Former aide to ex-President, Goodluck Jonathan, Reno Omokri, on Saturday, slammed activist Aisha Yesufu following her reaction to his recent announcement explaining his reasons for returning to Nigeria from the United Kingdom.

The duo had clashed after Yesufu reacted to a post on X by Omokri, suggesting the former aide to the president may have lied. Reacting, Omokri had offered to pay any charity of Yesufu’s choice N20m if she fact-checked him and found that he was wrong.

The Guardian reports that Omokri, in an earlier video shared on X, revealed that he returned to Nigeria because he was impressed with the current administration’s efforts, particularly in the areas of security and economic reform.

He noted that while he is not a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), he supports some of the government’s policies, such as the floating of the naira, the removal of fuel subsidies, and, most especially, the improvements in Nigeria’s security situation.

He credited President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration for preventing major terror attacks, noting that there had not been any bombings of the Abuja-Kano rail since the Buhari administration ended, and noted the containment of recent protests in Nigeria, comparing them to similar unrest in countries like Bangladesh and the UK.

Omokri stated, “But on the issue of security, look, if you see what’s happened in the last eight years, our global terrorism index score was above it right now. It is now under seven.

“So we are seeing progress in the country, and it’s not just that we saw what happened just about a month ago. There were protests at the same time. Simultaneously, we had protests in Bangladesh. We had protests in the United Kingdom, and yet we saw what happened in those countries, but in Nigeria, it was contained. Yes, there were Russian flags, but the people behind that had been apprehended.

“The last time we heard of a bombing of the Abuja-Kano rail was just when Buhari was in power. Since this administration came in, it has not happened. So yes, I’m not a member of the APC, but I am happy with what is happening with security in this administration.”

In response to the video, Yesufu mocked Omokri with a post filled with eight laughing emojis, saying, “in the last eight years, no bandit leader was killed… Who killed Shekau? If one has to lie, do it with something that will take fact-checking to disprove.”

In response, Omokri accused Yesufu of conflating different security issues, saying, “Dear Aisha… Thank you for your feedback. In case you are unaware, there are differences between terrorists, bandits, and criminals.”

He noted in his letter the distinction between terrorists like Abubakar Shekau, who was a Boko Haram leader, and bandits, who are largely motivated by economic gain rather than political objectives.

“A bandit is defined as a person whose occupation is organised theft, often in a group. They have no political motives. Their nefarious activities are purely for economic reasons,” Omokri added.

“The cattle rustlers and community raiders currently plaguing Northern Nigeria are officially designated as bandits by the Global Terrorism Index, and bandit leaders include Ali Kachala, Boderi Isyaku, Sani Dangote, Modi, and Nagala, all of whom were killed when Mallam Nuhu Ribadu became the NSA.”

“No bandit leader was killed under Buhari. Rather, General Buhari sanctioned that Sheikh Gumi meet with them,” Omokri stated.

Omokri added, “Finally, criminals are defined as persons who opportunistically commit crimes and are not coordinated or formed into bands. I do hope I have made the contrast among these three distinct groups clear. You may disagree with my political views. However, it is wrong to call me a liar.

“Please find attached the web address for the Institute for Economics and Peace, publishers of the annual Global Terrorism Index. It may help you understand these terms better: http://economicsandpeace.org.”

He, however, ended his letter response by offering a ₦20 million donation to charity if Yesufu could prove his statements false, stating, “If you fact-check these definitions above and find that I have lied or misrepresented the truth, I vow to donate the sum of twenty million Naira (₦20,000,000) to a charity of your choice.”