The presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the 2023 election, Prince Adewole Adebayo, has said that the endorsement of Peter Obi by former President Olusegun Obasanjo shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone.
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Adebayo described the endorsement as merely a public confirmation of a scheme that the retired General himself planned and executed ab initio.
On January 1, the former president released an eight-page letter where he endorsed the presidential aspiration of the Labour Party candidate and called on Nigerian youths to vote for the former Anambra State Governor.
Obasanjo said though none of the presidential candidates is a saint, Obi stands out among the lot.
Other candidates in the race include Omoyele Sowore of the African Action Congress; Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party; Bola Tinubu of the ruling All Progressives Congress and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria People’s Party.
The endorsement has generated a furore among various political players, with the APC presidential candidate describing the endorsement as worthless.
During a virtual interactive session with Nigerians hosted by Rudolf Okonkwo, the SDP presidential candidate said he was not surprised by Obasanjo’s action because he was just being true to himself by endorsing Peter Obi.
“It is not reasonable for anyone to pretend to be surprised that he endorsed a campaign which he himself set up, which he has been sustaining and raising funds for,” Prince Adebayo said.
Adebayo said there is nothing new in what Obasanjo did as he is the de facto DG of the Peter Obi campaign. The two people – the former DG (Doyin Okupe) and the one who is there now- represent him.
“In his (Obasanjo’s) mind, Peter Obi is just an extension of his body similar to what he tried to do with the late President Umaru Yar’Adua.”
The SDP presidential candidate further reiterated his respect for the stateman’s right to support any candidate of choice. However, he pointed out that Obasanjo’s actions, both in and out of government, laid the groundwork for the country’s current problems.
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