Former Labour Party  Presidential Candidate Peter Obi Says Involvement Was Civic, Not Political

 

Abuja — The former Labour Party Presidential Candidate in the 2023 general elections, Mr. Peter Obi, has publicly addressed speculations surrounding his involvement with the regime of late General Sani Abacha, stating that his engagement was driven by civic responsibility and not political alignment.

 

Obi made this known via a post on his official X (formerly Twitter) handle, where he shared a letter documenting his co-opting—alongside others—into a government taskforce aimed at decongesting Nigerian ports during the Abacha era.

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“In consonance with my established principles of defending everything I am involved in… I hereby attach the letter which documents my co-opting… into the Taskforce on the decongestion of the Ports,” Obi wrote.

 

He emphasized that he had never met General Abacha prior to that engagement, which was initiated by traders and importers—including himself—who were concerned about prolonged delays in clearing goods at the ports.

 

“Our meeting with him was borne out of collective concern… We approached him not as political actors, but as concerned citizens seeking pragmatic solutions to a matter affecting economic activity and livelihoods,” he stated.

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Obi further explained that the primary objective of the taskforce was to restore efficiency to port operations and alleviate economic strain on the business community.

 

“This clarification is offered in the interest of truth, to reaffirm that our actions were driven solely by a sense of civic duty and not political ambition,” he added.

 

Concluding his statement, Obi noted that while he does not expect the “copious evidence” to silence critics with ulterior motives, he felt obligated to put the facts in the public domain.

 

“It’s being placed in the public space for posterity and in line with my transparency pledge to Nigerians on any issue I am involved in,” he said.