By PETER ANOSIKE

A chieftain of African Democratic Congress (ADC), Nelson Ahamefula Akuma, has alleged that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as well as the Peoples? Democratic Party(PDP),are setting trap for the 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi.

Speaking while reacting to the rejection of the list of candidates of Julius Abure faction of Labour Party for the forthcoming by-elections by the Independent National Electoral Commission and the wooing of Peter Obi to return to PDP by governor Bala Muhammed of Bauchi State, Prof. Jerry Gana and other big wigs of the party, the Ebonyi state born business man and politician described all that as games being played to stop Peter Obi from contesting the 2027 presidential election.

In this interview, he also spoke on the attempt to lure former president Goodluck Jonathan back into partisan politics and on other burning political and national issues. Excerpts:

The Nenadi Usman faction of Labour party where Peter Obi and Governor Alex Otti belong celebrated the rejection of the list of candidates of Julius Abure faction of the party for the forthcoming by-election. They described it as a victory for them. How do you see that?

Well, what I want to say is that they read the whole thing wrong. The rejection is not a victory for the Nenadi Usman led faction of Labour Party, rather it is a trap or if you like a bait for Peter Obi to fall in. Deception is an integral part of politics. So, Peter Obi should be very careful. As we say in our local parlance, Peter Obi should shine his eyes very well. INEC is playing a game. That is a bad card that they played to keep Peter Obi in Labour Party. They want to create the impression that they have recognized their own faction of the party to stop Obi from joining the coalition for the rescue of Nigeria, which is the African Democratic Party. If Peter Obi falls for the trap and pick the presidential ticket of Nenadi Usman faction of Labour Party, at the dying minute, INEC would recognize the presidential candidate of the Julius Abure faction who would in-turn step down for Bola Ahmed Tinubu. So, Peter Obi must not fail for the bait because the whole plot is to make sure that President Bola Tinubu would have an easy win in 2027 and the only way to achieve that is to manipulate Peter Obi into staying in Labour Party instead of joining ADC .Mind you in Anambra State as we speak, the INEC recognized candidate for the November8, governorship election is George Moghalu who is from the Julius Abure faction. That is also what they would do in 2027 if Peter Obi makes the mistake of staying in Labour Party.

That is an interesting revelation. But PDP is also wooing Peter Obi to return to the party. What do you think about that?

Well, it is the same game that is being played and the name of the game is codenamed Operation-Stop-Peter-Obi-At-All-Cost! The genuine members of PDP have moved over to ADC and the remnants which is headed by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike are taking instructions from the Villa. But even come to think of it. How can Peter Obi return to PDP when the person that chased him out of the party in the person of Nyesom Wike is still in-charge and working for a rival candidate. What is he going back there to do, to begin to warm their bench or what! It is clear to even a five-year-old that the only reason why Wike is still in PDP is to sabotage the party. He is not there to see the party rebuilt but rather to destroy it so that Tinubu would have an easy win in 2027.That is also the same mandate that Julius Abure has in Labour Party. That was the reason for their meeting recently .To compare note and draw up strategies moving forward. Part of the strategies is what we are already seeing. INEC suddenly rejecting Julius Abure candidates and people intensifying efforts at wooing Peter Obi to return to PDP. So, even if you hear tomorrow that PDP disciplinary committee has suspended or even expelled Nyesom Wike for anti- party activities, don?t be fooled. It is still part of the plan to woo Peter Obi back to the party and stop him from contesting in 2027.

How do you see the attempt being made to lure former President Goodluck Jonathan to contest 2027 presidential election?

Let me tell you without any fear of contradiction that President Goodluck Jonathan will not contest presidency in Nigeria again. The plot is being orchestrated by the APC. So what you are seeing is the voice of Jacob and the hand of Esau, APC being the Esau while PDP is the Jacob. APC is in a panic mode because they know that they have failed to deliver on their promises to the Nigerian people. They have gouged the mood of the Nigerian people and have found out that 2027 has slipped out of their hands, so what you are witnessing is desperate moves to see if they can salvage what they have already lost. The game is to use Jonathan against Peter Obi in the south. They know that Peter Obi is still the man to beat in the South South, so the whole idea of wooing Goodluck Jonathan is to whittle down the influence of Peter Obi in the South South region. But I know that Jonathan would not want to be used for evil machination. He would not agree for those who disgraced and chased him out of office in 2015 to use him to sustain themselves in power. His wife, Patience, has made it clear that her husband would not contest against Tinubu. She said that Tinubu supported her husband in 2011 and I believe her. So, what that means is, if Jonathan agrees to contest in PDP in 2027,he would not be contesting against Tinubu, rather he would be playing a ?spoiler?s game ?against the parties in the opposition and most importantly, against the Nigerian masses and that would send all the sympathy, love and respect that Nigerians have for him down the drain.

So, what advice do you have for Peter Obi?

The advice that I have for Peter Obi is that he should be very careful not to fall into the trap that INEC and PDP are setting for him. Another advice that I have for him is that he should join the coalition. I know that he means well for Nigeria. But the truth is that he cannot do it alone. All hands should be on deck. He has to join hands with other Nigerians to rescue this country in 2027.In most of the democracies in the world where incumbents were defeated, they were done through coalition and I know that Nigeria cannot be an exception. Even the 2015 defeat of Goodluck Jonathan was a practical case study.

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