The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi and his running mate Datti-Baba Ahmed has concluded their campaign in Lagos on Saturday, becoming the first political party in the campaign trail to cover Nigeria’s 36 states and the federal capital territory Abuja.
The duo, who were underestimated in the beginning, are said to have pulled off a surprising campaign that has rattled the opposition, making the Labour Party the party to beat in less than a year.
Obi said “it’s been a whirlwind and a very value-added experience across the 36 States.” Thanking Nigerians for engaging constructively, he added that “the Mission to take back Nigeria is real and the core objective is in sight.”
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The former Anambra State governor left the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in May 2022 to join the Labour Party, an underdog political party with one of the least structures in Nigeria, but has built a massive movement thriving on organic support, especially from the Nigerian youths.
Up against three established candidates – Bola Tinubu of All Progressive Congress (APC), Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) – the Obi-Datti presidential campaign has defied tribal and religious sentiments to garner stunning support from across the country, especially in the north and Southwest. Afenifere, a pan-Yoruba cultural group, had last year endorsed Obi over other presidential candidates, breaking ranks with the ethnocentric patronage of Nigeria’s political culture.
Dubbed “Obidients”, Obi supporters pride themselves in their “we no dey give shishi” (we don’t give a dime) mantra, underlining a new face of political ideology that Obi represents, which abhors moneybag politics. They have been self-financing many of the Obi-Datti political rallies.
Though the odds seem to be stacked against Obi, whose style of politics has been considered maverick – which stands no chance in Nigeria’s money-based political system, several polls conducted so far have projected him as the winner of Nigeria’s 2023 presidential election.
Some of the factors driving the movement
Compared to all other candidates, the Labour Party flagbearer has displayed uncommon charisma that has charmed a teeming number of Nigerians across all tribes, defying the anti-Igbo sentiment that has characterized Nigeria’s polity since the end of its civil war in 1970.
Obi’s impeccable record as the governor of Anambra State is believed to be his most selling point as he pushes for the most important job in Africa’s most populous nation. He said he left up to N75 billion in the State’s purse at the end of his second term, an uncommon gesture in Nigeria’s governors leadership pattern, notorious for looting states’ funds and incurring debts for their successors. Obi is also noted to be honest, unlike his contemporaries. He is the only governor in Nigeria who has rejected landed property allotted to him; another gesture that Nigerians have noted as an assurance that he is not seeking self-enrichment.
“As I have made it abundantly clear, my being the governor is by the grace of God & I believe FIRMLY that it is wrong to benefit from that. I became the governor because I wish to serve my people, and to do that devotedly, I believe I have to distance myself from undue privilege of the office,” Obi said in rejection of the property he was offered as a governor.
His campaign style is also said to be devoid of the norm. Obi is believed to have reintroduced issues-based campaigns into Nigeria’s political system, distancing himself from the regular trade of insults that have had Nigerians witnessed years of political campaigns characterized by bitterness. His manifesto has also been described as the best.
Those and other factors present Obi as a stark contrast to other front runners in the race, including Tinubu and Atiku, who have allegations of crimes and corruption trailing them. Accelerating his popularity is endorsement from prominent political figures in Nigeria, including former president Olusegun Obasanjo.
However, while the 61-year old has created a movement that millions of Nigerians, who are fed up with the present leadership, can reckon with, his journey to Aso Rock through Nigeria’s volatile political terrain is still very unpredictable. To many though, Obi has made his mark and should not be judged by whether he wins the February 25 presidential election or not. They believe that he has rekindled the hope of millions of Nigerians that a better future, free from the present leadership shackles stymieing prosperity, is possible.