Coincidence, conspiracy or enemy action?

The above question underlines the intriguing relationship between Peter Obi and South East governors. But before we zero in on that, it is important that we understand the origin of what is beginning to look like an anti-Obi disposition among some South East politicians.

Obi, governor of Anambra State between 2006 and 2014, did not capture much of our public imagination while he was in office. Even though he scored some firsts as governor, especially in the area of his uncommon triumph against forces that wanted to truncate his governorship, we still saw him as just another Nigerian politician.

But the year 2022, gave him a new political stature. This is the second election cycle since Obi seized the political stage in a manner that left many, particularly his detractors, gaping. Many Nigerians, no doubt, knew him before 2022. Apart from being governor of Anambra State for eight years, he was also a vice presidential candidate in the 2019 presidential election. But 2022 came like an epiphany. It taught many Nigerians that the Peter Obi they thought they knew was just about to unfold. Many did not see his political transmutation coming. It came in the manner of a new day; a new way of seeing and knowing. Since then, Obi has been the subject of uncommon political discourses. Many identify with him because he signifies and embodies what a new Nigeria could possibly look like. His name resonates all over the country with great admiration and expectation. His admirers and non-admirers alike agree that there is no other like him in the country’s political space at moment.

But there is a curious side to the goodwill that trails Peter Obi. Some prominent Igbo politicians, for whatever reason, are averse to his presidential quest. Prominent among them are David Umahi and Chukwuma Soludo. These two individuals are hateful of Peter Obi for no justifiable reason. Umahi, we know, is driven by his incurable quisling disposition. His stock in trade lies in showing open hostility to anything his Igbo kinsmen believe in in order to curry the favour of his non-Igbo masters. I have, in this column, dwelt severally on this Umahi disease. It will, therefore, not be necessary to waste our precious time on it anymore. Suffice it to say that Umahi is a figure of fun. He has, through his unguarded utterances, made himself an object of coarse jokes and ridicule. A man who talks without decorum or restraint cannot but be a good candidate for mockery. People just laugh at him derisively. He is not taken seriously both in high and low places.

Chukwuma Soludo, Umahi’s ally in hate, comes with a different kind of ridiculousness. Soludo seems to have a Peter Obi problem. His disdain for Obi is without measure. He is ready to go to any length to shoot Obi down. Some have accused him of being jealous of Obi’s towering political profile. That may be true. But I am more inclined to feel that it is only Soludo that can explain why the mere mention of Obi’s name eats him up. It must be something more than envy. Whatever may be the case, Soludo and Umahi are lost cases in whatever matter that concerns Obi. They have a dyed-in-the-wool aversion for Obi. The two naysayers are just beyond redemption.

But if we have given up on Umahi and Soludo, we certainly cannot afford to do the same in the case of South East governors whose disposition towards Peter Obi is beginning to find expression in the Umahi-Soludo syndrome. Even though no one among the other four South East governors has shown a clearly discernible resentment for Obi, it is a well known fact that none of them has stepped forward to express support for his presidential drive.

Hope Uzodimma of Imo State does not talk about Peter Obi. He is not known to have spoken disparagingly about Obi in the public. But he is also not known to have said or done anything that suggests that he supports Obi’s presidential project.

Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State, on his part, has betrayed tendencies that suggest that he is not comfortable with Obi’s imminent presidency. Mbah has, for reasons best known to him, chosen to support President Bola Tinubu. But he should have left it at that. To now take steps and measures aimed at undermining Obi is strange to decent minds. Mbah should imbibe the philosophy of letting beings be.

Governor Alex Otti of Abia State behaves, more or less, like an independent-minded person. He did not jump onto the All Progressives Congress (APC) bandwagon when others were doing so. He held on to his Labour Party. He was in the same boat with Obi when the journey began in 2022. Today, both men are no longer on one political platform. That is understandable. But Otti looks detached. He hardly makes any reference to Obi’s presidential quest, at least in the public. Like Uzodinma and Mbah, Otti is not known to have expressed any support for Obi.

The last of them, Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi state, does not appear to be his own man. Just recently, he was quoted to have threatened newly inaugurated local government chairmen in his state that they will be removed from office if they fail to deliver 100 percent victory for APC in their respective areas during the 2027 elections. That was quite instructive. It was an unequivocal rejection of Peter Obi’s presidential quest.

One thing is clear from this brief survey. None of the five South East governors has openly expressed support for Peter Obi in his drive to become the President of Nigeria. Why is it so? In posing this question, I recognize the right of every citizen to have a choice in a democratic setting. That right is guaranteed. Nobody will crucify anybody for making such choices. Those who support Peter Obi and those who do not support him are, therefore, entitled to their choices. But it is strange that in an entire region such as the South East where Peter Obi comes from, no governor of that geopolitical extraction has expressed support for him. Is this coincidence, or conspiracy or enemy action? Is it really possible for these five governors to stand together in opposition to what more than 99 percent of their people want? That can hardly be the case. What can be deduced from this seeming common front against Peter Obi by the governors is the fear of Tinubu. These governors, whether they support Tinubu in truth or not, want to appear politically correct and smart. They do not want to be seen to be anti-Tinubu in their disposition. The governors can be accused of cowardice. But it is in the spirit of the times. It is the reason 31 of the country’s 36 governors are shamelessly pretending to be queuing behind Tinubu.

The governors may have decided to play whatever game that suits them. But one thing is worthy of note. None of them has the courage of his convictions. That is why we seem to have a convergence of interest among them. When the chips are down, today’s concordance may end up as tomorrow’s discordance.