The South-South Zonal chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, on Sunday gave social media influencer Martins Vincent Otse, popularly called VeryDarkMan, one week to tender an apology to the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, over the manner he disparaged him in his latest video.
While advising him to distinguish between activism and slander, the APC also warned him against targeting the former Akwa Ibom governor again in the future.
Blessing Agbomhere, the South-South APC’s Zonal Organising Secretary, issued the warning in a statement in Abuja.
Agbomhere was responding to the social media sensation’s blistering verbal attack on Akpabio for leading a five-member federal government delegation to Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican last Saturday.
In the three-minute viral video, VeryDarkMan described Akpabio’s presence in Rome as shameful’, claiming that the Senate president lacked the moral standing to attend the Pope’s funeral when he should have paid a condolence visit to Benue, Plateau, Kwara, Ogun, Enugu, and other states plagued by killings.
However, the APC chief retaliated, accusing VeryDarkMan of calling the South-South politician insults in the name of activism.
He said, “VeryDarkMan is becoming notorious for blackmail, slander and character assassination while pretending to be an advocate for the masses and a social crusader. The unwarranted verbal attack on the number three citizen of Nigeria, who did not send himself to Rome but was duly nominated by the president to lead a delegation to represent Nigeria. What exactly is wrong with that?
“Being a devout Catholic and family man with unblemished character, President Tinubu saw in Akpabio a worthy ambassador of Nigeria to such an event as the Pope’s funeral and wasted no time in thrusting that responsibility on him. What is wrong with that?
“I am, with this statement, issuing VeryDarkMan a one-week ultimatum to immediately tender an unreserved apology to the Senate president for the slanderous comments and to desist from further bringing the integrity of the President Bola Tinubu-led administration into disrepute in the eyes of the global community.”
Agbomhere also urged Nigerians to disregard the social media influencer’s ‘uninformed ranting’.
According to him, the current administration is working tirelessly behind the scenes to address the widespread insecurity in the country, which it inherited from previous administrations.
“Upon his return from France and the UK, Tinubu met with the security chiefs, and during the meeting, he gave them marching orders to ensure that a different approach is deployed in the fight against insecurity. Does this sound like a man who is not serious about protecting the lives and property of Nigerians?
“Mind you, the complex security problems in the country cannot be wished away with a wave of the hand; it takes time to achieve a semblance of peace, and that is a commitment that the Tinubu-led administration made to Nigerians while assuming office and is still committed to achieving,” the statement read.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
