Says democracy is dying in Nigeria
Queries Lagos-Calabar coastal as misplaced priority
As the face-off between leading political gladiators in the country continues to rise, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, yesterday directly accused the President Bola Tinubu administration of being responsible for the lingering crisis in the Labour Party.
Obi, also former Anambra state governor, specifically stated that the leadership crisis in the Labour Party was instigated and sustained by the government of today.
He said: “This is what you get, always, right? This is what you get always in Nigeria, because we now live in a country of propaganda and lies – and they manufacture it.
“The problem we have in the Labour Party is a problem instigated and sustained by the government of today.
“I don’t need to tell you when you have a party chairman who calls a state governor a dwarf and ( of dwarfed thinking). Forget about me, so is (Governor Alex) Otti weak? They say I’m weak. But is Otti weak?Is every other person there weak? So we’re not sincere with ourselves.
“You speak the truth and they call you names. And we now live in a country of propaganda and lies. They are trying to put problems everywhere, they want to even put problems in families.”
Obi cited the governorship election in Edo State and the state of emergency in Rivers State, where a Sole Administrator was appointed in place of an elected governor, which have shown that there is no democracy in Nigeria. He once again faulted the appointment of a Rivers State Sole Administrator, stressing that he was not democratically elected by the people of the state.
Obi said: “There is no democracy in Nigeria today…We will continue to agitate for true democracy.
“The election in Edo, does it show any sign that Nigeria is a democratic country? No, the coffin was nailed by what happened in Rivers State.
“You cannot in any circumstances solve a problem in a democratic setting by going against rules. You can’t even solve any problem by going against the rules.
“I am committed to a better Nigeria and I have what it takes and I have the experience. Of all those who want to be President today, nobody has my background. I have what it takes, I have operated in the corporate world, and I have been a governor.”
Obi, who spoke on Arise TV, also questioned the priorities of the federal government and projects which, according to him, “lead nowhere when we have a crisis.”
“Are you saying that the ( Lagos-Calabar) coastal road is more important than securing Nigeria?” he asked, stressing that security and production are the foundations of any functional economy.
He said that without security, even the most ambitious infrastructure would amount to a misplaced priority.
“We are a government. We must secure our people, and it requires decisive action.”
Drawing on his tenure as Anambra State governor, Obi argued that the military, police, and other security agencies must be empowered to act decisively, adding that Nigeria must treat its internal threats with the seriousness of a wartime situation.