Obi Thinks He’s Too Clever for Primaries, Wants Shortcut to Presidency — Sowunmi

Segun Sowunmi, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has said Peter Obi wants a presidential ticket without going through the rigour of party primaries. Speaking on Nigeria Info 99.3 FM on Wednesday, Sowunmi argued that Obi has consistently avoided the internal democratic process of political parties.

According to him, the PDP owes the southeast a debt because every other region has had a shot at the party’s presidential ticket except the Igbos. He said this was why he advised Obi months ago to return to the PDP before the party’s national executive committee (NEC) zoned the 2027 presidential ticket to the south.

“Peter is someone who doesn’t listen. I told him more than three, four months ago that the time is now to return because the PDP owes the south-east a debt,” Sowunmi said. “But Peter thinks he’s too clever. He never wants to do primaries, and anybody that doesn’t want to do primaries is looking for somebody to cheat on his behalf. Primaries are the internal democracy of parties.”

He also faulted Obi’s handling of the Labour Party (LP), saying he failed to manage the platform after receiving its presidential ticket unopposed in 2022. “Nigeria cannot be waiting for Peter. If Peter can’t be president as an Igbo person, one day we will find an Igbo person,” Sowunmi added.

Obi left the PDP in June 2022 and contested the 2023 presidential election under the LP banner. Recently, he aligned himself with the African Democratic Congress (ADC) coalition ahead of 2027. Sowunmi had earlier urged him to return to the PDP, describing it as the stronger platform for his ambition.