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The participation of Peter Obi, a past presidential candidate for the Labour Party (LP), in the opposition alliance led by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has sparked a new round of controversy.

Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, was found to have been tricked into joining the opposition alliance.

According to ZINGTIE, there are currently signs that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar may become a major candidate for the ADC coalition’s presidential ticket after he hinted that he will run in 2027.

Speaking at a function, Atiku said, “I swear to God, if elected, whoever steals or engages in any corruption-related activities, we will declare war against them and they must be punished.”

Obi also revealed that he would only run for one term before handing over.

“I have not joined in any form of discussion on joint tickets, including with Atiku. If there is any form of agreement that will restrict me to four years in office, I will comply with the agreement and be ready to leave office on the 28th of May 2031; not the 29th, but the 28th,” Obi said.

Obi deceived the coalition

Katchy Ononuju, Obi’s former Special Adviser on Public Affairs during the 2023 presidential race, claimed the former governor of Anambra was tricked into joining the alliance in the hopes of becoming its nominee.

Ononuju said to ZINGTIE that Obi was tricked into joining the coalition and that they would discuss the conditions of his presidency after it was sworn in.

According to Ononuju, “The coalition was just a trick. They tricked Peter Obi, saying don’t worry, go and register, go, let us inaugurate. We will zone to the South and after the inauguration declaration, we will now start negotiating on the terms of you being the presidential candidate. I told him that these people are tricking; they are not proper.

“By the way, I served as Peter Obi’s Special Adviser on Public Affairs during the last election. I and Doyin Okupe founded the youth movement from the PDP. We decided that we would not allow the party to run away from inclusion which is driven by zoning. After several pleadings, we convinced Peter Obi to head what we were doing. That is why it became the Obidient Movement. I would not allow what I founded to be reduced to nothing and that is why I told Peter Obi that I and my people would not support him if he ever submitted to anything that we do not believe will allow our aspirations to be given expression. You know that when you are Vice President you are nothing. Look at Shettima; remember the days of Goodluck; look at Osinbajo. It does not work that way.

“Our problem is very simple. We worked in the PDP and we know that the pendulum between the North and South in terms of zoning means even if you get to the North in a Volkswagen Beetle, you have gotten to the North. The next thing is that the pendulum must return to the South. If it returns to the South in a Mercedes, it does not matter. What I mean is that no matter the party you use in getting a Northerner into power, when it comes the other way, it has to be a Southerner. We said if the North has done eight years, it has to be the turn of the South.”

Atiku’s refusal to honor the presidential ticket’s zoning to south

The director general of the Heritage Centre, a think tank that studies politics, economics, and opinion, Ononuju, also charged Atiku with lying and refusing to assign the presidency to the South.

He said, “The same Atiku that refused and tried to lie to some people by saying it should go to the South and Southeast in the same year. Why is he suddenly refusing to allow zoning to the South? That was why I told Peter Obi that this is a trick. That was why he went on Channels Television four days ago and gave that coded interview that the ADC is a futurist prospect for cooperation in 2027; but for now he remains in his party. But by that time the harm had been done.

“Atiku started talking about what his government would do. I told Peter Obi even yesterday that it is builders that plant the pillars; they are the ones who will ground-fill. ADC is an Atiku Abubakar construct. You are not going to get it and we are dealing with people who are masters of deceit called Takiyah. You have now seen that Atiku has brought out his real dealings.”

As vice president, Peter Obi will die politically.

Ononuju said that if Obi agreed to serve as Atiku’s or anyone else’s running mate, he would die a political death.

He added that the president either mutes or denigrates the voice of vice presidents, and that if Obi takes a joint ticket as a running mate, the youths will turn against him.

“We have given them a condition which is simple; accept zoning. We are not fighting for today. We are fighting for the future. I am confessing to you the reason why I started the youth movement. I spoke to Omoba, Doyin Okupe, and said let us do southern campaign president. If it does not work, history will remember what we have done. I am grateful to Okupe for agreeing and we started asking candidates. Peter Obi never agreed. He told us that he would never go against Atiku. But I called people like Okwadike. I even organized a meeting at Nnabuenyi’s house. He asked me, ‘Katchy, what are you doing? Has Peter Obi told you he will run for president?’ He told me that he is loyal to Atiku. I said do not worry, I am working. After that, Peter agreed to run.

“The moment Obi becomes Vice President to anybody, the youths will walk away and I do not want this creation to die. Peter Obi as a political creation will die if he abandons the youths. Obi will die as a political icon if he abandons the youth and they will not accept it. In every single administration, the voice of the Vice President does not matter; it is muted and if he complains, he is degraded. Check with Osinbajo; check currently with Shettima; check with Jonathan; check also with Obasanjo and Atiku. After they degrade you, you will not be able to recover. As a student and teacher of history, I know this for sure. It is difficult to recover after you have been smashed as the Vice President.”

Atiku created the ADC coalition.

He insisted that since the ADC coalition is his creation, Atiku would not consent to resign his presidential ambition for anyone.

Ononuju said, “To be fair to him, Atiku constructed the ADC coalition and I do not think he would have constructed it for another person to become the presidential candidate.

“I am not here to tell you who can remove Tinubu. Mine is nation-building. As Peter Obi tells you, he seeks an alliance of nation-building. You cannot just say you want to remove Tinubu. Remove Tinubu to do what? You removed Gaddafi to do what? You want to remove him, what is the replacement strategy? You do not just remove. Who are you bringing? Without Peter Obi in that picture, what you will have is the CPC faction and the remnant of the nPDP. The CPC faction are not happy with Tinubu but when Buhari was doing what Tinubu is doing or even worse, they were silent. Because Tinubu has not allowed any militia to start killing Nigerians and because we are successful.

“We ran the last campaign using what I called ethnic connotation. We talked to the Igalas in Kogi State; we talked to the Ebiras in Kogi State; we talked to the Merigi in Adamawa; we talked to the Babur in Borno; we talked to the Jamba in Kaduna; we also talked to the Birom in Plateau; we also talked to the Tiv in Plateau. We did not run a campaign where we just told somebody in Abuja, a Fulani man, that you are in charge of the North. No. That was why Peter Obi won.”

According to Yunusa Tanko, they are attempting to sow discord.

The Obidient Movement’s National Coordinator, Yunusa Tanko, has denied that Obi was duped into joining the alliance by the presidential ticket.

Tanko asserted that those behind the revelation are attempting to sow discord and distractions, pointing out that there is not a shred of truth in it.

Speaking with ZINGTIE, Tanko said, “They are trying to create distractions and disharmony. We are focused and will meet our position. If Peter Obi is going to make any statement as regards the coalition, you will get it from him directly, from me, or from any of his aides.

“There is no iota of truth about him being tricked or not. Those are people who are trying to create a lot of distractions as the case may be.

“Peter Obi has always maintained that the issue of rescuing Nigeria is not in the hands of one person; it has to be collective, especially when it means pulling people out of poverty, addressing health situations, education, and the economic well-being of the Nigerian people.

“These are the things he has always been saying that he is interested in, and that is his position all the time.”

The coalition is for 2027; Peter Obi is still with LP.

Tanko further stated that Obi’s participation in the coalition is only for 2027 and insisted that he is still a member of the Labour Party.

“He has made it clear that he is a member of the Labour Party to protect the interest of his followers who are running under the Labour Party and to ensure he protects and supports them.

“The coalition is a coalition he is interested in for the 2027 general elections and we are in 2025. I repeat, Peter Obi is a member of the Labour Party and the coalition is for 2027,” he added.

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