Former presidential aide and social commentator Reno Omokri has criticised Africans for failing to harness the broader cultural and economic significance of American internet star IShowSpeed’s recent visit to the continent, arguing that internal rivalry and online mockery undermined a rare opportunity for collective rebranding.
Omokri shared the views in a lengthy post on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, reacting to widespread social media debates that followed IShowSpeed’s livestreamed tour across parts of Africa. While welcoming the visit, he said many Africans underestimated its impact, particularly in reshaping global perceptions of the continent.
According to Omokri, streaming has become one of the fastest-growing sectors in global travel and entertainment, and the influencer’s visit exposed Africa to millions of potential tourists worldwide. He noted that many viewers—especially Americans and African Americans—were confronted with a more modern and vibrant Africa, challenging long-standing stereotypes shaped by decades of poverty-focused humanitarian campaigns.
However, he lamented that instead of building on this positive exposure, Africans descended into what he described as a “self-destructive” competition over which country hosted the influencer better. He pointed to skits and insults exchanged across TikTok and other platforms, where Africans mocked one another rather than projecting unity.
Omokri argued that such divisions are rooted in colonial-era borders imposed during the 1884 Berlin Conference, stressing that many African countries were artificially created and named by European powers. He questioned why Africans continue to discriminate against one another based on boundaries they neither created nor consented to.
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He also highlighted that IShowSpeed’s fame did not shield him from racism during parts of his North African visit, describing it as evidence that global racial perceptions of Black people remain collective, regardless of nationality.
Concluding his post, Omokri praised Ghana for what he described as cultural confidence displayed during a widely shared shea butter massage segment, particularly noting the prevalence of women wearing natural hair. He urged African women to embrace their natural identity, arguing that true self-worth and racial dignity begin with self-acceptance.
“No one will raise our value as a race but us,” Omokri wrote, calling on Africans to resist division and embrace unity, mutual respect, and collective pride across the continent.