Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, has dismissed claims that he holds a file with the United States FBI. He said he has never met anyone from the agency. Moreover, he declared that he has never set foot in a police station in Nigeria.
Obi spoke in an interview on 90 Minutes Africa. He was reacting to Reno Omokri, Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to Mexico and a former presidential aide, who first made the FBI claim.
Omokri had said that every major candidate in the 2027 presidential election holds an FBI record. “All of the candidates in this election have FBI records. All of them,” he said. However, he stressed that an FBI record does not necessarily mean a criminal record.
Omokri made the remarks while defending President Bola Tinubu, whose own US records have stirred debate. He also challenged Obi to release his own file before demanding that Tinubu release his.
The interviewer asked Obi directly whether any such file exists. Obi answered with visible surprise. “I don’t even know who is FBI,” he said. Then he described his travels. By his account, this was his fifth or sixth visit to America. “Is there a file about me? I don’t know,” he said. “I’ve not met FBI.”
Obi then pressed the point further. He noted that other people had spoken confidently about the supposed files. “They even said they have a file,” he said. “I have not met anybody with any file.”
Next, he turned to his record at home. His answer was short and firm. “In Nigeria, I’ve never gone to a police station,” he said. The line has since become the centre of the story, because it answers the claim in the plainest possible terms.
Obi also took a light-hearted swipe at his critic. “Reno Omokri’s job must be the hardest job on earth. Honestly,” he said. He did not elaborate on the remark in the portion of the interview reviewed.
The exchange fits a wider pattern. Obi has repeatedly challenged institutions to release his official records, including his academic documents. He insists that he has nothing to hide. Furthermore, he has urged other candidates to show the same openness. In his view, politicians with questionable records should be ready to explain their past to Nigerians.
Obi has also criticised the president on the same subject. He called it deeply embarrassing that a sitting president would ask a foreign court to withhold records about his past. Omokri, in contrast, argues that Tinubu has no criminal record anywhere. Consequently, the two camps now trade arguments over what an FBI file proves, and what it does not.
The dispute also shows how claims about foreign agencies spread in Nigerian politics. Such allegations often circulate quickly without independent checks. As a result, candidates feel pressure to answer in public. In this case, the reports reviewed contain no confirmation from US authorities that a file on Obi exists. Omokri has also made other allegations against Obi, which Sojworldnews has not verified.
Observers will now watch for further reactions. First, other candidates may respond to Obi’s call for openness. Second, Omokri may offer evidence for his claim, or he may repeat it without proof. Meanwhile, the 2027 race is shaping up as a bitter contest. Voters will therefore keep weighing who answers questions directly and who avoids them.
Sojworldnews will update this story if the FBI, the Tinubu camp or Omokri responds.
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