Obasanjo’s endorsement and Obi’s chances in 2023 elections.
It is no longer news that former president Olusegun Obasanjo has endorsed Peter Obi, the Labour Party's nominee for president, ahead of the election on February 25, 2023. The endorsement, which came on January 1, 2023, was said to be his message to Nigerians for the new year. The former president faced criticism from a variety of sources for saying that Obi is qualified to succeed Muhammadu Buhari as president of Nigeria, despite the fact that none of the front-runners is a saint.
His comments were interpreted by the All Progressives Congress as a jab at Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the party's nominee for president. In response, the party decided that Obasanjo's endorsement was indeed useless.
In a similar vein, the Peoples Democratic Party contended that the former president's support for Obi would be meaningless. Finally, the presidency called Obasanjo "morally dirty" in response, capping off the entire ordeal.
Despite Obasanjo's endorsement, many people questioned whether Peter Obi would be able to win the 2023 presidential election due to his perceived weak chances of winning. To state the obvious, Obi has captured the hearts of thousands of young people who are eager for change across the nation, particularly in the South. But a lot of things are already threatening his chances of winning the elections in 2023.
First, it is thought that the Labour Party lacks the organisational capacity to control any significant political position in the nation. This party lacks a governor, members of the National Assembly, and representatives in state assemblies. Additionally, the structures you have at these various levels affect politics in this country (local, state and national). Who is hoping for a miracle just because Peter Obi is a member of the Labour Party?
The Labour Party's chance to show its strength in the July 2022 Osun State governorship election came to an emotional end when Lasun Yusuf, a former deputy speaker of the House of Representatives and Labour Party candidate, was defeated. He has actually formally defected to the PDP.
Second, all forms of Biafra agitations have already engulfed the South-East, which in theory should have been Obi's main support base. Armed separatists have consistently warned against elections in the area. Given that even gunmen have repeatedly attacked the offices of the Independent National Electoral Commission, it is obvious that Obi will perform poorly in the South-East region. So given these conditions, who will be bold to go and cast their votes?
But now that I think about it, is Obasanjo's backing even significant? It is argued that, despite the elder statesman's status as one of Nigeria's most powerful people, he may not be able to help any candidate win the upcoming presidential election.
A cursory examination of history would reveal more. He backed Atiku Abubakar, the former vice president, when he ran for president in 2019 against Major General Muhammadu Buhari on the PDP platform (retd). In 2019, Buhari won that election.
Although Obasanjo (the president of Nigeria from 1999 to 2007) supported candidates in the presidential elections of 2007, 2011, and 2015, all of whom won, we shouldn't make hasty judgements.
It's important to note, though, that the former president's political influence in the South-West region is already waning. Obasanjo doesn't currently belong to any political party.
It's a crude joke to think that Obasanjo's support for Peter Obi has any significance, at least in the upcoming presidential election, given that the two political giants (PDP and APC) are still at odds over who will rule the South-West and South-South regions and the fact that the APC remains a powerful force in the North.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment