A United States-based political advisory and lobbying firm, Von Batten-Montague-York, has called on Nigerians to disregard what it describes as an anticipated smear campaign targeting its owner, Dr Karl Von Batten.
In a statement posted on its verified X account on Tuesday, the firm said it expected President Bola Tinubu and his associates to launch fresh attacks after it made Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) court records concerning the president publicly available.
“Since we have provided the world with access to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, court records concerning Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, we expect him and his enablers to once again launch a new round of smear campaigns to distract the public from the truth about his alleged heroin-trafficking past,” the statement read.
The firm pre-emptively dismissed several claims it anticipates will be made against Dr Von Batten. “They will say that Dr Von Batten was born Ikemefuna Okeke, false. They will say that Dr Von Batten took his wife’s name, false. They may even say that Dr Von Batten is Atiku Abubakar’s secret son, again, false.”
Von Batten-Montague-York urged the public and the international community to remain focused on the serious allegations surrounding President Tinubu rather than any personal attacks on the firm’s principal.
“The world must not allow the Nigerian Presidency to distract the public from the serious allegations concerning President Tinubu. Stay focused. Do not fall for the distraction tactics of President Tinubu, an alleged heroin trafficker desperate to shift attention away from his FBI records. Stay focused,” the statement concluded.