A former Special Adviser to Peter Obi on Public Affairs during the 2023 presidential election, Katchy Ononuju, has alleged that the former Anambra State governor was “deceived” into joining the opposition coalition which recently adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Naija News reports that Ononuju, while speaking with Daily Post on Wednesday, claimed that Obi was lured into the coalition under false pretences and may have been sidelined in favour of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who is said to be eyeing the 2027 presidential ticket.
According to Ononuju, Obi was made to believe he would emerge as the consensus candidate of the new coalition. However, Ononuju said the actual intent was to use his popularity to legitimise the coalition before shifting support to Atiku.
He explained that Obi was promised negotiations on the terms of his presidential run after the coalition’s inauguration, but was later blindsided by subtle moves within the group.
Ononuju said, “The coalition was just a trick. They tricked Peter Obi, saying don’t worry, go and register, go, let us inaugurate. We will zone to the South and after the inauguration declaration, we will now start negotiating on the terms of you being the presidential candidate. I told him that these people are tricking; they are not proper.
“By the way, I served as Peter Obi’s Special Adviser on Public Affairs during the last election. I and Doyin Okupe founded the youth movement from the PDP. We decided that we would not allow the party to run away from inclusion which is driven by zoning. After several pleadings, we convinced Peter Obi to head what we were doing. That is why it became the Obidient Movement. I would not allow what I founded to be reduced to nothing and that is why I told Peter Obi that I and my people would not support him if he ever submitted to anything that we do not believe will allow our aspirations to be given expression. You know that when you are Vice President you are nothing. Look at Shettima; remember the days of Goodluck; look at Osinbajo. It does not work that way.
“Our problem is very simple. We worked in the PDP and we know that the pendulum between the North and South in terms of zoning means even if you get to the North in a Volkswagen Beetle, you have gotten to the North. The next thing is that the pendulum must return to the South. If it returns to the South in a Mercedes, it does not matter. What I mean is that no matter the party you use in getting a Northerner into power, when it comes the other way, it has to be a Southerner. We said if the North has done eight years, it has to be the turn of the South.”
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