The NPM noted that Peter Obi’s "blatant refusal to condemn the atrocious activities of the terrorists” in the South-East region of the country was a subtle way not to offend the teeming supporters of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the Eastern Security Network (ESN).
A civic group, the National Peace Movement (NPM), says it has observed the silence of the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, regarding the violence and killings in the South-East region, adding that such withdrawal spoke volumes about Obi’s personality.
The NPM noted that Peter Obi’s "blatant refusal to condemn the atrocious activities of the terrorists” in the South-East region of the country was a subtle way not to offend the teeming supporters of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the Eastern Security Network (ESN).
The movement in a release urged Nigerian youths to reject candidates with pro-separatist ideologies.
Recall that Obi became heavily linked to IPOB, and its militias unit, Eastern Security Network, ESN after he vowed never to condemn the group.
The NPM in a statement issued in Lagos State on Thursday by its National Coordinator, Reverend Arome Johnson, called on Nigerians youths not to fall for Obi’s antics, following his failure to weigh in on the worsening attacks on the electorates and electoral infrastructure in the South-East.
"Our movement is worried that Obi has avoided condemning IPOB and ESN’s alleged crimes. Obi’s silence over this unfolding development, therefore, suggests that his anticipated pathway to the presidency does not include emergence through a popular vote, which makes him a dangerous anti-democratic force.
"Furthermore, Obi's campaign has done nothing to distance his candidacy from the online rants of pro-IPOB/ESN accounts. Social media accounts that had run propaganda online are the ones now campaigning for Peter Obi, a clear indication that the relationship between the Labour Party candidate and the separatists is systematic rather than random.
"We note that in addition to staying mute in the face of the threats posed to the general elections by his kinsmen, the Labour Party presidential candidate has taken his support for the separatists further by structuring his campaign activities in the southeast region to align with the damaging sit-at-home blockade enforced by unknown gunmen.
“A confirmation of this is evident in how Peter Obi’s campaign avoided scheduling any engagement for Mondays, the day that the terrorists enforce the sit-at-home.
"Consequently, we now know that Obi has placed his ambition above the unity, safety, and corporate integrity of Nigeria, above the blood of innocent citizens being shed across the southeast, and above successfully conducting peaceful and fair elections. We also find it alarming that Obi has in the last couple of weeks garnered endorsements from treacherous individuals that have a history of pitching Nigerians against each other along ethnic and sectarian lines,” the statement added.
The movement advised the Nigerian youths to stop further mobilisation for Peter Obi as he had persistently failed to demonstrate that he was not linked to the cause of the separatists and ravaging gunmen.