By Passman Akpos
A fresh wave of controversy has erupted nationwide after political commentator Lere Olayinka publicly disputed claims that Nigerian Navy officer Lt. A.M. Yarima survived an assassination attempt — insisting instead that the officer’s ordeal began with a routine police stop involving a tinted, unregistered vehicle and refusal to identify himself.
Olayinka’s detailed account, released on social media on Monday, sharply contradicts earlier reports suggesting that Yarima was trailed and nearly attacked by unidentified men in unmarked Hilux vans.
Lere Olayinka’s Version of Events
According to Olayinka:
Yarima drove a car without a number plate,
The vehicle was fully tinted,
He was stopped at a police checkpoint,
He was asked to wind down but refused repeatedly,
When he eventually complied, he was asked to identify himself but refused again,
Instead, he placed calls to fellow naval personnel while insulting officers on duty.
Olayinka said the policemen held him back until his naval colleagues arrived to properly identify him, after which the officer left — only to allegedly “sell the story of escaping assassination.”
> “So the same policemen who kept you waiting so they could identify you were the ones who wanted to assassinate you?”Olayinka asked rhetorically.“Or was it part of an order for you to use an unregistered car and refuse police identification checks?”
He blamed what he called “social media hero worship” for enabling “dangerous narratives.”
A Counter-Narrative That Shook the Country
Olayinka’s rebuttal directly challenges an earlier, widely publicized claim — that Yarima, who recently clashed with FCT Minister Nyesom Wike during a controversial demolition standoff, was stalked by suspected assassins in two unmarked Hilux vans.
Military insiders initially told reporters that Yarima “executed a strategic maneuver” to escape the alleged hit.
The military said the incident was under investigation, and veterans groups fiercely defended Yarima, warning the government against any disciplinary action.
Social Media Reacts: ‘Are You Now Police PRO?’
Olayinka’s new version of events ignited an online firestorm, with Nigerians sharply divided.
Many questioned his credibility:
“Did the police video him the way you did? Were you there as a first witness?”
“Oga, is this an eyewitness account or a doctored one?”
“You are now the spokesperson for the Nigeria Police, abi?”
“So you were the camera man at the checkpoint? Because nobody else saw this.”
Others accused Olayinka of downplaying a potentially serious security threat:@“Wetin I sabi be say, the Adolf Hitler you serve is capable of anything.
“Fear no let you call the naval officer’s name.”
Some framed the debate as a struggle between authoritarianism and democracy:
“Government must know we are not in a military dictatorship. Nigerians don’t want oppression again — enough is enough.”
Others simply mocked the political commentator:
“That is a written script from a boy boy.”
“As if this is the first person to drive without a number plate.”
“Data boy, you will explain tire.”
“Thank God you turned the phone upside down pretending to record.”
One user even corrected him:
“Note: Mr Journalist, it is ‘number plate’, not ‘plate number.’”
Security Agencies Maintain Silence
As the war of narratives intensifies, neither the Police nor the Navy has issued a fresh official statement addressing Olayinka’s claims.
The earlier military confirmation that “the matter is receiving the seriousness it deserves” still stands — but details remain withheld.
A Nation Caught Between Two Stories
The dramatic conflicting accounts — one suggesting attempted assassination, another pointing to a routine police stop dramatically retold — have left many Nigerians demanding transparency.
Was Lt. Yarima truly targeted?Or did a checkpoint confrontation morph into a sensational narrative?
Until the police and military release a conclusive joint report, the country remains suspended between speculation, politics, and public distrust.
