- Urges Nigerians to be calm, law-abiding
BY EDMOND ODOK – Ahead of today’s (May 29) inauguration of President-elect Bola Tinubu as the Commander-in-Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Labour Party (LP) Presidential Candidate in the February 25, 2023 election, Peter Obi, says the development will strengthen him more to fight for justice and reclaim his ‘stolen mandate’.
Insisting that he would not be deterred by the inauguration, the former Anambra State Governor said there is no backing down in the fight to secure “his mandate”, pleading that Nigerians should generally remain calm and law-abiding.
The LP flag bearer, who was fielding questions on the Twitter space on Sunday, said the ongoing Court case challenging the process that produced Tinubu as the winner of the February 25 presidential poll is part of efforts aimed at correcting societal ills, stressing that; “What we have done in the past one year is not the end.
“It is not the beginning or the last chapter. I assure you, what will happen tomorrow (Tinubu’s inauguration) will strengthen me and not dampen me”
Further amplifying his position, Obi said; “I didn’t start this journey in a single day; I knew it was not going to be easy. The inauguration will strengthen me.”
And in what obviously was a message to the ‘Obi-dient’ family and Labour Party supporters, he said; “I know how dampened you are that your effort did not come the way you wished. We are in a battle with an entrenched establishment. We are in a long battle. Even me, I know that the journey ahead is tough; they will make allegations, blackmail, and all sorts of things, but I am ready.
“I thank you for your sacrifice and I ask that you do not feel dampened. Thanks for the sacrifice; thanks for being part of this greatness. Please as we go through this pain, let us stay together. Let us do the right thing. Nobody can claim to be a saint, I am not. I could have done something unknowingly in the past. I plead that you stay focused.”
In further tweets, the LP Presidential candidate said; “For all Nigerians, this is a time for deep reflection. It is also a time to re-examine our assumptions, even as we reaffirm our hopes. Let us calmly review our aspirations, in order to recalibrate our expectations and pin down the causes of our missed opportunities and disappointments. We stand at that critical moment in time when, as a people, we must collectively come to grips with the reality of our injured destiny as well as the reasons for that injury.
“It is for us to reassess our plight as a young democracy and identify clear pathways to a better and greater future for us all. As we await the verdict of the election tribunal, I urge all Nigerians to use this opportunity to renew their commitment to the Nigerian ideal. That ideal remains noble and worth every sacrifice we can make.”
Reacting to a contributor, who said some supporters of Obi better known as ‘Obidients’ were discouraged by the outcome of the election and that some of them feel that once Tinubu is sworn-in, the struggle would be over, Obi said; “This is about transformation which takes time.”
However, he urged his supporters not to stop praying for the country, adding; “Nigerians must, therefore, remain peaceful and law-abiding. No matter the depth of anyone’s reservations about what is going on in the polity today, no matter the real and imagined provocations, and no matter the disagreement out there, we should remember that this will not last forever.”
Tinubu will be sworn in as Commander-in-Chief and the Sixth democratically elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, today, Monday, May 29, 2023.
