Former presidential aide Reno Omokri has said he wants Nigeria to “keep happening” to him, joining the online debate over the phrase “Nigeria happened,” which resurfaced following the death of ARISE News correspondent Somtochukwu Maduagwu after a robbery at her Abuja home.
In a post shared on Tuesday, Omokri wrote, “May Nigeria happen to me and keep happening to me as long as I live!”
He criticised those who blame Nigeria for unfortunate events, arguing that such individuals often ignore the positive things that occur in the country.
“When bad things happen, enemies of this country are quick to say that ‘Nigeria has happened’ to them. But they take the good that occurs to them in Nigeria personally, without attributing it to our great nation,” he said.
Omokri added that hardship exists worldwide, pointing out that even developed nations face serious challenges. “Every year in America, 20,000 people are murdered — more than twice the number in Nigeria. Have you ever heard Americans badmouthing their country because of this? This is Earth, not heaven,” he stated.
Highlighting recent progress, Omokri cited Nigeria’s record-breaking power generation of 5,801.84MW and its highest-ever daily energy output of 128,370.75 megawatt-hours.
He also noted that Nigeria had become a net exporter of refined petroleum products — an achievement, he said, accomplished only under the administrations of Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, Goodluck Jonathan, and Bola Tinubu.
“Nigeria’s fuel imports have drastically reduced. According to the International Energy Agency, Nigeria is now the largest exporter of refined petroleum products in West Africa,” he wrote.
Omokri further claimed that the Nigerian economy had grown by $67 billion in two years and that the naira has greater purchasing power than many African currencies.
“$100 in Nigeria will buy you more than $100 in Ghana, Cameroon, Kenya, Ethiopia or South Africa,” he stated.
He concluded by urging Nigerians to adopt a more optimistic outlook. “Nigeria is a great country, but it is not perfect because perfection is divine. We can choose to focus on the negatives, but there are many positive things happening in Nigeria that we refuse to highlight because we prefer bad news,” he said.
Omokri’s comments follow renewed debate over the phrase “Nigeria happened,” triggered by Maduagwu’s death. Before she died, she had written, “I pray from the depth of my heart that Nigeria never happens to me or anyone I care about.”
During a broadcast of The Morning Show on Tuesday, her colleague Reuben Abati remarked, “When Nigeria happens to us, it is a sad thing.” The phrase has since gone viral on social media, with many Nigerians using it to describe systemic failures and harsh realities in the country.