There has there has been a flurry of reactions from the All Progressives Congress (APC), Peoples Democratic Party PDP), Social Democratic Party (SDP), and other political parties following the endorsement of the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Mr. Peter Obi by former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
The presidential poll is a four-horse race among the candidates of the APC, Bola Tinubu; PDP, Atiku Abubakar; New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Rabiu Kwankwaso and LP, Obi.
Appraising the performance of President Muhamadu Buhari’s government, Obasanjo in his letter to Nigerians entitled ‘My appeal to all Nigerians particularly young Nigerians’ which he released yesterday stated that the last seven years in Nigeria has been “hell on earth.”
He said “our leaders have done their best, but their best had turned out to be not the best for Nigeria and Nigerians at home and abroad.
“Those of us who are alive should thank God for His mercies, brace ourselves for the remaining few months of this administration and pray and work very hard for an immediate better future – a future of liberation, restoration and great hope and expectation.’’
Appraising the suitability of the 2023 presidential frontrunners, Obasanjo said the LP candidate has the edge over the others in terms of “character, antecedent, their understanding, knowledge, discipline and vitality that they can bring to bear and the great efforts required to stay focused on the job particularly looking at where the country is today and with the experience on the job.”
He added that “Peter is a needle with thread attached to it from north and south and he may not get lost…and has people who can pull his ears, if and when necessary.”
Besides, said Obi has “a young and able running mate with clean track record of achievement both in public and private life.”
He warned Nigerians against voting a candidate who would be speaking to them through third parties using the present circumstance as case study.
“The vigour, energy, agility, dynamism and outreach that the job of leadership of Nigeria requires at the very top may not be provided as a septuagenarian or older. I know that from personal experience. And it is glaring out of our current experiences.
“Otherwise, we will be fed with, “The President says” and we will neither see nor hear him directly as we should. Yes, for some, age and physical and mental disposition are not in tandem,” he stressed.
He urged the youths to seize the moment and “march forward chanting ‘Awa Lokan’ (our turn)” not with a sense of entitlement “but with a demonstrable ideological commitment to unity and transformation of Nigeria.”
Reacting to the endorsement, the APC said in a statement by the spokesman for its presidential campaign council, Mr. Bayo Onanuga described Obasanjo’s action as “expected” adding that the party does not “consider the so-called endorsement to be of any value.”
He said the former president had, on several occasions in the past, declared his stand on Obi.
“We read with amusement the endorsement of Mr. Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate by former President Olusegun Obasanjo in his New Year message on Sunday.
“We respect the democratic right of former President Obasanjo to support and endorse any candidate of his choice in any election.
“Except that he made it known formally in his New Year message, any discerning political watcher in Nigeria knows that Chief Obasanjo’s preference for Peter Obi is expected. He had earlier stated his position at various public events, the last being at the 70th birthday anniversary of Chief John Nwodo, former President of Ohaneze Ndigbo in Enugu.
“We make bold to say that our party and candidate, Asíwájú Bola Ahmed Tinubu will not lose sleep over Obasanjo’s move, as Obasanjo is notorious for always opposing progressive political forces, as he did against MKO Abiola in 1993.
“The endorsement is actually worthless because the former President does not possess any political goodwill or leverage anywhere in Nigeria to make anyone win a Councillorship election let alone win a Presidential election. He is a political paperweight.
“He is also not a democrat anyone should be proud to be associated with.
“We recall that in 2003 and 2007 general elections when he was a sitting President, Obasanjo used all the coercive instruments of State at his disposal to railroad people into elective offices against the will of Nigerians as expressed at the polls. In 2007, he declared the polls a do or die affair after he failed in his bid to amend our constitution to have a third term.
“From our records, President Obasanjo has not successfully made anyone win election in Nigeria since then.
“Not even in Ogun State can anyone rely on his support or endorsement to become a governor or councilor.
“We pity Peter Gregory Obi as we are confident that Chief Obasanjo cannot win his polling unit and ward in Abeokuta for Obi in the coming Presidential election on 25 February, 2023.
“Chief Obasanjo’s endorsement is not a political currency Mr. Peter Obi can spend anywhere in Nigeria because he is not a political force, even in his part of the country.
“Chief Obasanjo similarly endorsed Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, Peoples Democratic Party candidate in 2019 against President Muhammadu Buhari. Atiku was walloped by Buhari with a wide margin in the election.
“History will repeat itself in February as our candidate Asíwájú Bola Ahmed Tinubu will equally beat Obi by a large margin.
“We take a particular notice of the part of the endorsement statement where Chief Obasanjo said none of the presidential candidates is a saint.
“We want to state here that Chief Obasanjo is not a good judge of character. He is a man who considers only himself as the all-knowing Saint in Nigeria.
“Over the years, Chief Obasanjo has also convinced himself that integrity, honesty and all good virtues begin and end with him.” Onanuga said.
For its part, the PDP said in a statement by the spokesperson for its presidential campaign council, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan that Obasanjo’s endorsement cannot sway the decision of many Nigerians considering how he endorsed President Muhammadu Buhari, whose administration he now describes as “stressful years for many Nigerians.”
Ologbondiyan also expressed surprise at the former President’s endorsement of Obi whom he (Ologbondiyan) said has not had any experience in governance at the national level in the face of the alarming challenges facing the nation and requiring a tried and tested hand.
“In any case, Chief Obasanjo’s opinion cannot sway Nigerians who can easily remember how he endorsed President Muhammadu Buhari, whose administration, he (Obasanjo) now describes as “stressful years for many Nigerians,” during which our nation “moved from frying pan to fire and from mountain top to the valley.
“It is, therefore, extremely difficult for Nigerians, particularly the youth demography, to accept Chief Obasanjo’s opinion as the solution to the myriad of challenges facing the nation today because the last candidate he introduced, by his estimation, failed Nigerians.
“Our campaign holds that none of the Presidential candidates has the experience, capacity, tenacity of purpose, presence of mind, and readiness to serve like Atiku Abubakar.
“Atiku remains the most widely accepted candidate, whose choice is not predicated by sectional, tribal, ethnic or religious sentiments or the endorsement of any individual, high or low, but by the record of ability and performance, authentic vision, honesty, and character; physical and mental capacity; the very indices set by the former President.
“It is instructive to state that every claim by former President Obasanjo on the success of his administration is a reflection of the performance of Atiku Abubakar as his Vice President and Chairman of the National Economic Council during which our nation achieved unprecedented economic growth to become one of the fastest growing economies in the world,” he said.
Former presidential aspirant of the APC, Mr. Adamu Garba also reacted saying ‘Obasanjo wants to remain the only living Yoruba man to use the GCFR title.’
“It is a well-known fact that Obasanjo never wanted any Yoruba man to grow above him while he’s still alive. Yet Bola Tinubu, his arch-political rival, who dethroned him from South West politics is about to become the President of Nigeria. His actions should not surprise you.
“Obasanjo wants to remain the only living Yoruba man to use the GCFR title. He never wanted anyone to get that. But we’ll promise him one thing, by God’s Grace, we’ll be inviting him to the swearing-in ceremony of Tinubu on May 29, 2023, as commander in chief and GCFR, Insha Allah.
“Envy is an immense disease. I respect & continue to respect General Olusegun Obasanjo. However, I advise him to outgrow his envy of Tinubu at this stage of his life. Obasanjo is desperately envious of the rise and shine of Bola Ahmed Tinubu, his lost in this one is sure to come,” he wrote in a tweet.
In his reaction, the national publicity secretary of SDP, Mr. Rufus Aiyenigba said Obasanjo’s endorsement of Obi is a plus for the party’s candidate, Mr. Adewole Adebayo, considering that “he ticks the boxes as espoused by the former president, Baba Obasanjo.”
“Prince Adewole Adebayo undeniably meets the Southern presidency advocacy of many as led by the former president and many other prominent national leaders. Adebayo meets the boundless and essential energy requirement for the top job; he meets the requirements of the deep grasp of transformational leadership and development issues, vision and soundness of mind, as well as the character and integrity quotient as listed,” he added
Meanwhile, the national chairman of LP, Mr. Julius Abure, has called on former presidents and heads of government to toe Obasanjo’s line.
Abure said Obasanjo is patriot who wants the best for the country.
“Obasanjo, obviously, has no choice among all the presidential candidates aside Peter Obi. He has always been a progressive, a patriot and a man that wants the best for the country. I want to say without any fear of contradiction that Obasanjo has by this distinguished himself.
“He is a man that has the country at heart. It is, therefore, not surprising that he has endorsed Obi. We want to implore other leaders, other past presidents, other fathers of the country, like IBB, Abdulsalam Abubakar, Goodluck Jonathan and all past presidents and heads of government in the country.
“I call on them to endorse Obi because as it stands, without sounding immodest, he is the best presidential candidate among other presidential candidates.
“He has age on his side, he is energetic, he has the pedigree, he is competent and is the one that is best suited for the job,” Abure said.
