Peter Obi: Soludo’s soliloquy as blessing in disguise, By Victor Anazonwu

I am gutted by conflicting emotions that between two of my favorite people in politics today, a great chasm has suddenly emerged. CC Soludo, my state Governor in whom I am well pleased, is going at full speed for the jugular of Peter Obi, my former state Governor, who is now aspiring to lead my country along a new path towards righteousness and greatness.
On both men (among others) I have invested significant hopes and dreams, like never before in my life, for a new beginning in which men of character, intellect and honor will seize the reigns of power from the gangs of marauders who are currently in the saddle. Now I feel like a mother asked to choose between her own two children. It is a terrible feeling.
Governor Soludo hinged his TV interview and subsequent epistle on the TRUTH – “The truth” that Peter Obi’s achievements were modest during his tenure as Governor; and that he (Peter Obi) will not win the 2023 presidential election.
On the former, I would let facts, figures, statistics and records speak. And in this respect, Soludo is well placed to furnish us with what he knows to help us form or modify our opinions. On the latter (who will win the elections), I wish to respectfully submit that nothing in Gov. Soludo’s training, profession, vocation, CV or current position gives him any competence to decipher the outcome of an impending election. He did not tell us that he carried out a survey, nor did he tell us the size of his sample, his methodology, its validity and error margins. He simply presented us with “the truth.” An objective social scientist would do otherwise.
I wish to say that the truth is only known to God. We all as mere mortals only see fragments of the truth. The future is also known only to God. So, our dear Governor will do well to separate his personal opinions, fears, fancies and party interests from facts, predictions and truth.
Indeed, if Prof Soludo had applied his training as a social scientist, he would have seen clearly that the view on the streets across the country today (as captured by several opinion polls) is radically different from his “truth.” But perhaps my Governor chose to listen to himself and/or believe the “security reports” he receives daily from hirelings of the establishment. He did not listen to the people on the streets of Nigeria. The people he leads.
I am pleased to report that from where I stand, Prof. Soludo may be spectacularly WRONG about “the truth.” He is not an oracle, pundit or prophet of political fortunes. Even if he is, we know many whose prophecies have failed. So, even prophets are not infallible.
It is unfortunate that the “truth” which Gov. Soludo deciphers for Nigeria in 2023 is a “truth” governed by criminal gangs, drug barons, spooky businessmen and mafia alliances in the name of political parties. By forcefully venting this archaic opinion, vision or secret desire as “truth”, Soludo wittingly or unwittingly attempts to undermine the dawn of a new, progressive era which is now loading under the Obidient Movement and the Labor Party.
My reading is that in 2023, most Nigerians will not vote along party lines. That habit has not served them well to date. They are in pains. They will vote for character, compassion and capacity. On this score, the candidate most likely to win the 2023 presidential election is Mr. Peter Obi. This reading is in sync with the findings of most published polls to date. Every other reading is based on mysticism or some other arcane sciences such as electoral malpractice.
Upon deeper reflection, I see Soludo’s soliloquy as a blessing in disguise. I am glad that Prof Soludo has come out of the closet to “disown” and disparage Peter Obi’s aspirations. He is the last consequential member of the ruling class, especially of the South East, to distance himself from an authentic people’s movement sweeping across Nigeria. It is a good omen.because it makes Peter Obi an authentic, pan-Nigerian, grassroots phenomenon. Not a regional candidate or one foisted by some narrow vested interests.
Free from all clannish encumbrances, Peter Obi is now equally owned by all progressive elements across the country – North, South, East and West. This makes me glad. In the future, no individual, party or sectional groups can claim credit for the good things that are about to happen to Nigeria. It will be by the grace of God and the free will of the majority of Nigerians.
I took time to read, re-read, digest, assimilate and absorb Soludo’s elaborate treatise on his grouse with Obi. It was energy sapping. I am afraid to say that it did not help Soludo’s case or reputation. I am afraid that Soludo’s “informed” estimation of the reality on ground and the outlook for our country (what he calls the “truth”) is nothing new. Indeed, it clearly belongs to the old, dysfunctional school of thought that “structure” is everything and the will of right thinking Nigerians is nothing even in a constitutional democracy.
I vehemently disagree with and reject that thesis. APC & PDP are not and cannot be the only viable pathways to the future for a great and democratic Nigeria. If anything, they are decrepit pathways we must now avoid. That an intellectual like Prof Soludo thinks otherwise is an unpleasant surprise to me. Intellectuals are supposed to be imbued with higher levels of principles and idealism which are critical for the survival and progress of every society. Otherwise, society descends into crass opportunism and a dictatorship of the crooked.
I am of the view that there is a third and more viable pathway. That pathway is marked by humility, nobility, proven track records and other virtues that uplift a nation. That pathway is what Peter Obi, Yusuf Baba-Ahmed and the Labor Party represents today. It is a pathway which a vast majority of ordinary Nigerians around the country and the globe have eagerly keyed into.
These Nigerians do not exist only on the internet or social media. They are real people with flesh and blood. I see them daily on the streets, at the markets and everywhere else in-between. Most of them are young and idealistic. In addition, they are internet savvy and want their opinions heard. That is as it should be. Young, digitally compliant people make up the vast majority of the total and voting populations around the globe today. Even INEC figures say so. Why this demographic which has always been the bulwark of electoral politics is suddenly despised and belittled by some people really beats me. If anything, it shows that they have fallen out of favor with those who previously courted and used them. This is quite fascinating to me.
These young people do not need any professors, politicians, prophets or political pundits to tell them what they need, want or can achieve. They do not require anyone’s approval, endorsement, guidance, validation or concurrence. They know who to vote for. They will not be deterred by us the older ones who frittered away our youth. Not this time. This is their country too. They have a right (and duty) to run things here. They will take Nigeria back from the bandits who have kidnapped her for so long and now tell them that they have no say.
We do not support Peter Obi because we think he will win. We support him because we know that with our support he will win. We do not support him because he has offered or promised us any inducement; because he belongs to our party or our corner of the country; or because he is a saint or genius.
We support Peter Obi because for the first time in a long while, we see a man who espouses the values we all secretly admire but lack the courage to animate; a man bold enough to stand up to the demons and goliaths of Nigeria, instead of cowering under the guise of political correctness, pragmatism, negotiating for regional interest, compromise or “common sense.”
We see a man of character, decency and courage in the midst of charlatans, thieves and brigands. We see a man in whom we can invest the future of our children – even if our own future is already ruined. We see a man who is relying on his vision, past records and the will of the people to get into office, not one banking on “party structures”, electoral fraud, stolen money or judicial capture to lord it over his people.
I sincerely wish that Gov. Soludo repents and recants. It is not too late. If he doesn’t, I would understand and kiss him goodbye. If he does not see what we see, we wish him well. We wish his party and preferred candidates luck also. We will see them at the polls in February 2023. So help us God.