The presidency has labelled the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi, a “copycat” and accused him of misleading Nigerians with unfounded allegations.
The presidency accusation is in reaction to the press conference held by Obi on Monday on the recent judgement by the Supreme Court affirming the election of Bola Tinubu as president of Nigeria.
During the conference held in Abuja, Obi expressed disappointment with the court’s ruling, saying despite the stack of evidence presented to the apex court, the judges opted to dismiss his petitions on the grounds of technicalities on the legitimacy of President Tinubu’s election.
Obi went on to to say that the ruling had severely shaken the confidence of Nigerians in the judiciary.
He said: “Putting aside the legal intricacies, the Supreme Court exhibited an alarming disregard for public opinion and failed in its role as both a court of law and policy. Regrettably, the court’s decision contradicts the substantial evidence of election irregularities, false claims of technical glitches, significant non-compliance with INEC’s own regulations, and allegations of perjury, identity theft, and forgery that have been brought to light during this election dispute.”
But the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, questioned Obi’s assertion that he had won the election, despite finishing in third place. Onanuga noted that Obi had previously benefited from the Supreme Court’s judgments, criticising him for attacking the same court because its latest decision did not favour his expectation.
Onanuga said: “We are perplexed by how Peter Obi and his faction of the Labour Party convinced themselves that they won an election in which they secured a distant third place.
“During his press conference, where he attempted, unsuccessfully, to mislead Nigerians with baseless claims and insinuations, Mr. Obi contradicted himself. He has previously benefited from judicial decisions, but now he criticizes the same court because its judgment did not favor him. It is essential to understand that the Supreme Court, like any other court, does not base its judgments on public opinion or popular sentiment. Judicial decisions are rooted in evidence, precedents, and the rule of law.”
Onanuga said after Obi had acknowledged that the Supreme Court ruling had put an end to his legal challenge of the All Progressives Congress’victory in the election, the Labour Party candidate should have simply congratulated President Tinubu as a gesture of statesmanship.
He encouraged the former Anambra governor and his party to begin preparing for the 2027 elections while playing their roles as opposition party.
