VP 2019 Debate: Buhari Media Organisation calls Peter Obi a fact twister, as Onyinye accuses Premium Times of bias over Poll

*Most print media houses working for PDP – Emi Felix Azuka

*’Observe some of TV, others’ headlines since VP debateFriday’

“From the outset, it was clear that Obi was out to impress his gullible political base but he did not reckon with the fact that majority of Nigerians cannot easily be fooled at a time information can easily be cross checked.  Perhaps his biggest lie on the night that was easily debunked by knowledgeable Nigerians was his claim of two million vehicles on Nigerian roads,” BMO said.

The Buhari Media Organisation (BMO) has described the Vice Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Peter Obi, as a politician with penchant for cooking up figures and twisting facts.

This, according to BMO, was clear from the series of half truths the former Anambra State governor reeled out during the Vice Presidential candidates’ debate organised by the Nigeria Elections Debate Group (NEDG) and the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria (BON) in Abuja.

The president’s support group spoke just as another supporter, Zara Gift Onyinye, exposed a Nigerian online newspaper, Premium Times, of bias over the opinion poll it ran on its Facebook wall which, according to the amazon of the Buhari presidential crusade, the media outfit removed on discovering that the poll was favouring the Vice Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Professor Yemi Osinbajo, who is also the sitting vice president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

In the Premium Times poll, which was published exactly 9.08 Saturday night with a question “Who is you VP candidate?” after providing what it described as its analysis of the Vice Presidential Candidate Debate of Friday, had 16,000 votes recorded.

The results were summed up at exactly 20 hours after publication based on pictorial copy of the poll available to The DEFENDER.

Of the total 16,000 votes and 290 likes centred mainly on two leading parties, whereas Peter Obi who is vice presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) scored 43 percent, Yemi Osinbajo the vice presidential candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC) scored 57 percent.

The poll, clearly led by APC VP candidate Osinbajo, has however been dropped and replaced by another one which is now ongoing.

Miffed by the unusual dropping of the poll favouring the APC, an active supporter of Buhari presidency and social activist, Zara Gift Onyinye, blasted the PREMIUM TIMES what she called hypocrisy displayed in its handling of the poll.

Onyinye, who posted her anger on her Facebook wall Sunday evening, said: “PREMIUMTIMES deletes online opinion polls on Vice presidential candidates, after realizing that Prof Yemi Osinbajo is leading the race. What a hypocrisy..!”

Responding to the alarm by Onyinye, most of the 18 comments condemned the attitude credited to the online newspaper (not The DEFENDER).

Among them was Kingsley Kene Muoneke, who said, “Honestly I was also surprise ooh.why all this gang up for God’s sake”.

Another Nigerian who condemned the PREMIUM TIMES was Azuka Brown Ojugbeli, who said, “Bunch of hypocrites…they haven’t seen anything yet.”

Others reacted as follows:

Abdulhadi Aliyu: “Hahahahaha, really? I voted n it was 54 to 43%….”

Kunle Durodolu went straight and brought the poll details as captured in a pictorial material also available to The DEFENDER and attested to by Echeune Ob’Ekwu Ogo who also called attention of one Chinwike Ejike, suspectedly to clear his doubts, to see.

Chinwike Ejike, still in doubt trying to claim Obi was on the lead,  said, “Peter Obi was far ahead with Osinbajo at 39% while Peter Obi was at 61%. We also voted in that poll” but was countered by Oladeji Abdulgafar Olayinka who said, “Chinwike Ejike It’s not true,i also voted,as at yesterday Osinbajo was leading”.

Chinwike Ejike Oladeji Abdulgafar Olayinka Please stop spreading falsehood for I voted today and the rally was 39% for Osinbajo and 61% for Peter Obi. If Osinbajo had an early lead that is it for it is not who has an early lead that wins. Peter Obi had a margin of 21%. It is a transparent exercise”.

Ejike however appeared to be the exposed by Omole D Stronger saying, “Chinwike Ejike sir. U re taking it for each other. I voted dis morning to. Osinbajo was 61 obi 39 u can ask frnd”.

As for Emuche Nnaji, also miffed by the online newspaper’s behaviour, if they can delete the poll handled by them because it was led by APC, “They can’t delete 2019 polls”.

Most print media houses working for PDP – Emi Felix Azuka

Emi Felix Azuka said: “Most of the print media houses are working for PDP, but the good news is that their effort will end in shame. PMB is a movement.”

Musa Yola: “Leave them na de vote na no be them.”

Adeniyi Abass Akinbile: “No wonder I couldn’t see it when I want to vote. Mad people”.

Olutola Bolorunduro tried to douse the fire cause by the alleged attitude of the medium with a copy of the Premium Times Facebook comment moving the poll from the wall to its website.  That, in itself, fell to the deaf ears of already angered fans.

Olutola Bolorunduro quoted Premium Times: “Dear readers, Due to limited poll options on Facebook, we hereby cancel our earlier poll on “Who was your best VP candidate from the just concluded Vice-Presidential candidates debate?  We appeal to our readers to visit our website to vote in the poll where all vice-presidenital candidates who participated in the debate are listed. Thank you. Vote here: https://wp.me/p2LdGt-1gmU”.

But Peter Adebayo slammed them all: “Who that epp as no matter gang-up another term awaits Ọṣinbajo & PMB”.

Ejiofor Agada said: “Ohh…no wonder I couldn’t locate again”.

Onimisi Ikunaiye said: “I have a feeling the website was probably hacked. Osinbajo was clearly leading when I began to see strange change in the poll result. But the poll ended few minutes and I have a screenshot below.”

Bamidele Ola: “I though Obi was leading! The post I saw was Obi leading by 56%! I then wondered why they deleted it since most media houses and journalists are in the bank for ATIKU and Obi was leading that poll!”

Umar Magaji Abubakar: “I realise it ooo i swear very few minutes ago i went to check it but i didnt saw it. The last time i checked it osinbajo is leading with 58% while peter obi is loosing with 42% and the total number of votes was 30000.”

Bashir Abdulkadir: “Don’t mind premium time ,I said it this afternoon. Premium time and channels television have taking side already. They might have seriously be affected by this administration. No more free cash .Any one expecting an unbiased news from them during this coming 2019 election is seriously joking. Just check there head lines after that Friday debate.”

The Buhari Media Organisation, in a statement signed by its Chairman Niyi Akinsiju and Secretary Cassidy Madueke, said that Obi did not disappoint Nigerians who have been following his political trajectory since he left the Government House in Awka.

The group said, “From the outset, it was clear that Obi was out to impress his gullible political base but he did not reckon with the fact that majority of Nigerians cannot easily be fooled at a time information can easily be cross checked

“Perhaps his biggest lie on the night that was easily debunked by knowledgeable Nigerians was his claim of two million vehicles on Nigerian roads. Even without the benefit of data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), an average car part dealer in Gudu, Abuja or Idumota, Lagos knew he was lying.

“An NBS fact sheet that has for sometime been in the public domain shows that the country has a total vehicle population of about 11.5 million as at the third quarter of 2017 so where did Obi gets his own data?

BMO added that it was gratifying to note that one of Nigeria’s influential online publications, The Cable did a quick fact check of what Obi and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said at the debate

“Some of the lies couched as facts by the PDP chieftain according to the online newspaper include his claim that Nigeria has fallen on the global competitive index from 124 to 127

“The true position from the 2018 World Economic Forum (WEF) report is that the country rose on the index by 10 places

“Peter Obi also argued that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for 2015 was $21 billion while it fell to $12 billion in 2017. Again he lied just as he did with his claim that African trade is less than 9 percent

“Data from AfrieximBank indicate that intra-Africa trade is around 15 percent while Brooking Institution puts it at 18 percent

“These are just some of the lies that the man PDP elements dressed up as an economic expert attempted to force down the throats of Nigerians as facts and figures”

The group however hailed Professor Osinbajo for sticking with facts on issues including how the President Muhammadu Buhari administration crashed the price of a bag of fertilisers to between N5,500 and N6,500 from a figure ranging from N10,000 to N13,000in the past

BMO added that any discerning Nigerian should know by now that PDP is bent on hoodwinking eligible voters with half truths and false narratives in line with its much-maligned Dubai strategy of lies and propaganda.