2023: Okupe Attacks Dokpesi’s AIT For Cutting Off Interview While He Was Praising Peter Obi

A former 2023 presidential aspirant, Doyin Okupe, has slammed the Africa Independent Television for allegedly cutting him off while he was speaking on the presidential ambition of Peter Obi on the Kakaaki breakfast show on Monday.

THE WHISTLER earlier reported that Okupe had withdrawn from the 2023 presidential race and thrown his support behind Obi.

He had hinged his decision on the Peoples Democratic Party’s alleged refusal to zone its presidential ticket to the South, saying “This position is politically fraudulent, unjust and inequitable.”

Okupe specifically called on the PDP to zone its ticket to the South-East “in the interest of equity and justice” and called on well-meaning Nigerians to support the presidential bid of Obi, who hails from Anambra in the South-East.

While speaking on today’s Kakaaki programme, Okupe reiterated his support for Obi and attempted to campaign for the Anambra governor on the programme by reeling out some of his achievements as governor.

In what appeared like the station suffered a technical glitch, the interview was cut off while Okupe was speaking on Obi’s leadership qualities.

But reacting hours later, Okupe took to his Facebook page to accuse the AIT of ‘intolerance’.

The TV station’s founder, Raymond Dokpesi, is the chairman technical committee of the presidential project for Mr. Atiku Abubakar, a frontline presidential aspirant of the PDP.

Okupe wrote: “This morning I was a guest on Kaakaki on AIT. I fielded various questions on several current issues including security. But to my utter disbelief and shock, while answering a question on Peter Obi’s presidential aspiration, I was rudely and abruptly cut off and the program was suddenly replaced by a lengthy advertorial on why PDP should jettison the zoning arrangement and throw the race open to all zones.

“I am amazed that a TV station with the reputation of Ait will treat a guest this way. I do not expect this level of intolerance from a media house with the pedigree of AIT. We certainly live in interesting times.”