Karl Von Batten: When the hunter becomes the hunted

VIA THE CABLE:

by Bayo Olupohunda,

Karl Von Batten or is it Karl-Marx Edward Ikemefuna William George Okeke-Von Batten- the lobbyist Atiku contracted for $1.2 million, is now fighting to defend his own credibility. The hunter appears to have become the hunted. First, questions are being raised about his name and Nigerian background. Some reports have identified other names associated with him, while others have questioned the different names under which he has appeared professionally. Media reports have discovered that Von Batten’s LinkedIn profile lists his full name as Karl-Marx Edward Ikemefuna William George Okeke-Von Batten. There have also been reports that the Von Batten surname came through his marriage to Elizabeth Von Batten, raising concerns about why a man whose records carry a Nigerian name, Ikemefuna Okeke, is publicly known as Karl Von Batten. Was the adoption of the Von Batten name a matter of marriage and personal choice, or did it also help create a more Western identity in Washington? That is a question Von Batten himself is best placed to answer.

There was also the issue of a deleted tweet he made about an appointment by Trump. The appointment has been revealed to be an unpaid role. Many are questioning why he deleted the tweet and why he presented the appointment the way he did. The questions are beginning to pile up. For a man whose business is to dig into the background of others, these revelations are an interesting twist in the drama that has gripped a whole nation. Now the searchlight that Von Batten helped direct at President Bola Tinubu is beginning to shine on him.

But before I proceed, I would like to make an important distinction: the questions about Von Batten’s background do not, by themselves, establish any wrongdoing on his part. There is nothing inherently wrong with having different versions of a name or using a professional name. But when a person is paid $1.2 million to influence American opinion and pursue a political campaign against a sitting Nigerian president, reasonable questions about his own record and claims cannot simply be dismissed. And Atiku’s contract with the firm is public knowledge. Public US foreign-agent filings revealed that Von Batten-Montague-York entered into a $1.2 million, 12-month contract. Von Batten’s assignment is also no secret. His firm has been pushing in Washington for the release of US government records relating to allegations surrounding Tinubu’s past in the United States.

This campaign has now become more complicated because the FBI itself has acknowledged in a recent court filing that Tinubu was the subject of an investigation relating to drug-trafficking crimes in the early 1990s. But being the subject of an investigation is not the same thing as being convicted of a crime. The FBI’s acknowledgement does not, by itself, establish that Tinubu trafficked in drugs, nor does it amount to a criminal conviction.

Von Batten has a legitimate political and lobbying interest in keeping the issue alive. He is being paid by Atiku, who is challenging Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election. So while Von-Batten must earn his pay, he also must welcome the searchlight. That is accountability because he who comes to equity must come with a clean hand.