Peter Obi clarifies ties with Abacha, says action driven by civic duty

The Labour Party presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Mr. Peter Obi has clarified his ties with the late dictator, General Sani Abacha.

The clarification is coming on the heels of accusations that the former Anambra State governor worked closely with the military regime of Abacha.

Abacha was a Nigerian military head of state between 1993 and 1998, during which he wielded power with an unyielding attitude and his rule heralded unprecedented human rights violations, political assassinations and summary executions of dissidents and political opponents.

Reacting to the accusations in a statement on Wednesday, Obi acknowledged that his association with the former military dictator, which has been largely twisted by political opponents, was primarily based on economic interests rather than political.

Mr Obi who backed his claims with a document, said “As I stated during my interview at the weekend and consistently maintained in the past, I had never met General Sani Abacha before that encounter”.

Obi added that whereas he was only part of the contingent of concerned traders seeking to address port congestion at the time, his ultimate motives was to find a solution to a matter affecting economic activity and livelihoods.

“Our meeting with him was borne out of collective concern as traders and importers over the prolonged delays in clearing goods at the ports. We approached him not as political actors, but as concerned citizens seeking pragmatic solutions to a matter affecting economic activity and livelihoods.”

According to Mr Obi, the task force aimed to advocate for efficiency and propose practical steps to restore normalcy in the operations of the Nigerian port.

“Our intention was clear: to advocate for efficiency, and to propose practical steps towards restoring normalcy in port operations for the benefit of the wider business community and, ultimately, the Nigerian economy.

“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.

“I don’t expect this copious evidence to bury this Abacha case because the mischief makers have ulterior motives, but 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.”