Former Mayor of Blanco, Texas, Mike Arnold, has recounted an incident he said occurred shortly before a live programme on Arise TV, involving Nigerian political commentator Reno Omokri and the seating arrangement for guests appearing on the show.
Arnold shared the account during an interview from 24:06, explaining that the programme’s studio had a main desk designed to accommodate the host and two guests. He said the television station also had a smaller room that could be used when the number of guests exceeded the capacity of the main desk.
According to Arnold, he and Jeff Gibbs were initially expected to occupy the available seats at the main studio desk during the programme. However, he said the arrangement became a source of disagreement shortly before the broadcast was scheduled to begin.
Arnold alleged that Omokri objected to the proposed seating arrangement during the countdown to the live programme and insisted that he should be seated next to Arnold at the main desk.
Arnold further claimed that the disagreement developed into a heated exchange between Omokri and the programme’s host, whom he identified as Charles. He said he recorded the confrontation on video as the argument unfolded.
Describing the incident, Arnold said the host eventually agreed to Omokri’s demand, after which Omokri took the seat beside him. In Mike Arnold’s words, “Reno wouldn’t have it during the countdown to go live. He said, ‘I’m going to sit here,’ and was threatening to leave and take us with him. I got that on video, a shouting match between him and the host, Charles. So finally Charles gives up, and Reno sits next to me.”
The incident, as described by Arnold, occurred in a high-pressure setting, with the programme already approaching its scheduled start time. The former mayor said the dispute nevertheless ended with being allowed to take the seat he had requested.
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