The Governor of Peter Obi’s home State of Anambra, Chukwuma Soludo, has dismissed the chances of the Labour Party presidential candidate, ahead of the 2023 general elections.
“Every four years, we resurface with emotive Nzogbu Nzogbu political dance (“it is our turn dance” but without organization or strategy) and fizzle out afterwards while others work 24/7 strategizing and organizing. Let’s be clear: Peter Obi knows that he can’t and won’t win,” Soludo writes in a piece he titled: ‘History Beckons and I Will Not Be Silent (Part 1)’.
Soludo adds that; “Peter Obi knows the game he is playing, and we know too; and he knows that we know. The game he is playing is the main reason he didn’t return to APGA.
“The brutal truth (and some will say, God forbid) is that there are two persons/parties seriously contesting for president: the rest is exciting drama!
“That many Americans may not like the fact that Joe Biden (79 years) and Donald Trump (76 years) are two frontrunners for president in their parties does not remove the fact that if both of them emerge as candidates, definitely one of them will be president in 2024.”
According to Soludo, Obi won’t even come third in an election that has seen him go toe-to-toe in opinion polls with front-runners Bola Tinubu of the APC and Atiku Abubakar of the PDP.
“As my brother, I wish him well and even pray for him. I told him during his courtesy call that my prayer is that himself or Prof Umeadi of APGA would win, why not?
“That is from my heart, but I also told him that my head and facts on the ground led me to know that its probability is next to zero (what I cannot say before you, I won’t say behind you). So I already told him my opinion.
“Indeed, there is no credible pathway for him near the first two positions, and if care is not taken, he won’t even near the third position. Analysts tell him you don’t need “structure” to win. Fantasy!
“Of course, LP won governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun on social media and via phantom polls, while getting barely 2,000 votes on ground. Creating a credible third force for presidential election in Nigeria requires a totally different strategy and extreme hard work.
“Of course, Peter Obi will get some votes, and may probably win in Anambra state— as “home boy”. But Anambra is not Nigeria. If he likes, I can even campaign for him but that won’t change much.
“From internal state by state polling available to me, he was on course to get 25% in 5 states as at August this year. The latest polling shows that it is down to four states, and declining.
“Not even in Lagos state (supposed headquarters of urban youths) where Labour Party could not find candidates to contest for House of Reps or Senate. The polls also show that he is taking votes away mostly from PDP.
“Indeed, if I were Asiwaju Tinubu, I would even give Peter Obi money as someone heading one of the departments of his campaign because Obi is making Tinubu’s pathway to victory much easier by indirectly pulling down PDP. It is what it is!”
Social media mob
The Anambra governor also said Obi is being propelled by a social media mob who need to be called to order.
“He should have fun and enjoy the fleeting frenzy of the moment. But he must moderate the desperation as exhibited by his social media mob. There is a limit to propaganda. A mob action often reflects the character of its leader.
“No one has a monopoly of social media violence, and no one should play God. Life won’t end by February/March 2023.
“I hope that after February 2023, Peter Obi will return to APGA (the party that made him everything he is politically) as I offered him on 8th March, 2022 and begin the hard work, if he truly wants to be president of Nigeria.
“It won’t happen by desperately jumping from one party to another or by unleashing a social media mob on everyone who slightly disagrees with you. I decided to pen my views personally — again for the records. On this, I don’t mind being a one man minority.”
Soludo was recently torn apart on social media for saying that Peter Obi’s investments as governor of Anambra are now “worth next to nothing.”
In his article, Soludo continued to drive the knife in and bait Obi’s social media supporters. “Yes, poverty more than doubled under Peter Obi and more than 50% of Ndi Anambra were in poverty under him. Go and verify! I am Governor, and sitting on privileged information which I will not want to use against a political opponent.”
And for Obi’s social media supporters who say Soludo is envious or jealous of their candidate, the Anambra governor says: “When the revered Arch Bishop Chukwuma stated that in Enugu State, they were not obedient, he was ferociously bullied on social media. Any dissent is tagged a saboteur or, in my case, it could be that I want to contest for president after office or that I am envious of Peter Obi.
“Soludo envious of Peter Obi? Totally laughable! But this is the same person I was asking to return to APGA in March 2022 and contest for president and yet envious or doesn’t want him to be president. This is madness!”