With the release of his manifesto yesterday, I thought I should shed some light on the YouTube sensation looking to replace Sadiq Khan, Niko Omilana. Even with him being known for his practical jokes on the public, running for mayor isn’t something his fan would put past him. The 23-year old has more than 3.5 million subscribers on YouTube, his main platform, and his content is only getting better and more gripping.
Obviously, he is running as an Independent. His manifesto places a focus on a single policy: forcing Prime Minister Boris Johnson to “shush”. According to a poll released by Express, Omilana is the second most popular candidate amongst those aged 18-24. His other policies include banning three-quarter length trousers and turning McDonald’s branches with broken McFlurry machines into “low rent housing”. He also created an appeal to other generations, with another policy being the granting of free travel to those under 18 and those over 69 years old.
Even if it is satirical, the gravity of this prank cannot be understated. Although it has been overshadowed by the pandemic and the death of Prince Philip, Omilana has received a surge of support from a variety of age groups. With his clever use of social media to gain publicity, he has even been interviewed by the BBC, where he directly sent for those at the top : “the jokemen, the people who run the country are unserious...and that’s coming from someone wearing children’s glasses.”
His support lies in his fans and celebrity friends alike. Advocates of his mayoral bid include presenter Maya Jama and musician KSI. He already has 5% of the vote and his support is most definitely on an upward trajectory and, if ever given the chance, I believe most school children would vote for him too.
Could our future Prime Minister be a YouTube or TikTok sensation? Who knows. Omilana believes that him winning the election is “written in the stars” and maybe that’s the mentality required to pull a stunt of this magnitude. Six million people are registered to vote on May 6th and, then, we shall see how many people truly are cheering on Niko.
