By Chioma Gabriel
The presidential hopeful for the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, in the upcoming 2027 elections, Mr Peter Obi, has raised the alarm over his safety and the systematic frustration of his businesses, claiming he “might not even be alive” to contest the next poll.
Speaking during an interview on With Chude, hosted by media personality, Chude Jideonwo, and shared on X yesterday, Obi painted a grim picture of the challenges facing opposition figures in Nigeria.
When pressed on whether he would definitively be on the ballot in 2027, Obi responded bluntly: “Not even a candidate. I might not even be alive. I’m telling you. Every single thing I do for a living, this government is frustrating it. Deliberately so. Everything. So, there is even a possibility, if they have the opportunity, I will not be alive.”
While the former Anambra State governor clarified that he wasn’t levelling a formal, direct accusation, he insisted his daily life is plagued by targeted obstruction. He noted that while authorities avoid direct confrontation, their “hand” is visible in the routine hurdles he faces.
According to Obi, this hostility isn’t unique to him. He alleged a broader, coordinated clampdown on dissent. “They are attacking everybody who is in opposition personally,” he stated, adding that he has even been denied the basic entitlements due to him.
To illustrate his point, Obi shared a recent airport encounter where officials allegedly locked his vehicle while ignoring other parked cars. When he identified himself, the officer in charge reportedly dismissed him.
“But I said, ‘Look at the cars of other people.’ And you could see them talking to each other, as if, ‘Who is this one?’” he said.
Obi also claimed that acquaintances now avoid him in public out of fear of retribution, revealing some supporters have quietly asked him to skip their family milestones.
“I have people send me invitations and say, ‘My son, my daughter is getting married, but please don’t come,’” he said.
Umeh accuses Sheriff of whipping up anti-Obi sentiment
Meantime, the senator representing Anambra Central, Victor Umeh, has accused former Borno State Governor, Ali Modu Sheriff, of attempting to whip up sentiment against Peter Obi in Northern Nigeria ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Umeh was reacting to comments made by Sheriff during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, where the former governor said Northerners would not vote for Obi in 2027 because he is “divisive.”
“I am not worried about Peter Obi at all because I know that Northerners will never vote for Peter Obi,” Sheriff said.
When reminded that Obi secured substantial votes in states such as Nasarawa and Plateau during the 2023 presidential election, Sheriff dismissed the comparison, arguing that circumstances had changed.
“The situation is different now, you know why? Peter Obi, when he was a governor, chased all the Northerners out of Anambra State,” Sheriff alleged.
Responding on the same programme on Tuesday, Umeh said Sheriff was still operating with outdated political thinking, adding that Nigeria had moved beyond such divisive politics.
He maintained that Obi remains one of the finest politicians Nigeria has produced and is continuing to promote a message of peace and national renewal.
He said: “Anybody who gets up to say the North will not vote for Peter Obi is inciting their people against Peter Obi to use that and weaponise a war that ended 56 years ago, that the North should not vote for Peter Obi.
“Let them remain in the stone age. Nobody is in the stone age anymore. Nigeria is moving. And if you don’t do reconciliation and healing, you cannot move forward.
“So, what he (Ali Modu Sheriff) is trying to do is to whip up sentiment against Peter Obi ahead of the election. Peter Obi is one of the finest souls Nigeria has had.
“Somebody who is non-violent, somebody who preaches peace, somebody who, even if you slap him, will smile and continue with his message of change. Let this country be turned around.”
The exchange followed Obi’s repeated criticism of President Bola Tinubu over worsening insecurity and his call for the President to resign if he is unable to protect Nigerians.
Sheriff, however, argued that Obi was the least qualified person to demand the President’s resignation, insisting that Tinubu was making genuine efforts to address the country’s security challenges.
But Umeh defended Obi, saying it was within his democratic rights to call for the President’s resignation if he believed the administration had failed to meet the expectations of Nigerians.
“He has a right to say the president has not met the expectations of the Nigerian people. It is politically allowed to say resign because the current president asked Jonathan to resign when he was in office,” Umeh said.
The lawmaker further argued that the Tinubu administration had not done enough to ease the hardship faced by Nigerians, particularly the high cost of petrol, which he said had contributed to rising prices of goods and services across the country.
