LP Presidential Candidate
A former supporter of the Obidient Movement, and a reputable Journalist Donu Kogbara, says the 2023 Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, is no longer living up to expectations.
According to her, Peter Obi has gone from top to bottom as he is now a disappointment having motivated a lot of Nigerians and garnered a lot of supporters in the build-up to the 2023 elections, but his pedigree has nosedived after the election.
Kogbara described the regular defections from the Labour Party as a sign of a sinking ship which she admonished opposition Politicians to urgently fight for their parties survival.
The former supporter of the Obidient Movement, stated this while speaking in an interview with Arise News, she maintained that even though Obi remains a good man, he has not been able to provide the kind of opposition leadership which got him so much support from youths and other Nigerians in the build-up to the 2023 elections.
Kogbara said many supporters of the obedient movement have become disappointed in Obi.
“Well, rats have always deserted sinking ships, so the Labour Party should say bye-bye to those five lawmakers. They’re entitled to do what they want if it’s within the ambit of the law, which I’m not even sure it is. But for me, the Labour Party is clearly in crisis. We had all that drama around their chairmanship and the traitor, who was on the take from outside elements.
“I just can’t bear people who lack honour. So, there was that whole crisis and then there were other things that made it difficult for Labour Party to function as a proper party. But the thing that depresses me most is not so much what the senators and House of Representatives people do; it is Peter Obi himself.
“I just don’t understand how somebody who was this sparkling inspirational figure, who created a movement almost overnight, galvanized the youths, the intellectuals, anybody who had any iota of principle in their bloodstream, at least admired him to some extent even if they weren’t necessarily going to vote for him for whatever reason, has gone from top to bottom.
“As far as I’m concerned, he’s like a firework that has turned into a damp squib. He’s become so prosperous. All I see is him making anodyne statements here and there on television, donating boreholes or whatever. It’s all good stuff. He’s still a good guy but where is the leader that the opposition needs so desperately? He’s not looking like it.”
Kogbara added that not just Obi, but the entire opposition movement in Nigeria, including Atiku Abubakar, are not doing enough to put the APC government of on its toes.
She blamed the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, for the crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Also, She apportioned the majority of the blame on Obi, labelling him as a disappointment with no aggression to tackle the current government for its lousiness and failures.
“I blame the entire opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), for allowing itself to be derailed by my dear friend, Nyesom Wike. By the way, I saw him a couple of months ago and I told him that ‘if I was a PDP Mandarin, I would have tossed you out by now.’ I also blame Atiku Abubakar of spending more time as a Dubai type of big man and not effectively taking on the government.
“And I blame Peter Obi most of all because Peter was a shining star and so many people committed themselves to him emotionally, myself included. I’m not Obidient anymore, to be honest with you, because he’s such a disappointment. I mean, there’s no aggression.
“The government is lousy. And pretty much the only good thing I can think that President Bola Tinubu has done is to keep herdsmen at bay because I’ve noticed there haven’t been any herdsmen shenanigans since Tinubu came in. So, I congratulate him for that if indeed it is his doing.
“But it’s kind of like, there are so many things this government is doing wrong, contracts being awarded without due process, economic collapse, rampaging inflation, widespread hunger and disillusionment and you never hear anything seriously punchy from Peter Obi,” she submitted.
Not done with her jibes, Kogbara said Peter Obi is too mild and has disappointed many obidients by his actions. She submitted that as the star opposition leader, the former LP presidential candidate can do more.
“He’s too mild. Yes, he’s got so much but there’s so much he could go for, and he would get so much public support if he did. I’m not just speaking for myself, I’m speaking for hundreds of Obidients, ex-Obidients or current Obidients, who are disappointed. We don’t want a weak opposition leader. He’s the star of the show. Atiku and PDP should also be doing more. But really, Peter is the star opposition player and he’s not doing well enough,” she said.
Recalls that on September 4th, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi and the only Governor of the Labour Party, His Excellency Dr Alex Otti conveyed an extended stakeholders meeting in Umuahia where they formed a parallel National leadership of the party headed by Senator Nenadi Usman and also where they purported to have dissolved all organs of the Party including the National Working Committee contrary to the constitution of the Party which observers attributes as the major challenge and issues against the unity of the Labour Party.
