By Abiola Olawale
The 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Mr Obi, says the outcome of the last general election is an indication that the Yoruba people do not harbour animosity towards the Igbo ethnic group.
Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, said despite opinions from some quarters in the country that the Yoruba don’t love the Igbo, many individuals and groups from South West supported his presidential ambition during the 2023 general election.
He pointed out that former President Olusegun Obasanjo and a chieftain of Afenifere, Pa. Ayo Adebanjo, among a host of others, supported him during the presidential election.
Obi stated this while receiving the 2024 Courageous Citizen Award from the Nigerian-American Coalition for Justice and Democracy (NACJD) in Abuja on Saturday, June 1.
According to him, the 2023 poll saw Nigerians unite across tribal and religious lines, adding that the election corrected the impression that the Yoruba hate the Igbo.
He said: “It was a time that Nigerians united and spoke with one voice regardless of tribe, tongue or religion. The 2023 election wasn’t a Christian or Igbo project. It was a Nigerian project.
“I saw our legends and elder statesmen come together for the first time. I was glad to see people like former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Pa Ayo Adebanjo and others stand their ground.
“I am saying this to correct the impression that the Yoruba hate Igbo people. A lot of people made certain sacrifices because we just wanted to say ‘Enough is enough’ in Nigeria. Imagine those who had lost their lives for the cause of a new Nigeria.
The New Diplomat reports that Obi came third in the 2023 presidential election after trailing his counterparts from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and the winner, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), a former Governor of Lagos State.
Tinubu was subsequently inaugurated as President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria on May 29, 2023.
