News
Why Ojy Ope stayed away from Arise after ’embarrassing’ clash with Abati
It has emerged that Ojy Okpe, the delectable television host, popularly known for presenting What’s Trending Across the World, a prime segment of The Morning Show, the daily breakfast programme on Arise News Television, actually took time off her show to cool off after last Friday’s bitter encounter with Reuben Abati, one of the major anchors on the programme.
Whirlwindnews.com.ng, gathered from an insider that she felt “so embarrassed” from the encounter, in which Abati, a senior colleague, whose media experience cut across being the Chairman of the Editorial Board of The Guardian, one of Nigeria’s foremost newspapers, popularly known as The Flagship of Nigerian journalism and former presidential spokesman, became so combative and shouted her down.
The confrontation, had begun with the young lady, whose segment in the programme was to draw public attention on issues trending on social media for analysis by the hosts had tried to do so over the deluge of commentaries trailing Abati’s comments the previous day, in which he appeared to have bolstered the claim in certain quarters that Ndigbo do not sell land to outsiders.
A hint of what was likely to come had begun at her first mention of the issue during her introduction of the day’s events, by informing the popular columnist that he had been trending in the social media since the previous day when he made the initial comments to which Abati expressed initial misgivings, waving it aside as a non-issue.
But coming back to the matter, Okpe, who insisted it was her duty to stay on course in line with the nature of the segment, even with Abati trying to cut her off with his voice thundering as he vehemently objected and even described the subject matter as “nonsense,” continued to prompt him to respond to the issues raised by the critics, with the face-off going thus:
Okpe: I wanted to touch more on whether Igbo people sell land to outsiders – yesterday, Dr. Abati, we took this story and there was a flurry of reactions about whether or not the Igbo people sell land to outsiders. I don’t know if you would like to address that because there were a lot of – you know – people from the South East saying it is not true
Abati: No! I have no further comment on that subject
Okpe: Okay
Abati: I was very clear yesterday, I was very specific, I made my point, I provided the context in which I was speaking. If people have selective hearing, that is their problem
Okpe: Well, one of the problems is that you cannot paint a whole tribe with one brush and they have debunked it and
Abati: Cuts in – then replay the tape again – thundering voice – Ah ah! Replay the tape! I was specific about what I said and I provided context
Okpe: Right
Abati: I provided specifics! If people have selective hearing
Okpe: I think its our duty…
Abati: No! There’s no nonsense duty! If people have a different opinion, they have anthropological evidence to support it, they should say so.
Okpe: Well
Abati: It’s not for me to reverse myself
Okpe, insisting: No, no, I was just saying to clarify
Abati: Except you’re expressing your own opinion
Okpe: No
Abati continues: Then I’ll come after you and say that you’re wrong
Okpe: There’s a flurry of reactions and it is my duty to present it
Abati: That comes with the job, that comes with the job. People…it’s a free country
Okpe: It’s my duty to present the reactions of the Nigerian people
Abati: Not to come and challenge me. If you try that we’ll fight
Okpe: I asked you if you’ll like to comment, if you’ll like to comment
Abati: No! I’ve told you
Okpe: Well, the conversation is that a whole tribe cannot be painted with one brush
An insider, who acknowledged that the development caused a lot of ruckus within the establishment, explained that the What’s Trending, presenter, who has not appeared on the programme ever since, felt so embarrassed by the manner of Abati’s riposte to a usually convivial banters the entire programme depicted, especially with Abati’s friendly disposition, accentuated in the unique manner he usually introduced her to the programme, that she had to take some time off.
“Yes. She’s actually taking some time off to cool off from the embarrassment. She was very embarrassed by the encounter. She will be back soon. She needed. She’s not used to that type of treatment and the programme is not designed for such combustive altercations. She’ll naturally get over the experience and she’ll return soon,” she said.
Steve Ayorinde, versatile journalist and main anchor of the Saturday edition of The Morning Show, seemed to confirm that all was not well within the studio of the popular television outfit, which has arguably taken the centrestage of Nigeria’s industry, when the programme hosted Okey Ikechukwu, Abati’s colleague at The Guardian, to speak on the encounter.
“Let us now turn our attention to addressing an important matter closer to our home – the ongoing furore about the sale of lands to outsiders in Igboland. It took a completely different turn in the past week here on The Morning Show, when two of our Arise News’ shining stars had ‘a bit of an argument’ about that subject,” he had said while introducing the programme.
Fuel marketers across Abuja on Wednesday continued to sell Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), popularly known as petrol, at old prices more than 24 hours after Dangote Petroleum Refinery announced a reduction in its ex-depot price, Vanguard is reporting.
The paper reported that its investigation, showed that major retail outlets were yet to adjust their pump prices despite the N75 per litre reduction announced by the refinery on Monday.
At the retail stations visited in Abuja, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Retail and TotalEnergies dispensed petrol at N1,335 per litre, while AA Rano sold at N1,350 per litre. AYM Shafa and Conoil outlets sold the product at N1,330 per litre.
The development comes amid growing public expectations that the reduction in Dangote Refinery’s gantry price would quickly translate into lower pump prices nationwide.
Explaining the delay, the President of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), Dr. Billy Gillis-Harry, said retail prices are influenced by several factors beyond refinery gate prices.
Speaking to Channels TV, Gillis-Harry said: “Prices reflecting at the pump are dependent on availability of the product, the other is the cost. The cost of purchasing the product and cost in terms of logistics, and preparing the particular petroleum to be delivered to the people”.
According to him, downward price adjustments often take longer to reach consumers because marketers need to recover the cost of existing stock purchased at higher prices before restocking at lower rates.
When asked why increases in fuel prices are usually reflected immediately while reductions are delayed, Gillis-Harry said the dynamics of supply management play a significant role.
He explained: “It is mainly affected by whether the producer has additional resources or not at the time. Increases in prices are mainly caused by the need to restock. There must be that advantage pushing the price upward to be able to pay for new supplies.”
He further acknowledged that marketers generally seek to exhaust existing inventory before implementing lower prices.
“That’s the basic idea. But in petroleum, a mixture is involved, and loss is taken, though not in a way that affects the capital needed to restock,” he added.
Also speaking on the issue, energy analyst Olabode Sowunmi said fuel pricing in Nigeria is influenced by a combination of domestic supply arrangements and logistics costs, rather than crude oil prices alone.
He noted that although international crude oil prices remain an important factor globally, their impact on local petrol pricing is not always direct.
“Global price of crude oil is a factor internationally and not necessarily in Nigeria,” Sowunmi said.
Explaining that Dangote Refinery operates under arrangements that allow a portion of crude supply to be priced in naira, reducing the direct impact of international market fluctuations on local fuel prices, he said: “So basically the issue will have to be from the point of refinery to where it touches the final person. Logistics costs within the domestic supply chain remain a major determinant of the final pump price paid by consumers.”
Peter Obi, candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has given assignment to Nigerians to put all those aspiring to take up political positions in the country through the grill to ascertain their level of integrity, saying it was required as a sine qua non for the job they seek.
Obi, who has been a subject of discussion in the polity since the allegation of corruption was levied against him by Kenneth Okonkwo, spokesman of his campaign in 2023, over the conduct of the party’s primaries to choose candidates for the 2027 general elections, said the grilling must start with his own person.
A guest in an interview on a podcast with Rufai Oseni, a popular television anchor, the former Governor of Anambra State, stated that it was actually for this reason that he had now sworn to see the litigation he instituted against Okonkwo through.
His take is that the Nollywood actor should use the courtrooms to give all the details of bad behaviour, following his threat to expose him fully, after alleging that he was collecting money from aspirants in the said election for electoral favours.
Hear him: “The issue of taking Kenneth Okonkwo to court wouldn’t have arisen if he had stopped at those allegations. But he claimed he still has more he would expose about me in the future. So, I am very happy to take him to court so that he can expose me publicly, alongside other Nigerians. If any of them has any criminal allegations against me, they should bring them to court.
“Not just Kenneth, everybody should now say those things they know that is bad about me or I did that is wrong because it’s good for the system, it’s good for the society,” Obi said.
“So, if you know that when we were in primary school, this man was cheating or didn’t go to the primary school, didn’t go to secondary school, didn’t do, if you know this man has done something criminal somewhere, this is time to bring it up.”
For the umpteenth time, Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has warned about the dangerous implication of using state institutions, particularly the judiciary to destroy Nigeria’s democracy, saying it is an ill-wind that blows nobody any good.
Atiku, presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), speaking on the heels of Tuesday’s verdict of the Court of Appeal, halting the de-registration order by the Federal High Court, insisted that judicial officers must not lend themselves to any act capable of undermining the nation’s democratic process.
The appellate court had ordered a stay of execution on the order made on Monday by Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court Abuja, for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the ADC alongside four other political parties).
A totally scandalised Court of Appeal, sitting in Abuja, had taken umbrage, sparing no hard words in upbraiding the lower court judge, stating that his likes were unfit to sit on the bench.
In a unanimous ruling by a three-man panel, the court held that Lifu’s action was “the highest form of judicial impertinence”, stressing that the Supreme Court previously held that a judge who acted in such a manner.
Describing his conduct as the height of judicial rascality, the upper court, stated: “Courts are enjoined to protect their integrity. This Court has supervisory authority over the trial court.
“The decision of the lower court to proceed with the judgment despite the express order of this court is a brazen violation of the hierarchy of the court and the 1999 Constitution.
This court has the duty to invoke its powers in ensuring that its orders are obeyed. The application for a stay of execution is here yet granted. The enforcement of the judgment is stayed.”
Atiku, who hailed the position of the higher court, which restored his hope to be on the ballot as presidential candidate in the 2027 election, also noted the role of INEC as “significant.”
He said: “I welcome the Court of Appeal’s decision to stay the execution of the Federal High Court judgement seeking the deregistration of our great party, the ADC, and four other political parties. It is particularly significant that INEC itself initiated the application for the stay.
“The development reflects growing public concern over judicial contradictions and politically charged rulings within the judiciary. “Any attempt to undermine Nigeria’s hard-won democracy through judicial manipulation is a grave danger to the Republic. If our democracy suffers further injury, history will demand accountability from those entrusted with dispensing justice.
Outside ADC, Lifu’s order, also included: Action Democratic Congress (ADC), Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Accord Party (AP) and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), similarly slammed for allegedly failing to meet the constitutional requirements for continued registration and participation in elections.
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