Candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 presidential election, Peter Obi, declared on Friday (today) that he is not in a hurry to become Nigeria’s president.
OsunDaily News reports that the former Governor of Anambra State stated this during the launch of a book written in his honour: ‘Peter Obi: Many Voices, One Perspective’, held in Awka, Anambra State capital today.
Recall that Obi and other presidential candidates are currently in court challenging the victory of President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who was declared winner of the February 25th poll by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Obi, however, said on Friday that he was not in a hurry to become the next leader of the African Giant. Obi expressed confidence that he will become Nigeria’s president now or later.
He said: “Anyone who thinks I’m on transit is wasting his time. Let me tell you, I must be the president of this country. I’m sure of that. If it is not today, it must be tomorrow.
“Other people who want to be, should come and tell us what they want to do, and how to do it. This is my country, I don’t have dual citizenship. If anyone thinks I am going to run away from Nigeria, they are lying.
“I have three engagements in Anambra and Lagos today. I will be speaking in Lagos tonight. We will not leave Nigeria. I am not in a hurry to become the president, but I know it must happen.”
Obi recalled how for three years, he was in court in Anambra just to challenge the process of the court to reclaim his governorship victory.
According to him, many people tried to discourage him but he told them even if the entire four years tenure elapsed just to prove a point and correct the process, he will be fulfilled.
He added: “My argument is that, let’s do what is right. I always tell everyone that I will not give people money to do the wrong thing. I have been the chairman of a committee, TETFUND committee, and Prof Mahmood Yakubu was my member. We know ourselves, but when he became INEC chairman, I had never met him. I told him, you’re an umpire, just do what is right.
“If you have the chance to do the right thing, and you insist on perpetuating anarchy, then it will consume everybody one day. I insist that we must do the right thing.
“I was in an event yesterday in Abuja, and it was World Food Organisation. I listened to a report that stated that Nigeria will face intense hunger in years to come.
“It is Nigeria that will face hunger, not Peter Obi. The report listed Borno, Adamawa and Yobe as the states that will be worse hit, but those three states put together are five times larger in the land mass of Israel, yet Egypt exports food, but Nigeria cannot feed itself.”
“So we must cultivate a habit of doing the right thing. If we don’t do the right thing, it will consume us someday,” the former Governor of Anambra said.
