A former Special Adviser on Public Affairs to the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, Katchy Ononuju, has warned that accepting to serve as a running mate to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar or any other politician would mark the end of Obi’s political relevance.
Ononuju, who made the remark in an interview with Daily Post, said such a decision would alienate Obi from the youth movement that formed the backbone of his 2023 campaign.
According to Ononuju, Obi’s popularity was built on the trust and hopes of millions of Nigerian youths, who saw him as a symbol of a new political order. He cautioned that accepting the Vice Presidential slot would be perceived as a betrayal.
He said, “We have given them a condition which is simple: accept zoning. We are not fighting for today. We are fighting for the future. I am confessing to you the reason why I started the youth movement. I spoke to Omoba, Doyin Okupe, and said let us do southern campaign president. If it does not work, history will remember what we have done. I am grateful to Okupe for agreeing, and we started asking candidates. Peter Obi never agreed. He told us that he would never go against Atiku. But I called people like Okwadike. I even organised a meeting at Nnabuenyi’s house. He asked me, ‘Katchy, what are you doing? Has Peter Obi told you he will run for president?’ He told me that he is loyal to Atiku. I said do not worry, I am working. After that, Peter agreed to run.
“The moment Obi becomes Vice President to anybody, the youths will walk away, and I do not want this creation to die. Peter Obi, as a political creation, will die if he abandons the youths. Obi will die as a political icon if he abandons the youth, and they will not accept it. In every single administration, the voice of the Vice President does not matter; it is muted, and if he complains, he is degraded. Check with Osinbajo; check currently with Shettima; check with Jonathan; check also with Obasanjo and Atiku. After they degrade you, you will not be able to recover. As a student and teacher of history, I know this for sure. It is difficult to recover after you have been smashed as the Vice President.”
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