The apparent contradiction between Obi’s earlier rhetoric and his current posture has triggered backlash, particularly from supporters of President Bola Tinubu.
Former Labour Party presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has come under fresh criticism following what many Nigerians describe as a dramatic political U-turn after he openly embraced leaders within the African Democratic Congress (ADC) coalition whom he had previously condemned as part of Nigeria’s “structures of criminality.”
In a viral video recorded ahead of the 2023 general election, Obi had vowed to dismantle what he described as entrenched systems responsible for Nigeria’s decline.
“Those structures of criminality, structure of poverty, and that is the structure I want to throw away,” Obi said at the time.
However, in a more recent video after aligning with the ADC-led coalition, the former governor adopted a conciliatory tone toward key political figures long associated with Nigeria’s dominant political establishment.
“In any way, you’ve never seen me call anybody bad names, or anything. We are in ADC. We respect everybody who is in ADC. We can say, oh, we want to be this or we want to be that. But as for calling people bad names, we are not part of it. I don’t subscribe to it, and I’m not part of it,” Obi said.
He went further to heap praise on several politicians within the coalition.
“The people I met there, from the party chairman, is my very dear elder brother. People like Atiku (Abubakar) are my leader, my respected elder brother. (Rotimi) Amaechi is my brother. We’re very close. And so is (Nasir) El-Rufai. Name them, all of them that are there. We are the same team. So I cannot say anything bad about them,” he stated.
Obi also attempted to reassure his supporters that his new political alignment does not amount to an endorsement of insults or attacks against his former critics.
“And those who are following me, I assure you, will not say anything bad about them. But we have some elements that are trying to introduce that, in order to see if they can hurt the Peter Obi brand,” he added.
The apparent contradiction between Obi’s earlier rhetoric and his current posture has triggered backlash, particularly from supporters of President Bola Tinubu.
Reacting, presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga, accused Obi of political inconsistency and desperation.
“Peter Obi has set a new record for political desperation. In his pursuit of the presidency, he has shown himself to be unprincipled – a politician willing to go back on his words, abandon his political platform if it is no longer a significant factor in his political calculus or permutations, and even ‘eat his own vomit,’” Onanuga said.
He further alleged that Obi is prepared to abandon any ideological stance in order to achieve his ambition.
“In his politics of desperation, he is willing to associate with anyone, including those he had previously pilloried. He can make U-turns on any matter—even on his political ideology, if he has one. He certainly lacks the character of a reliable political leader. No one can be sure where he stands on any issue. He shifts with the wind and the trends on X,” Onanuga added.
According to him, Obi’s latest comments also amount to a betrayal of his core supporters.
“As this video clip shows, Obi has now thrown his supporters under the bus, further underscoring his series of contradictions and confusion,” Onanuga said.