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  • Peter Obi pledges N5millions to support Plateau attack victims

    Peter Obi pledges N5millions to support Plateau attack victims

    Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, on Saturday, December 30, visited internally displaced persons in Bokkos and Barkin-ladi local government areas of Plateau State, where armed bandits attacked on Christmas Eve.

    Accompanied by state party officials, Obi pledged a donation of five million naira to each of the affected local government areas, providing support to those currently residing there.

    He expressed shock and denounced the attacks that resulted in the loss of life and property, emphasising that the government must fulfill its obligation to safeguard people and property.

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    Obi raised the alarm about the amount of Nigerians who are fleeing their country as displaced people, calling it intolerable and stating that the government need to do something.

    Over 190 people were killed on Christmas Eve when gunmen broke into over 15 settlements in the state’s Barkin-Ladi and Bokkos Local Government Areas.

  • Tear down walls of ethnic, religious divisions, Obi urges Nigerians

    Tear down walls of ethnic, religious divisions, Obi urges Nigerians

    Peter Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, has called on Nigerians to break down the barriers separating different ethnic and religious groups, claiming that the divisions have always stood in the way of the country’s development and togetherness.

    Obi said this while celebrating International Human Solidarity Day in a series of tweets on his X page on Wednesday, December 20.

    He wrote: “Today, we join the global community in celebrating the International Human Solidarity Day which is dedicated to strengthening our global unity in diversity, and to help in fostering international cooperation on the eradication of hunger and diseases at the global level.

    “On the national level, Nigerians need to solemnly remind ourselves of the need to tear down the walls of ethnic and religious divisions that have continued to divide us and instead emphasize our unity and leverage our diverse and rich cultural and ethnic identities and strengths to advance our national progress.”

    The former governor of Anambra state said that Nigeria has grown more divided than ever as a “result of bad politics and elite insensitivity,” making it challenging for citizens to cooperate for the country’s progress.

    Read Also: Stop distorting facts about businesses leaving Nigeria, Reno Omokri warns Peter Obi

    He stated: “Unfortunately, we have, today as a nation, become more sharply divided than ever. Our dear nation is more polarised today than it has ever been, fueled by overwhelming tribal and religious sentiments among the people resulting in the unwillingness of Nigerians to cooperate and work together towards achieving national growth and development. This is clearly the result of bad politics and elite insensitivity.

    “I, therefore, wish to use this occasion to remind Nigerians that the problems of hunger, poverty, and inequality are not specific to a particular ethnicity or religion, but cut across the nation. Thus, the task ahead of us, as political leaders and as citizens, is to continue to beat the drums of unity, social justice, and social equality to form one united front that will stand in solidarity against the many challenges that confront our nation.”

  • Presidency fires Obi over comments on VP’s residence

    Presidency fires Obi over comments on VP’s residence

    • ‘Ex-Anambra governor playing to gallery’

    The Presidency has lashed out at the Labour Party (LP) candidate in this year’s presidential election, Mr. Peter Obi, for attempting to whip up public sentiments against the Bola Tinubu administration over the budgetary provision for the completion of the Vice President’s residence.

    The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) had, in the 2024 budget proposal, earmarked N15.5 billion for the renovation of  the Vice President’s official residence, a development that Obi, in a couple of tweets on his verified X handle, described as shocking and disheartening.

    Reacting to Obi’s comments in a statement yesterday in Abuja by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity in the Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, the Presidency said the quest to give the Vice President a befitting residence started in 2007.

    It said this was with similar targets for the residences of the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives.

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    “Giving the reactions and invocations generated by Mr. Obi’s comments, however, it is necessary, for the sake of history, to clarify that the proposed plan for the construction of the Vice President’s official residence, for which a budgetary allocation was made in the 2024 budget by the FCT Administration, was awarded by the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan. It was not originated by the present administration. This, Mr. Obi knows but chose to play dumb, all in a bid to inflame a targeted group of Nigerians and, as usual, score cheap political goals, accolades and praises.

    “The project, which was reinitiated in 2010 and was funded by the Jonathan administration, was abandoned. Appalled by the sorry state of the uncompleted building that has now been overtaken by weeds and reptiles over a decade after construction started about 13 years ago, the current FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, felt it would be a waste to allow such a project started with public funds to continue to lie fallow. Thus, in his wisdom and without the prompting of the Vice President, decided to resuscitate the building.

    “We invite more cerebral Nigerians to crosscheck properly, which should be considered a waste between Obi’s tantrums because the project has attracted government’s attention, given the decision by the current administration to complete vital abandoned projects. What is more wasteful and reckless than abandoning an edifice to rot and depreciate, despite the amount that has been sunk into it over the years? 

    “We recall that while Obi was governor of Anambra State, he had insisted that contractors should return to site to complete abandoned projects, which he then never considered as a waste. If he did this while deploying ‘entailed wisdom and leadership’ to Ndi Anambra as a governor, the question now is: why should the same action by the Tinubu administration now be termed blue murder?

    “Nigerians know that the issue of a befitting residence for the Vice President had been a recurring decimal in the budget of Nigeria since 2007. It did not start today; same for the residences of the Senate President and the House Speaker.

    “The array of abandoned Federal Government projects littered all over the country is a national embarrassment that the current administration has taken a bold step to save the country from. This is why it has made it a priority that all abandoned projects must be completed before new ones are initiated, save for some on exceptional basis, either because of the need for strategic alignment or economic significance.”

  • Presidency lambasts Obi over comment on N15.5bn VP residence’s project

    Presidency lambasts Obi over comment on N15.5bn VP residence’s project

    The Presidency has lashed out at candidate of Labour Party (LP) in the last Presidential Election, Peter Obi, for attempting to whip public sentiments against the Bola Tinubu administration over budgetary provision for the completion of the Vice President’s residence.

    The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) in the 2024 Budget proposal earmarked N15.5billion for the renovation of  the Vice President’s official residence, a development that Obi, in a couple of tweets on his verified X handle, described as shocking and disheartening.

    However, reacting to Obi’s negative depiction of the budget, the Presidency, in a statement by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, pointed out that the quest to give a befitting accommodation for the Vice President started since 2007 with similar targets for the residences of the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives.

    The Presidency, which noted the fact that Obi was also aware of the history trailing efforts at bequeathing a standard accommodation for the Vice President, also noted the resolve of the administration to make completion of long abandoned projects priorities ahead of new ones, adding that the former Anambra State governor’s was deliberately aiming at incensing a targeted section of the population.

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    It, however, alleged that the Labour Party presidential candidate was merely embarking on armchair criticism of the Tinubu administration after his colossal loss at the presidential poll.  

    “Giving the reactions and invocations generated by Mr Obi’s comments, however, it is necessary for the sake of history to clarify that the proposed plan for the construction of the Vice President’s official residence, for which budgetary allocation was made in the 2024 budget by the FCT Administration, was awarded by the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan. It was not originated by the present administration. This, Mr Obi, knows but chose to play dumb all in a bid to inflamate a targeted group of Nigerians and, as usual, score cheap political goals, accolades and praises.

    “The project, which was reinitiated in 2010 and was funded by the Jonathan administration, was abandoned. Appalled by the sorry state of the uncompleted building that was now overtaken by weeds and reptiles over a decade after construction started about 13 years ago, the current FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, felt it would be a waste to allow such a project started with public funds to continue to lie fallow; thus, in his wisdom and without the prompting of the Vice President, decided to resuscitate the building.

    “We invite more cerebral Nigerians to crosscheck properly which should be considered a waste between Obi’s tantrums because the project has attracted government’s attention, given the decision by the current administration to complete vital abandoned projects. What is more wasteful and reckless than abandoning an edifice to rot and depreciate despite the amount that has been sunk into it over the years? 

    “We recall that while Obi was Governor of Anambra State, he had insisted that contractors should return to site to complete abandoned projects, which he then never considered as a waste. If he did this while deploying ‘entailed wisdom and leadership’ to Ndi Anambra as a governor, the question now is: why should the same action by the Tinubu administration now be termed blue murder?

    “Nigerians know that the issue of a befitting residence for the Vice President had been a recurring decimal in the budget of Nigeria since 2007. It did not start today, same for residences of the Senate President and the Speaker.

    “The array of abandoned Federal Government projects littered all over the country is a national embarrassment that the current administration has taken a bold step to save the country from. This is why it has made it a priority that all abandoned projects must be completed before new ones are initiated, save for some on exceptional basis, either because of the need for strategic alignment or economic significance,” it said.

    Reacting to Obi’s allusion that the proposed budget for the Vice President’s residence was equivalent to a who year’s salaries of university professors, the Presidency further slammed the LP candidate, describing it as an analogy taken too far, highlighting the fact that the Tinubu administration has stood itself out as the only administration that has shown commitment to education by increasing budgetary allocations, asides other steps.

    “Comparing the amount budgeted for the residence of the VP and salaries paid to Professors is an analogy taken too far. This is the only government that has repeatedly made it clear that the welfare of lecturers is paramount and the need to increase the budget of the educational sector is a gradual process in the face of the daunting security challenges it met on ground. 

    “This same government directed that the backlog of salaries owed both teaching and non-teaching staff of universities be paid immediately despite the ‘no work, no pay’ order, while negotiations for their welfare continue in view of a wage package in 2024. The introduction of a student’s loan scheme is also a masterstroke that is targeted at ensuring that nobody, no matter his/her status, will be denied the right to quality education.

    “Taking into cognisance the recent inflation rate, which has become a global phenomenon that Nigeria is not immune to, budgetary provisions are estimates aimed at advancing monies to complete projects that have bearings on the lives of the people. 

    “That the amount budgeted for various sectors are deemed to be on the high side is not unconnected with inflationary trends as being witnessed the world over. And since Mr Obi has qualms with this, he may as well explain to Nigerians why despite being a self acclaimed billionaire he and his likes continue importing all manner of junks, including toothpicks to sell to Nigerians all in a bid for his NEXT business empire to flourish at the detriment of our foreign exchange and economy,” it said.

  • Obi condemns building demolitions, begs govs, FG to consider poor

    Obi condemns building demolitions, begs govs, FG to consider poor

    The presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the last election, Peter Obi, has faulted the demolition of buildings across the country.

    In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, November 30, the former Anambra state governor appealed to state governments and the federal government to put a human face to governance as Nigerians are facing myriad economic challenges already.

    He wrote:  “It’s with complete despondency and unhappiness that I have followed the ongoing demolitions of properties across the country, especially knowing the extra hardship such acts have been heaping on hapless citizens who are already battling with multi-dimensional poverty.

    “What a responsive government should be doing under the current harsh economic conditions in the country is to come up with measures aimed at alleviating the people’s hardships and to carry out measures that will take more people out of poverty.

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    “Even if there are some violations as the governments are claiming, this critical time is not auspicious for such an exercise knowing the hardship in the land and the consequences it will have on the poor who are struggling to make ends meet with their little resources.

    “The poor in our midst who are putting their meagre resources are going through very severe financial stress that should not be multiplied further. In some cases, the properties being demolished are the lifetime savings and retirement abodes of the aged and incapacitated.

    “My appeal therefore is for the respective governments involved in this act to consider the hardship in the country and try and put a human face to their actions. While we should enforce sensible regulations, all actions of government must show compassion.”

  • Explain bankruptcy claim, Obi tells Fed Govt

    Explain bankruptcy claim, Obi tells Fed Govt

    Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the February poll, Peter Obi, yesterday asked the Federal Government to explain its bankruptcy claim.

    In tweets on his X account, Obi reacted to a claim by the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, that the Tinubu Administration took over a bankrupt country.

    President Tinubu had also said that his administration inherited assets and liabilities.

    Obi said: “I read a widely publicised story from the present APC-led Federal Government saying that they inherited a bankrupt nation from their predecessor APC administration.

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    “But the story failed to disclose what they inherited which had qualified us for bankruptcy status.

    “One major characteristic of responsible governance is transparency and strict accountability.

    “This demands that the government disclose exactly the degree of deficit they inherited.

    “What is inherited should be disclosed to enable the public to know where we are and where we are headed.”

  • Soludo, Obi, others to gather in Anambra for Achebe

    Soludo, Obi, others to gather in Anambra for Achebe

    Anambra state governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, and the former governor and presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi would unite in Anambra to honour the late literary giant, Prof Chinua Achebe.

    They will assemble with others, including traditional rulers as writers, intellectuals, literary activists, book lovers, and top political giants as young writers in Anambra state set to host the 2023 Chinua Achebe Literary Festival and Memorial Lecture.

    The coordinator of the Society of Young Nigerian Writers (Anambra state chapter), Izunna Okafor, made this known in Awka while giving an update on the association’s preparedness for the 2023 edition of the event.

    Okafor told reporters Monday, November 13, that Achebe’s Literary Festival and Memorial Lecture, initiated in 2016 and currently in its 8th edition, was a literary event the association annually hosts in honour of Nigerian literary icon, late Prof. Chinua Achebe

    He said It was a celebration of his life, works and legacies, adding that this year’s event would (as usual) be held on Achebe’s birthday, November 16, 2023, at the Anambra State Central E-Library (also known as the Prof. Kenneth Dike State Library), Awka, starting at 10. am prompt; with many dignitaries and participants in attendance.

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    While revealing this year’s theme of the event as “Ten Years After… Remembering Achebe’s Legacies in Today’s Nigeria”, Okafor further disclosed that the 2023 Achebe Memorial Lecture would be delivered by Peter Obi while Governor Soludo would be the special guest of honour.

    He added that this year’s event would be chaired by an award-winning writer and Traditional Ruler of Obosi kingdom, Igwe Chidubem Iweka.

    Also, the traditional ruler of Achebe’s hometown, Ogidi, Igwe Alex Onyido would be the Royal Father of the Day, among other dignitaries expected at the event.

    Okafor said: “The event will feature the 2023 Achebe Lecture, drama, spoken word poetry, the announcement of the winners of the 2023 Chinua Achebe Essay Writing Competition (for secondary schools), special reading, award presentation, among other literary packages slated for the day”

    He hinted that the occasion would also feature the unveiling and presentation of the 8th Chinua Achebe Poetry/Essay Anthology, entitled “Anthills of Words (In Memory of Achebe)”, which was the association’s newest international anthology of poems and essays, published in honour of Achebe.

    The annual international anthology, he explained, was one of the writers’ way of immortalizing Achebe, and contained poems, essays, and reviews written and submitted by writers from different countries of the world.

    Okafor, an award-winning author, and journalist, said the open-to-all event, which would mark Achebe’s 93 posthumous birthday and ten years after his death, would equally be graced by arrays of literary icons from within and outside the country, who will be storming Awka to honour the legendary Achebe

    Born November 16, 1930, Prof. Chinua Achebe, who hailed from Ogidi in Anambra State, was a foremost Nigerian writer, critic, and author of Things Fall Apart. He died on March 21, 2013, at the age of 82.

  • Obi raises falsed emocracy banner

    Obi raises falsed emocracy banner

    It took some 10 days before Peter Obi, the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the February 25 election, reacted to the October 26 Supreme Court judgement affirming President Bola Tinubu’s victory. He addressed a press conference in Abuja on November 6 and gave what amounted to a concession speech, one which he should have given way back in March after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the winner. Mr Obi’s ‘concession’ speech was badly written, lacking in sense and purpose, and destitute of facts and logic. But it is a relief he deemed it fit to put on record his view of his failed petition rather than rely on or adopt his party’s contradictory and alarmist reaction to the same Supreme Court decision. The LP had on October 26, in their response to the judgement, spoken of the shredding of the “sacred fabric of justice and good conscience…at the Supreme Court”. But Mr Obi decided to “set legal issues aside” and was instead bothered that the “Supreme Court exhibited a disturbing aversion to public opinion just as it abandoned its responsibility as a court of law and policy”.

    Even though both party and candidate suggested that the Supreme Court perverted the cause of justice, neither Mr Obi nor his party leader, Julius Abure, tendered any proof whatsoever in their public statements to convince their long-suffering and indulgent supporters. Mr Obi offered nothing before the Supreme Court to substantiate his allegations, nothing indeed deserving more than a cursory and dismissive attention by the appellate justices. His case was bad at the lower court, far worse than that of the Peoples Democratic Party’s Atiku Abubakar; and it was irredeemably worse at the Supreme Court, amounting to a total waste of court time. But having chanced on an effective method of hoodwinking his supporters, he knew instinctively that all he needed to do was slant his public speeches and press conferences in a manner that would make his tenuous ideas irresistible. Facts and logic are irrelevant to him. Alarmingly, facts and logic also no longer mean anything to his supporters, nor indeed to a sizable portion of the public disillusioned by incompetent Nigerian ruling elite.

    Uninterested in arguing any convincing case, especially why he thought the Supreme Court perverted the cause of justice, Mr Obi engaged in unparalleled verbiage and buffoonery. Incredibly, and for someone who aspires to rule Nigeria, he said this of the Supreme Court: “The Supreme Court exhibited a disturbing aversion to public opinion just as it abandoned its responsibility as a court of law and policy. It is, therefore, with great dismay that I observe that the Court’s decision contradicts the overwhelming evidence of election rigging, false claim of a technical glitch, substantial non-compliance with rules set by INEC itself as well as matters of perjury, identity theft, and forgery that have been brought to light in the course of this election matter. These were hefty allegations that should not to be treated with levity.” Disturbing aversion to public opinion? Even for a failed presidential candidate, this is excessive. So, public opinion is now part of the Nigerian jurisprudence. And in what ways did the court’s decision contradict the ‘overwhelming’ evidence he supposedly presented? What is undisputable is that Mr Obi and whoever he contracted to write that offensive speech did not read the lower court judgement nor had time and interest to read the Supreme Court decision. Having not read both, it is unsurprising that the LP candidate’s populism led him to the undignified conclusion he came to about the court’s decision while he continues to fantasise about the worth of the evidence he presented.

    Mr Obi said more egregious things about the judgement, even deploying the word ‘appalling’ to describe the behavior of the Supreme Court, accusing the justices of condonement of constitutional breaches, and inappropriately describing the court decision as ‘counterintuitive’ in a manner that transfers ‘heavy moral burden’ to the conscience of Nigerians. Assuming the reader can make sense of that verbiage, he then concludes that Nigeria’s “young democracy is ultimately the main victim and casualty of the courtroom drama”. Mr Obi’s school leaving certificate was undistinguished, but it is disturbing that a graduate of philosophy could pen those words and hiss at all that transpired in the court as drama. Which drama? His incompetent petition that was bad through and through, or the courts that painstakingly took his petition apart? Or the drama he and his supporters, whom he now lionises as the fulcrum of future political opposition, had enacted on social media with ceaseless buffoonery? Then, almost like an afterthought, he grudgingly admitted that the court judgement “may represent the state of the law in 2023 but not the present demand for substantive justice”. Nothing could be sillier. What kind of dichotomy was he trying to establish? One based on chronology? Could jurisprudence become so malleable as to be determined by the mood of the times, a sort of Hegelian encapsulation of zeitgeist versus volksgeist?

    Like Alhaji Atiku, the PDP candidate, Mr Obi knows little or nothing about democracy, let alone a fledgling democracy. Had he known something about democracy, his approach to politics and his responses to political adversities and challenges would have been informed by principles and precepts far deeper, more nuanced, and infinitely nobler. It is unlikely Mr Obi himself penned his disagreeable summaries of his case and the Supreme Court decision. But he read it, approved it, and gave voice to it before the whole world. He accuses the Supreme Court of mixing principles and precepts, but these are terms he did nothing to show he was capable of understanding or differentiating. And for him, the press conference was about placing on record his “disagreement with and deep reservations about the judgement”. Yet, there is nowhere in his speech where he elucidates on the alleged disagreement or reservation beyond superficialities.

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    Well, all bad things, like all good things, must somewhere along the line come to an end. His unctuous speech designed to massage the outsized ego of his supporters was obviously designed to come invariably to the conclusion that the ‘Obidient movement’ had become a force, a new political opposition. Said he: “Going forward, we in the Labour Party and the Obidient Movement are now effectively in opposition. We are glad that the nation has heard us loud and clear. We shall now expand the confines of our message of hope to the rest of the country. We shall meet the people in the places where they feel pain and answer their needs for hope. At marketplaces, motor parks, town halls, board rooms, and university and college campuses, we shall carry and deliver the message of a new Nigeria. As stakeholders and elected Labour Party officials, we shall remain loyal to our manifesto. We will continue to canvas for good governance and focus on issues that promote national interest, unity, and cohesion. We will continue to give primacy to our constitution, the rule of law, and the protection of ordered liberties.”

    There is of course no ideological nexus between LP and the Obidient movement. The former is a political all-purpose vehicle available for hire, and the latter a pretentious and ad hoc assembly of nihilists peddling cultural and religious bitters. Nothing of any significance sustains each in its cocoon, and worse, nothing binds both together. Without a platform or an ideology, nor yet any understanding of the ennobling values that unite and lift a nation, it is unclear what kind of opposition Mr Obi hopes to champion. The LP candidate is a self-absorbed and superficial politician whose ways and ideas are closer to demagoguery than the democracy he glibly and inexpertly enunciates. He talks of manifesto; yes, the same document he initially declined to conceive or publish before the campaigns got underway. The real Obi manifesto is in the careless nothings and imprecates he mouths on the hustings. He is averse to the tedium of sweating through homework and research to develop a canon of political philosophy and a platform of ideas capable of withstanding the test of time. He talks of giving ‘primacy’ to the constitution, the rule of law, and protection of ‘ordered liberties’. The presumption for a man and politician who thinks nothing of the constitution and the rule of law, of course, is that there are disordered liberties.

    Apart from Mr Obi’s perfunctory reference to party manifesto, a manifesto he neither believed in nor made reference to during his entire campaign for the presidency, he also advocates “good governance and focus on issues that promote national interest, unity, and cohesion”. Very little profundity was observed under his governorship in Anambra where he equated parsimony with state policy. However, when he talks of unity and cohesion in his ‘concession’ speech, especially against the background of his religious politics, every sensible Nigerian knows he is lying. He has no deep conviction about secularism, no conviction at all about democracy, and no clue what cohesion and national interest mean. But he knows how to talk the talk, mere rhetoric amplified by his battalions and divisions of social media warriors and latent revolutionaries whom he is now priming for a future takeover of Nigeria. It takes excess gullibility to be influenced by Mr Obi’s sweet nothings. Perhaps this is an exaggeration. The truth, however, is that there are a few pearls in his speech. One of them is probably the bon mot about moving the nation from consumption to production. Why this dream does not taste sour in his mouth as a politician and businessman who has dedicated all his life as an adult to the practice of retail trading is hard to tell.

    Mr Obi knows he is lying when he talks about bridging Nigeria’s religious divide; but his biggest and most salient pitch is rousing the youths into resuscitating, sometime in the future, perhaps before the next election cycle, the revolution he claims was stymied by the outcome of the presidential election. The youths of today are, however, not as disciplined, profound and resilient as he romanticises. They have demonstrated their fickleness on social media, and are eager to goosestep behind every deceiver that can flamboyantly market any utopia or elixir. The country must, therefore, beware of Mr Obi’s fondness for revolution, and readiness to exploit the heedlessness and insularity of youths in the next election cycle, assuming he survives the political vagaries of the years to come. The LP candidate raises false banner to democracy. So, too, do Alhaji Atiku and the LP as a party. They cannot help themselves; for to do otherwise would require embracing a punishing regimen of discipline, intellect and application of sound judgement and policies to make serious and lasting impact on Nigeria. They are not capable of that altruism.

  • Group threatens legal action against Atiku, Obi over comments against Supreme Court

    Group threatens legal action against Atiku, Obi over comments against Supreme Court

    One of the frontline Tinubu support groups, Disciples of Jagaban (DOJ), has threatened to take legal action against the presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Labour Party (LP), Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi over comments discrediting Supreme Court.

    The group said the ‘grumbling’ by the due of Atiku and Obi after the Supreme Court verdict was aimed at discrediting the judiciary and setting the country on fire, therefore, the DOJ will sue them for treason if they don’t desist.

    The national coordinator of DOJ, Comrade Abdulhakeem Alawuje in a statement on Wednesday categorically asked Atiku and Obi to prepare themselves for another round of legal battle with the Disciples of Jagaban across the world for “this ignoble journey you have embarked upon.”

    He sdaid: “Our initial thoughts was that you would pretend to be reliable and responsible after the landslide and much applauded Supreme Court Judgment by feigning some civility at the least. But now, you have climbed the trees beyond the leaves.

    “You seem to have declared war against the very nation you called yourself a citizen of and you so much love to rule by all means however diabolical. You called the wind, you will have to deal with a whirlwind.

    “The Supreme Court is not related to a clan, religion or political party. Everyone is equal before it. When you disrespect the apex court, you have offended the entire nation and you have committed a very serious crime.

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    “If anything, by your unguarded statements and unpatriotic actions, it is clear that none of you is capable of ruling this nation. You don’t have the character and the capabilities.

    “Tinubu will not take you seriously. The court has ruled. You may go and hug a transformer. As a political figure, it behoves a person of Obi’s standing to guide their statement in public. You will be held responsible for whatever you say. Control your political emotions or prepare to face legal battles with us.”

    The group, however, called on Nigerians to disregard the statement that Tinubu would have any confrontation with either Obi or Atiku supporters, distracting him from tackling the economic and security crisis confronting the nation.

    “We personally warned the Vice presidential candidate of the Labour Party, who failed to understand the limit of public statements. He thought he could make outbursts as comments. We have some respect and regard for your family. Any other further criminal agitation will make us respond to you accordingly. The other time you wept profusely in public for political insult on your family. That has shown us the level of your maturity in politics and your life experience.

    It stated: “Tinubu is a focused president that none of your ranting and childish grumbling can distract. He has won all the battles you guys set up to discourage him from contesting. He won all the traps you set against him during the campaign, he beat you silly during your legal action right from the Tribunal to the Supreme Court.

    “DOJ however urged the presidency to concentrate on governance and allow us to handle them legally. The last day of Supreme Court judgment was the time Tinubu has no case with any one of them.”

  • Presidency lashes Obi for deriding Supreme Court

    Presidency lashes Obi for deriding Supreme Court

    Former Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate Peter Obi yesterday received hard knocks from the Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC) for castigating the Supreme Court over its historic judgment on the presidential litigation.

    They advised the former Anambra State governor to embrace a better vocation instead of indulging in illusions and denigrating the judiciary that once gave him succour in his period of trouble.

    At a news conference in Abuja, Obi lamented that the judiciary ignored public opinion in its October 26 verdict which upheld September 6 judgments of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal affirming the victory of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the February 25 presidential election.

    The seven member panel, led by Justice John Inyang-Okoro, dismissed the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate Atiku Abubakar, who came second and Obi who came third as “unmeritorious” and deserving of being dismissed.

    In his reaction to the verdict, Obi, who expressed misgivings about it, said he would rally opposition ahead of future electioneering.

    Yesterday’s event by Obi, is a follow up to that of Atiku Abubakar, who also expressed reservations about the apex court judgment.

    ‘Verdict breached public confidence’

    Obi said the judgment breached “the confidence the Nigerian people have in our judiciary.”

    The former Anambra State governor, however, acknowledged the end of legal battle, saying that LP would now brace for the role of opposition.

    Obi said the country should adopt a single term of five years for the president, adding that the number one position should be rotated among the six geo-political zones.

    Atiku canvassed a six-year single term for president. He also proposed rotation among the six geopolitical zones.

    Obi said LP would continue to canvas for good governance and focus on issues that promote national interest, unity, and cohesion as contained in its manifesto.

    He said: “Setting legal issues aside, the Supreme Court exhibited a disturbing aversion to public opinion just as it abandoned its responsibility as a court of law and policy. It is, therefore, with great dismay that I observe that the Court’s decision contradicts the overwhelming evidence of election rigging, false claim of a technical glitch, substantial non-compliance with rules set by INEC itself as well as matters of perjury, identity theft, and forgery that have been brought to light in the course of this election matter.

    “These were hefty allegations that should not be treated with levity. More appalling, the Supreme Court judgment willfully condoned breaches of the constitution relative to established qualifications and parameters for candidates in presidential elections.

    “With this counter-intuitive judgment, the Supreme Court has transferred a heavy moral burden from the courtrooms to our national conscience. Our young democracy is ultimately the main victim and casualty of the courtroom drama.

    “Without equivocation, this judgment amounts to a total breach of the confidence the Nigerian people have in our judiciary. To that extent, it is a show of unreasonable force against the very Nigerian people from whom the power of the Constitution derives. This Supreme Court ruling may represent the state of the law in 2023, but not the present demand for substantive justice.

    “ The judgment mixed principles and precepts. Indeed, the rationale and premise of the Supreme Court judgment, have become clearer in the light of the deep revealing and troubling valedictory remarks by Hon. Justice Musa Dattijo Muhammad, (JSC) on Friday 27th October 2023.

    “In disagreeing very strongly with the ruling of both the Presidential Petitions Court (PEPC) and the Supreme Court on the outcome of the 25th February 2023 Presidential election as declared by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), as democrats who believe in the rule of law, we recognize that the Supreme Court is the end stage of the quest for legal closure to the matter. As a party and as candidates, Datti and I have now exhausted all legal and constitutional remedies available to us. However, this end is only another beginning in our quest for the vindication of the hope of the common man for a better country. After all, sovereignty belongs to the people! If only for historical purposes, it behooves us to place our disagreement with and deep reservations about this judgment on public record.

    “We have long been aware of how weak national institutions have negatively affected our democracy. This year 2023 has been quite remarkable and revealing. INEC has displayed incompetence in the

    conduct of its statutory duty.

    “ The judiciary has largely acted in defiance of constitutional tenets, precedents, and established ground rules. Political expediency has preceded judicial responsibility. A mechanical application of technicalities has superseded the pursuit of justice and fairness. Both INEC and the Supreme Court as the referees, respectively shifted the goalposts in the middle of the game.

    “Where the value and import of the recent Supreme Court ruling ends is where our commitment to a New Nigeria begins. Our mission and mandate remain unchanged. From the very outset, our mission has been more about enthroning a new Nigeria. It is a new nation where things work, where the country is led from its present waste and consumption orientation to a production-driven economy.

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    “Our commitment is to a nation anchored on the principles of prudent management of resources to quickly pull millions out of multidimensional poverty, ensuring transparency and accountability in the equitable distribution of opportunities, resources, and privileges. In the new Nigeria, we aim to address all unmet needs by showing compassion for all those left behind by the present system.

    “Going forward, we in the Labour Party and the Obidient Movement are now effectively in opposition. We are glad that the nation has heard us loud and clear. We shall now expand the confines of our message of hope to the rest of the country. We shall meet the people in the places where they feel pain and answer their needs for hope.

    “At marketplaces, motor parks, town halls, board rooms, and university and college campuses, we all carry and deliver the message of a new Nigeria. As stake holders and elected Labour Party officials, we shall remain loyal to our manifesto. We will continue to canvas for good governance and focus on issues that promote national interest, unity, and cohesion.

    “We will continue to give primacy to our Constitution, the rule of law, and the protection of ordered liberties. We will offer the checks and balances required in a functional democracy and vie robustly in forthcoming elections to elect those who share our vision of a new Nigeria.”

    Obi, however, said the judgment would not signify the end of the Obidient movement.

    He said the party would expand the LP’s message of hope to the rest of the country.

    But urging the former LP candidate to move away from his delusion, the presidency, in a statement by Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy,  Bayo Onanuga, advised him to shun ethnic and religious sentiments as he prepares for 2027.

    Also, the ruling party, in a statement by its Publicity Secretary,  Felix Morka,  urged Obi to lick the wounds of his defeats and stop blaming the judiciary for his electoral failure.

    The ruling party berated the former Anambra State governor for exhibiting a sense of self-entitlement by over-rating himself and shifting the blame for his abysmal performance at the poll.

    It said court cases are not won based on public opinion,  but on evidence and law.

    APC faulted Obi’s position that  “the Supreme Court exhibited a disturbing aversion to public opinion just as it abandoned its responsibility as a court of law and policy.”

    The party said: “At his Press Conference earlier today, November 6, 2023, Obi, again blamed our democratic institutions, particularly the courts for not awarding him victory – not because he won the election, not because he proved his case in court as required by law but because he is Peter Obi.

    “That haughty sense of entitlement seems to pervade his vitriolic attack on our institutions.

    “Mr Obi’s gross inability to distinguish between his warped version of public opinion and reality has been his greatest undoing throughout the electioneering season.

    “Taken by the mass hysteria of his vociferous netizens and fringe supporters, Mr Obi ensconced himself in an alternate reality, a parallel political universe of self-delusion.”

    APC said as “someone who has previously benefited from the rulings of the Supreme Court on electoral matters,” Obi’s acerbic attack on the judiciary smacked of arrogance and vainness.

    It added: “When the same courts previously decided to favour his favour, the courts were beacons of democracy. Now that the decisions are against him, all of a sudden, the courts have betrayed democracy. 

    “Mr Obi, it cannot always be about you. It must always be about our country. Cases are not won on public opinion, they are won on evidence and the law. You failed on both counts.”

    Acknowledging Obi’s decision to play the role of opposition, the ruling party urged him to be mature and constructive in their contribution.

    It stressed: “We welcome Mr Obi’s decision to engage in opposition politics going forward. We urge Obi and his Labour Party to do so maturely and constructively, and contribute to the important task of building a safer, stronger and more prosperous country for us all.”

    In its statement, the Presidency wondered why Obi had insisted that he won the poll.

    It recalled that the former LP candidate “ran the most hateful, divisive and polarising campaign that pitched Christians against Muslims and one ethnic group against the other in a multi-ethnic and multi-religious society like Nigeria.”

    It added: “He made false allegations of rigging and other electoral malpractices yet could not produce any evidence to back up his claims at both the court of first instance and at the apex court. In a failed effort to mobilise and retain the support of his supporters, Obi gave them a forlorn hope that he won the election and would prove it before the courts. Throughout the trial, his lawyers didn’t present any alternative results different from the results INEC uploaded on the IReV portal and the ones signed by all party agents from the 176,000 polling units.

    “We wonder how the Labour Party candidate expected  the courts to do justice on the basis of rumours, lies and false narratives by sponsored partisans and fanatical members of his Obidient Movement.

    “We expected the Labour Party candidate to know that the Supreme Court or any other court does not give judgment based on public opinion and mob sentiments. Judicial pronouncements are based on evidence, precedents and the rule of law.

    According to the Presidency, “Nigerians rejected Peter Obi and his demagoguery at the poll because he posed present and future danger to the peace, progress and stability of our country.”

    The presidency admonished Obi to embrace a worthwhile vocation, having been rejected by majority of Nigerians who turned down his bid for leadership.

    It said Nigerians rejected him because he posed a grave danger to the peace, progress and stability of the country.

    According to the presidency, Obi’s antecedents as governor of Anambra for eight years did not inspire any confidence as someone capable of good leadership.

    It added that there was no tangible achievement in the state under his watch that could  recommend him for the highest position in the country.

    Chiding Obi for divisive campaigns, the presidency said: “We welcome Obi and his party to play the role of the opposition and start preparing for another shot at the presidency in 2027.

    “We hope by then he would campaign on issues and not whip up religious and ethnic sentiments as he did in the last campaign.”