2027 Must Not Be About Religion, Ethnicity – Obi Makes U-turn

Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has said the 2027 presidential election must be decided on competence, capacity, compassion, character and commitment rather than religion or ethnicity.

Obi made the declaration on Friday while formally kicking off his campaign for the 2027 presidential election.

According to Obi, his decision to contest was driven by the need to address the challenges confronting the country.

“I consider myself to be among those contesting to address the challenges Nigeria is currently facing. I join this contest with one firm conviction: Nigeria must work,” Obi said in a live broadcast.

The former Anambra State governor said his campaign would focus on the immediate problems affecting Nigerians and would not be built around ethnic or religious sentiments.

He said, “The 2017 election must be guided by competence, capacity, compassion, character and commitment.”

“Our campaign will focus on the urgent concerns of Nigerians and not on ethnicity or religion. Nigerians must reject and disregard any campaign driven by propaganda, ethnicity, religion or cronyism,” Obi added.

He also said he and members of his team would travel across the country to engage directly with Nigerians and understand their concerns before presenting their plans for the country.

“As my team and I travel across the country, we will listen to Nigerians, understand their needs and concerns, and assure them that we have the competence, character and compassion to lead and reset Nigeria for the benefit of all,” he said.

According to him, Nigeria needs leaders who will listen to citizens and provide practical solutions to the country’s major challenges, including insecurity, poverty, hunger, poor education and inadequate healthcare.

“Nigeria deserves leaders who will engage with them, listen to their concerns and present clear solutions to unite the country, defeat insecurity, lift people out of poverty, drastically reduce hunger and the number of out-of-school children, improve education and healthcare, and build growth that serves everyone, especially the most vulnerable,” Obi said.

Obi’s latest position is a shift haven faced criticism during the 2023 presidential election over allegations that his campaign appealed to religious sentiments.

In April 2023, an audio recording of a telephone conversation between Obi and David Oyedepo, founder of the Living Faith Church, popularly known as Winners’ Chapel, was leaked.

In the recording, Obi was heard describing the February 25, 2023 presidential election as a religious war, while Oyedepo repeatedly responded, “I believe that.”

Obi had previously denied accusations that his campaign was based on religion. However, his campaign activities during the 2023 election generated controversy over his engagement with Christian groups and churches.

In June 2022, months before the presidential election, Obi urged Nigerians to “take back” the country while speaking at the Men of Valour conference organised by the Revival House of International Church of God (RHOGIC) in Abuja.

Obi contested the 2023 presidential election on the platform of the Labour Party (LP), emerging third behind Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who won the election, and Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

With the 2027 election now approaching, Obi is seeking to position his campaign around economic hardship, insecurity, poverty, education, healthcare and the need for better governance.

Meanwhile, Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has promised to restore the petrol subsidy if elected president.

Atiku made the pledge during a Facebook Live session while responding to questions about the removal of the subsidy and its impact on Nigerians.

The former vice president said his position had changed following the decision by President Bola Tinubu to remove the subsidy in May 2023. He explained that although he did not initially oppose the policy change, he became concerned about what happened to the money the Federal Government said it would save.

“I initially did not oppose the removal of the fuel subsidy. But now that it has been removed, where is the money? Where has the subsidy money gone? Has it been used to improve healthcare, education or security?” Atiku asked.

He added, “If I win the presidential election, I will restore the subsidy. And anyone who stole Nigeria’s subsidy funds must return the money.”

Tinubu announced the removal of the petrol subsidy during his inauguration on May 29, 2023, arguing that the programme had become too costly for the country to sustain.

The decision immediately pushed up petrol prices and contributed to higher transportation and food costs, increasing pressure on households and businesses.

The President had maintained that resources previously spent on petrol subsidies would instead be redirected to infrastructure, healthcare, education, transportation and other areas aimed at improving the welfare of Nigerians.

In a national broadcast on July 31, 2023, Tinubu again defended the decision, saying the subsidy had become a significant burden on the economy.

“For several years, I have consistently maintained the position that the fuel subsidy had to go,” Tinubu said.

He added that “subsidy cost us trillions of Naira yearly”, arguing that the money could be better used for “public transportation, healthcare, schools, housing and even national security.”