Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned the latest reckless theatrics of Mr Peter Obi, ‘’who has shamelessly inserted himself into the ongoing judicial process involving Nnamdi Kanu, merely to claw back relevance in a political space that has long moved past him.’’
The party in statement yesterday by its spokesman Seye Oladejo in Ogba, Lagos, said: ‘’Obi’s misguided attempt to ‘tackle’ the Federal Government and reject a valid court ruling is nothing more than the cry of a man whose political career is in its last embarrassing throes. He is desperately fishing in troubled waters, hoping to harvest sympathy that the Nigerian people have already denied him at the polls.’’
Oladejo said only a man steeped in political confusion could refuse to condemn IPOB’s murderous activities, yet preached morality to the Nigerian state.
He noted that only a man drowning in irrelevance would pretend to care about justice, while ignoring the innocent citizens maimed, slaughtered, beheaded, extorted and silenced under the reign of terror unleashed by IPOB militants.
The Lagos APC spokesman said Peter Obi’s sudden moral awakening was fraudulent, his selective outrage was insulting and his attempt to dress up terrorism in the garb of sentiment was dangerous.
The statement added: ‘’The salient question that Peter Obi must answer is simple: Why the inconsistency in his position? How does he condemn Boko Haram and their ilk wholeheartedly in one breath, only to embrace, defend and rationalise IPOB in another?
‘’This two-faced political morality exposes his deep-seated bias, his hollow rhetoric and his desperate ambition disguised as compassion.
‘’We strongly recommend that Obi drops his ethnic blinders, read the judgement without emotions, and in good conscience return to Nigerians with the truth about his sincerity and his innermost desires for the nation he claims he wants to lead.
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‘’There is nothing wrong in boldly admitting he is a regional champion committed to defending “his own”- for good or for bad.
What is wrong, however, is deceiving Nigerians with feigned neutrality and hypocritical sermonising.
‘’If Obi truly believes his own words, let him first explain: Why he maintained criminal silence when the Southeast burned. Why he could not condemn IPOB even once with clarity or courage. Why he continually plays both sides of the fence- leader by day, sympathiser by night.’’
Oladejo said Obi’s rant was a pathetic audition for 2027 – another failed attempt to resurrect a political project ‘’that is now beyond resuscitation.’’
‘’He can rant from morning till night; national security will never be placed in the fragile hands of sentimentalists, who only speak when their political calculators beep. Nigeria will not negotiate its sovereignty to please a man battling political menopause.
‘’It is laughable- almost tragic – that Obi has found courage only at a time when Kanu’s fate is tied to a lawful judicial process. Where was this courage when IPOB criminals turned markets into war zones, instilled fear in school children and shut down the economic lifeline of his region every Monday? His cowardice then disqualifies him from pontificating now,’’ Oladejo further said.
He noted that before Obi lectured Nigeria on justice, he should explain: The disintegration of his political movement. The desertion of his supporters and the slow but steady collapse of his overhyped political myth.
‘’Obi is not fighting for justice. He is fighting for visibility. He is fighting for political oxygen.
He is fighting to avoid total oblivion.
‘’Nigerians must be alert to this dangerous brand of free-style politics – the type that seeks the destruction of what you cannot have;
the type that weaponises ethnic sentiments, insecurity and national trauma just to stay politically-relevant.
‘’It will be most unfortunate if this, in the fullness of time, becomes a classic example of: ‘Show me your friends, and I will tell you who you are.’
‘’Nigeria’s national security is non-negotiable.
Judicial processes must never be dictated by politicians in need of headlines.
‘’The Federal Government under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will continue to handle matters of treason, terrorism and national stability with firmness, maturity and constitutional authority.
‘’Lagos APC urges Nigerians to treat Obi’s statement as what it is: a self-serving cry from a man watching his political walls collapse.
‘’Nigeria must not and will not be bullied by the theatrics of a desperate politician,‘’ statement said.
