The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), South-South Zonal leadership has issued a one-hour ultimatum to social media activist VDM, demanding an apology for what they described as a disrespectful outburst against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
This comes after a viral video of VeryDarkMan criticising Akpabio’s participation in the federal government delegation to the Vatican for the funeral of Pope Francis surfaced on social media
In the video, which lasted about three minutes, the influencer described Akpabio’s trip to Rome as “shameful,” arguing that the Senate President should have instead visited states like Benue, Plateau, Kwara, Ogun, and Enugu that have recently suffered from violent attacks.
In response to the video, the South-South Zonal Organizing Secretary, Blessing Agbomhere, the APC cautioned the social media influencer to distinguish between activism and defamation, advising him to refrain from future attacks on the former Akwa Ibom governor.
The APC chieftain, however, took exception to the remarks, accusing VeryDarkMan of maligning Akpabio under the guise of activism.
He stated, “VeryDarkMan is becoming notorious for blackmail, slander and character assassination while pretending to be an advocate for the masses and 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?”
Agbomhere further defended the Senate President’s selection to represent Nigeria at the Vatican, stressing that Akpabio’s reputation and faith made him a suitable choice.
He said, “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?”
Emphasising the gravity of the situation, Agbomhere announced, “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.”
The APC stalwart also called on Nigerians to disregard what he described as VeryDarkMan’s “uninformed ranting,” asserting that the government is making significant efforts to address the country’s security challenges, many of which were inherited.