The candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 presidential election, Peter Obi, is a politician who grabs the headlines, sometimes for the right reasons, and at other times, for the not-so-right reasons.
Obi, who insists he is not a perfect man, will be looking to throw his hat in the ring for the 2027 presidential race.
He will expectedly jostle for the country’s top job with other presidential contenders and could rewrite political history with himself emerging as the winner, but his opponents will do everything in their power to ensure that his plans remain a pipe dream.
One of the strategies Obi’s detractors are using against him in their quest to clip his wings is the allegation that the former Governor of Anambra State usually stays silent whenever there is good or positive news about Nigeria.
Obi, arguably Nigeria’s number one opposition figure, has repeatedly been accused of not celebrating or referencing most of the achievements of the current government in Nigeria and there are already growing concerns that his purported silence could come back in 2027 to hurt him.
A political analyst, Benedict Njoku, however said, “Whether they accuse Obi or not of staying silent, it will not make any difference.
“There are many Nigerians who love him unconditionally and strongly believe that he can do no wrong in their eyes.”
Regardless of Njoku’s views, many Nigerians agree that author and public affairs commentator, Reno Omokri, is in the forefront of those pointing out Obi’s “selective appraisals” of socio-political issues in the country.
Omokri, who prides himself on being “a table shaker”, does not hide his opposition to Obi’s presidential ambition and vows to remain a thorn in his flesh.
The social media influencer who was voted in December last year as the 21st most talked-about person in Africa has for some time now been using Obi’s silence as a de-marketing tool for dimming his presidential light.
Omokri says Obi not only remains silent about remarkable achievements of the government, but also loses his voice when disaster happens in Obi’s region, the South East.
According to Omokri, Obi only regains his voice whenever similar calamities befall other parts of Nigeria and for this reason he says that Obi lacks the qualities to treat all Nigerians fairly.
“This is the pattern with Peter Obi. If it happens in Arewa, or Yoruba land, he will shout and dance naked. But when it happens in Igboland, he will chop and clean mouth.
“But for some people to now say that he does certain things when a certain part of the country is involved or not, they must surely have an agenda. It’s all a political strategy”
“I repeat, Obi lacks the nationalism and patriotism to treat all Nigerians equally,” Omokri said on X, formerly Twitter.
Omokri also accused Obi of always focusing his remarks on insecurity in the North, South West and South South regions, but not on the South East.
It appears that some All Progressives Congress politicians have already started to emulate Omokri.
Last week, Bashir Ahmad, a former Special Assistant to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari on Digital Communications, called Obi out for his refusal to condemn the brutal murder of an official of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Aminu Sahabi.
Sahabi was fatally shot in Anambra State by a suspected internet fraudster, Joshua Ikechukwu, when the EFCC went to his home to effect an arrest.
“I expect Peter Obi to surprise us by extending his condolences to the EFCC and the family of Aminu Sahabi, who was brutally murdered while carrying out his official duties.
“I had assumed he (Obi) would have strongly condemned the brutal killing, especially since the incident occurred in his State, Anambra,” Ahmad said.
Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, seems to have also jumped on the “Obi is silent” bandwagon.
When the Supreme Court gave the historic ruling granting financial autonomy to Local Government Areas, he tackled Obi for his “silence” on the landmark ruling.
Onanuga asked why Obi did not utter a word on the epochal judgment hours after the Supreme Court gave the ruling granting financial autonomy to Nigeria’s 774 local councils.
“His silence confirms the belief that he is always quick to tweet unverified news about the Tinubu administration or our country,” he said.
Onanuga, who said that even Atiku Abubakar of the PDP had commended the government, added about Obi, “A good opposition statesman must be candid enough to applaud his political opponent when he has done some great deed.”
In another development, Onanuga had shared a Bloomberg report he posted on his X handle titled “The Naira finds its footing as it stabilises.”
He then invited Obi to “retweet the exhilarating story,” apparently insinuating that Obi was averse to the news.
“The Naira is holding its ground against the greenback and other currencies. This is good news, not bad news.
“I invite Mr. Peter Obi to retweet the exhilarating story,” Onanuga said as he threw down the gauntlet.
A political analyst, Candidus Nwachukwu, told The Point, “You may not want to believe what Obi’s critics are saying about this particular matter, but looking at the situation now, I think they may be right.
“Obi has, on many occasions, refused to say a word when something terrible happens in the South East but gave his opinion when such an incident happened elsewhere.
“I understand that Obi is not the President of Nigeria but let us face the facts, he wants to be the President of Nigeria, and that alone makes him a big stakeholder in the Nigerian project.
“It could be that he does not want to paint the South East in a bad light because he thinks that is his base, but how are we going to be sure that something about the region isn’t scaring him?
“Some people have told me that it could be because of the votes he wants to get from the southeasterners. The votes may be preventing him from talking about the insecurity and kidnappings going on there.
“I think Obi should man-up and handle his business in the region.
“There are definitely many people in the South East who want him to talk more about the challenges facing their region and by not doing so; he is doing a disservice to them.”
A member of the Obidient Movement, Marvins Abhulimen, said, “Last time we all checked, Obi is not the president of Nigeria. He is an opposition leader and he doesn’t have a retinue of ministers or aides (to help him react to every issue).
“Obi is also a private citizen and can react to any situation he chooses. And even if he doesn’t react at all, I can see that people are just trying to paint a bad picture of Obi’s character and their allegation is false.
“Obi tweets and talks about things that happen in his region. He celebrates good news and achievements of Nigeria and Nigerians on the global stage.
“But for some people to now say that he does certain things when a certain part of the country is involved or not, they must surely have an agenda. It’s all a political strategy.
‘When you are looking for a dog you want to hang, you will find a bad name to give the dog. This is why what Obi’s critics are doing are non-issues.
“Obi is not the only person that contested in the past election, so why are they looking for him? Their antics won’t hurt his presidential ambition. And this is because people who are raising the issues are people who did not support him, ab initio,” he said.
Abhulimen, who was in 2017 the Acting Deputy Chairman of KOWA Party, Lagos State chapter, added, “There is a President (in Nigeria), but is he talking about what is happening in the South East? What is the President even doing about the South East?
“When Obi talks about an issue that happened, and it could even be a tragedy, he talks towards a solution. He doesn’t make it like a caustic attack on the government of the day.
“He talks about the support the government can provide. He offers constructive criticism.
“In the United States, then-President-elect, Donald Trump has taken over and nobody is asking about what former Vice President, Kamala Harris, is saying or not saying.
“The focus here is on what Trump is doing and we should also be focused here on the President.
“So, on the issues Obi spoke about, what is the President doing about them?”
