2023 Presidency: More Trouble for Tinubu, Atiku As Peter Obi Makes Powerful Declaration for Northeast

• People of the northeastern region of Nigeria have been assured of sustainable development in years to come
• Labour Party flagbearer Peter Obi described the northeastern region as the new oil ground of Nigeria
• He stated that his administration would be committed to the northeasterner while assuring them of qualitative education, skill acquisition and quality healthcare

FCT, Abuja - The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has declared that he is committed to the northeastern people of Nigeria.

The former Anambra state governor made this known on Monday, December 5, at the town hall meeting with the northeast stakeholders at the Merit House, Maitama Abuja.

While speaking to stakeholders, Obi described the northeast region as the oil of Nigeria while noting that the vast lands in the region are enough to be cultivated to feed the whole of Nigeria and other neighbouring countries.

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He stated that he is totally committed to the northeasterners while noting that his administration will ensure adequate education and skill acquisition for their children.

Obi said:

"I am committed to you, I am committed to the northeast. I'm not going to be your president from Abuja, I'm going to be your president from the northeast."

Peter Obi clears air on relationship with Atiku

When asked to clear the air on his relationship with Atiku, the presidential candidate of the PDP, Obi said:

"Atiku remains my respected elder brother. In my place, you respect your elder and I will respect him as long as I live."

He stated that he is not one of those politicians who play bitter politics and that his relationship with Atiku remains cordial despite his exit from the PDP.

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Adding a little bit of humour that got that blew up the congregation with laughter, Peter Obi said:

"We are not quarrelling, all we are doing now is that we are looking for customers, the same market. If a customer comes its either they buy my own or buy his own."

2023: Baba-Datti dismisses Labour Party's lack of structure claims

Also speaking at the town hall meeting, the vice presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Senator Yusuf Baba-Datti, stated that good governance would continue to override structures.

Baba-Datti stated that good governance remains the focal point of democracy in any given society that wants sustainability and progress.

He said:

"To provide good governance, there are some basic qualities that leaders must have and these are what the electorate should be looking at now."

Baba-Datti further stressed that the focus of the Obi/Datti movement is extracting good governance from democracy rather than entrenching it into the system.

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When asked by stakeholders to elucidate on the reach of the party across the federation, having in mind that the APC and PDP continue to criticise the Labour Party about its lack of structure, Baba-Datti said:

"There's no nook and cranny of Nigeria that Labour Party has not been felt. People should stop asking Labour Party if we have a structure, instead, they should begin asking APC, and PDP do they really have a structure."

He described the structure of the PDP and APC as a confederation of sycophants prone to destabilise the system at the expense of the masses.

2023 polls: "I'm interested in Obi, not Labour Party" - Babachir Lawal

Similarly, the former secretary to the government of the federation, Babachir Lawal, said the issue of the political structure of the party remains an internal plan that they don't intend to divulge to the public or the hearing of the opposition.

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He, however, revealed the need for mobilisation as it is essential to the party's victory in the forthcoming presidential election.

Lawal said he remains a full-time APC member but is a huge supporter of the Peter Obi ideology.

He said:

"I'm not interested in Labour Party as a party, I'm interested in Peter Obi as a potential presidential candidate. It doesn't matter which party he would have been. I sense that Nigerians are due for a change, they have been yearning for change.

"And I can assure you that Nigerians will vote for anybody as long as they do not belong to the old guard of the PDP or APC. Nigerians are just yearning for change and people are determined that this time around, the change that we have been craving will come. And fortunately, we have a competent person in Peter Obi and his running mate."

Balami speaks on mobilisation strategy for Labour Party

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Meanwhile, the organiser and convener of the northeast stakeholder's town hall meeting, Engr Isaac Balami, said the idea of the engagement was to stir up a mobilisation strategy for the Labour Party in the northeast region ahead of the 2023 presidential polls.

Balami, who also doubles as the national deputy campaign manager of the Obi/Datti presidential campaign council, said the engagement seeks to sensitise members, formulate means of protecting votes, and canvass for votes at the grassroots level.

While reacting to the need for Labour Party to have a political structure like the APC and the PDP, Balami said:

"We are not here to lie to ourselves, we are here to tell ourselves the truth. Politics is not easy and politics is not cheap, so we are here to discuss the nitty-gritty of how we are going to win."

The town hall meeting was themed: "Good governance: The gateway to secure our people and the land," and was graced by top party chieftains like the national chairman, Julius Abure, Air Commodore Dan Suleiman (rtd), Bitrus Pogu, president of the middle-belt forum and a host of other top dignitaries.

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Presidential debate: “This is real cause of poverty in Nigeria”, Peter Obi

Meanwhile, Peter Obi, the flagbearer of the Labour Party, says state governors should not be blamed for the country's high poverty rate.

While speaking at the Arise TV town hall meeting, Obi said that insecurity is the main cause of poverty in Nigeria.

According to him, it is the federal government's responsibility to clamp down on insecurity and not the state government.

Source: Legit.ng