Dele Farotimi, a spokesperson for the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, claimed that he and many other party members were not backing the LP’s nominee, Peter Obi, in order to secure political positions should Obi win the upcoming election.
This was said by the leader of the LP during an interview on the 2023 Verdict, a political program on Channels Television, on Tuesday.
Farotimi stated that the motivation behind their support for Obi is their desire to see a better Nigeria, the resolution of pressing problems plaguing the nation, and a transfer of power to the South-East.
The LP PCC spokesman added that if Obi was in a different party and fit who they see as a worthy candidate to liberate Nigeria from her problems, they still might have supported him.
“The Southern and Middle Belts Forum, which comprises of Ohanaeze, Afenifere, PANDEF and Middle Belts Forum, all four, we came together more than two years ago and we highlighted that there are critical issues plaguing Nigeria and these issues needed to be tackled, we came out with our position publicly on the need for power shift. After a point we also came together and we spoke on the need for power to shift, for equity and justice, to the South-East. All this time nobody was focusing on Peter Obi.
“We had already taken a position and when we found the person who fits the bill in relations to competence, equity, justice, and in understanding the governance of this country to make it work for the Nigerian people, we as a collective supported him.
“He was in Labour Party and of course, we went into the party with him, not necessarily as card carrying members of the Labour Party, but in recognition of the fact that the Labour Party presents an opportunity and a platform for the actualisation of these ideals that we have been speaking about all these years. If he had remained in the PDP, we may or may not have supported him, he may or may not be the one that we would even have been supporting. But today, based on the realities on the ground, he is in the Labour Party.”
When asked what the role of Afenifere, PANDEF or Ohanaeze would be in governance should in case Obi wins the presidential election, Farotimi said they would hold him accountable to his promises, as their support is not to get any political post.
He said, “Our belief is that we would cooperate with him, we are not in this looking for political posts but we are in this believing that Nigeria needs and requires change. So if Obi wins the presidency we intend to hold him accountable to each and every of the word he has given to the Nigerian people in relations to the governance of Nigeria.”