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Sometime in the early week of August 2025, an ‘Emergency Strategy Meeting’ was called in one of the innermost offices in the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Nigeria’s seat of power. The convener of the meeting was a small-framed man of average height, stocky, balding, well-dressed with thick glasses. He is a trusted ally of the President. Summoned to be at the meeting were spokespersons of the president and other inner circle members who have the ears and eyes of Mr. President. One issue dominated discussion at the meeting to a degree not seen in a long time in the Villa.
According to one person privy to the agenda of the meeting, not even the worsening insecurity in the country could command such urgent importance. Before lunchtime that rarefied afternoon, the convener of the meeting rushed in, working his phones like a bookie. Everyone stood up to greet him. He also greeted them warmly. Greetings over, everyone sat down to hear him tell them the reason for the emergency meeting. Right away, the convener said he believed all of them knew why the meeting was called at a very short notice. He said he would give his views with no diplomatic couching or colouring.
With piercing directness, and a notepad in his hand, he made it clear that the only item on the agenda “is how to stop Peter Obi from being on the 2027 ballot”. He added that he would not accept excuses, stressing that a heavy ‘war chest’ has been budgeted for that purpose. All that is needed is a coordinated plot to achieve the objective with single-mindedness. He concluded by saying that Obi has proved to be a ‘stumbling block’ to the President’s re-election bid. A repeat of what happened in 2023, especially the defeat of Tinubu in his own turf in Lagos would not be tolerated this time around. And if Obi is not stopped at all cost, it may derail every momentous choices the President wants to make in the next four years, if he wins.
Throughout the meeting, it was surprising to those present that former vice president Atiku Abubakar was not mentioned as a threat to the President’s re-election effort. Everything that was discussed at the meeting was supposed to be ‘off record’. But few weeks later, the president’s Adviser on Public Communication, Daniel Bwala, in his usual irascible and loquacious manner, on August 13, 2025, appeared on Channels Television, “Politics Today”, during which he leaked part of what was discussed at the close-door meeting. Bwala revealed what everyone had long suspected: a coordinated plot to frustrate Obi from getting the presidential ticket of any registered political party, not even a vice presidential slot. That was the beginning of the plot behind the unending crises that engulfed the Labour Party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the African Democratic Congress(ADC). With that done, the mission seemed accomplished. But, Obi had other ideas. Working for a higher purpose, he moved to the Nigeria Democratic Congress(NDC). He has since become the party’s presidential candidate, with a well-known politician, Dr Rabiu Kwankwaso on the ticket as running mate. That ticket has heightened the fear factor within the presidency.
That has unsettled the ruling APC.
Back to the drawing board. If one plot fails, try another until Peter Obi is frustrated from contesting. That’s the script. It’s in furtherance of this devious plot to stop Obi by all means that brought about last week’s bizarre judgment from a Federal High Court in Lokoja, Kogi state, presided by Justice Isah Dashen, directing the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) to deregister NDC. Trust partisan INEC led by Prof Joash Amupitan to obey the judgment, even when NDC has signalled its readiness to go on Appeal.
The judgment seems like the voice of Jacob, but the hands of Esau. The worry is that never before in our democracy has the integrity of the judiciary come under a huge suspicion as it is today under the present administration. Judges now romance with the Executive, ignoring the warning of late Justice of the Supreme Court, Niki Tobi. Expectedly, the judgment by Dashen has attracted high-octane reactions, many of them condemnatory. Most Nigerians, including lawyers, have described it as a sword to the heart of our democracy.
The Lokoja judgment came few days after Obi had called on President Tinubu to resign having failed to deliver on his campaign promises. That was the ‘honourable’ thing British Prime Minister Keir Starmer did a week ago. Recall that as opposition leader, Tinubu had called on former President, Goodluck Jonathan to resign. As reported in The Nation newspaper, November 5, 2014, Tinubu claimed Jonathan lacked the wherewithal to tackle Nigeria’s security challenges.
What then is wrong with Peter Obi’s call for Tinubu to resign? It’s part of the plots against Peter Obi. It’s also part of the government’s hidden agenda to turn Nigeria into a one-party state. Clearly, the country is fast losing its democracy. The signs are obvious. Countries that slide from democracy toward autocracy or one-party state, tend to follow what is going on now under President Tinubu’s watch. It involves an elected leader who uses the power of incumbency to consolidate authority and make political opposition more difficult.
That’s also why, as the president’s spokesman, Bayo Onanuga said last week, “I can’t see the hunger Nigerians are complaining about”. That’s living in denial, a dangerous occupational disease that afflict those who see power as personal aggrandisement. Onanuga has proved to be a rookie in his job. He lacks the political skills. As Bill Clinton’s media advisor, George Stephanopoulos noted in his memoir, ‘All Too Human’, “judging how the world will judge what you do – how a position will play – is an essential political skill”.
This is the kind of low intellect men president Tinubu surrounds himself with. You can see why Nigeria is not working. This government needs reminding that, despite its desperation to cling on to power at all cost, history has shown that kings have lost kingdoms, warriors have also lost battles, and even legends have lost legacies. Tinubu is likely to lose the next presidential election if conducted in a free and fair atmosphere. He knows that, his surrogates know too. That’s why the panic over Peter Obi’s won’t stop anytime soon. Surveys have shown that Tinubu is beatable.
That’s why the desperation to frustrate Obi. Anything that can stick on him is considered fair. It’s part of the playbook from the presidency. But Obi remains unfazed. He is known across the country and beyond as a template for transparency and unquestionable advocate of good governance. He’s a man who cannot compromise his convictions for power.
The point here is that democracy works and produces dividends for the people when elected officials understand the essence of public office.
Not everyone who claims to be a leader is a true leader. Without a vision beyond one’s selfish advancement, a leader is likely to be paralysed once the goal has been achieved. There is no denying the fact that Obi is a tested leader who has what it takes to connect with the people and meet their aspirations. That’s one of the virtues that made him a big success as an entrepreneur and two-term governor of Anambra state.
Unfortunately, these are virtues that are in short supply in present day Nigerian pork barrel politics. Undoubtedly, the resilience and political relevance of Obi is
causing sleepless nights to the presidency and the leadership of the APC. That desperate search for smoking guns against Obi is heightening every passing day. Sources close to the corridors of power in Abuja say many strategy meetings have been scheduled in the months ahead with a single agenda: ‘Stop Peter Obi by all means, politically possibly. For some state governors elected on the platform of APC, attacking Mr. Obi is the ultimate prize, the easiest way to cozy up to the President.
That’s the reason why you have heard some misguided comments against Obi and Ndigbo from jaded fellows, including Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo, and Minister of Works Dave Umahi. However, everywhere he goes – at home and abroad – Obi’s message resonates with the people. It’s to the effect that Nigeria is drifting dangerously and needs a change of leadership- from the present self-centred, nepotistic leadership- to one that will see politics as a human enterprise, driven by ideas for solutions to the challenges confronting the nation and its citizens.
