this is what he uses Thisday for? The whole media in Nigeria is compromised and I am beginning to like Buhari the more for tampering with the 'freedom of the press'. The nigerian press is owned by the PDP thieves and other rogues including Nduka. No be new thing! Next?

Even developed countries agree the press is free and can align with any opinion or politician they so wish, but in Nigeria, they sling mud at you because you dont believe in what they believe in and they say you have been bought.

If you believe anyone can be bought, then you are the number one on the list of bought people no matter whose side you belong.

The potential saddest part of this is that IF Buhari gets into power, he'll gradually fade into oblivion as usual and abandon the government to dimwits like Odumakin to run. Are u deluded supporters seeing the road ahead? Just read through @Gen Buhari's response and see how sorry he sounds yet he's your online leader! SMH

Genbuhari3:

. . .I am beginning to like Buhari the more for tampering with the 'freedom of the press'.

An interesting comment by a staunch and avid supporter of General Buhari. Clearly then a vote for Buhari is a vote for Fascism.

Genbuhari3:

I once worked in thisday as a journalist in Abuja but I just walked out after three months without a salary. I was even tolerant for 3 months since I had started counting my days from the first day we the new entrants were having a meeting with Kayode Komolafe and this brusque man open the door, scanned everybody's face and asked KK 'what are they still doing?' And then added, 'please send them to their respective states to start work immediately'. No courtesy, no smile, no welcoming comments, he sounded like an employer of slaves and what I faced in the next 3 months made me ran away. Nduka neva cares about his staff, believing the brand is enough for them to hjave access to a good life, as this is what he uses Thisday for? The whole media in Nigeria is compromised and I am beginning to like Buhari the more for tampering with the 'freedom of the press'. The nigerian press is owned by the PDP thieves and other rogues including Nduka. No be new thing! Next?

Too bad.

Voting for bb is like forfeiting our rights. So, we shld not to see anything in bb's leadership

Bla bla bla. . . Buhari is still the man, what Nigerians are experiencing can very well be said to human rights violation. No access to power, good roads, health care, water, waste disposal, name it. I will rather be under a president that wont let me air my view and is a total performer than be in a unitary democratic system, if everything is working what do I have to complain about. As for his trampling on human right, please find a better accusation.

The "press" in this country is a complete joke. There is no "freedom" of the press here because all the media houses are available to the highest bidder. I mean, does anyone really read any of these rags to get their news anymore?

appletango:

The "press" in this country is a complete joke. There is no "freedom" of the press here because all the media houses are available to the highest bidder. I mean, does anyone really read any of these rags to get their news anymore?

Unfortunately alot of people do

I can list the press houses i hate watching or reading due to the fact that they are very corrupt and line behind the PDP led government.

NTA
AIT
STV

And now i am suspecting Channels too.

As for the papers, almost all the papers are corrupt, but the kings of them all are Thisday, Punch and the nation.

I am core and unrepentant fanatic of the BB2011 train but i will state hear that i diagree with Yinka Odumakin going on the offensive of personal attacks on Nduka Obaeigbana. He had a right to disagree with the thisday polls and discredit it but to ask the ICPC to investigate his wealth was a bad strategy with bad timing.

I passionatley dislike Nduka and i beileve his media is cash and carry collecting billions in 2007 from OBJ govt for the yaradua project. Everyone knows he is a fraud but Odumakin who has been doing a good job did not need to drag the Buhari candidacy into this mess. I am almost certain Nduka is lying about Odumakin begging him for money but this is what you get when you go on needless offensive.

I just want odumakin to keep quiet and focus on the campaign now please!

The first time I will meet Obaigbena, he was escaping arrests by jumping into a boat at the back of his office in Apapa, the man na cowboy, he brought everybody to his then new office complex and taxed them all ( around 2000).