Peter Obi In Jos, To A Heartwarming Welcome By An Unprecedented Crowd Of Middle belt People
The Oasis Reporters
September, 29, 2022
Greg Abolo
@gregabolo
@Theoasisreport1
It all started with an invitation by the Middle Belt Forum to Mr. Peter Obi. And a massive crowd gathered at Rwang Pam Township Stadium in Jos.
Obi came in the personification of the hopes of the poor, his messaging has resonated with the marginalized.
It seemed like a campaign flag-off, with the statement of a Twitterati in Jos who said,
“We’re so confident of our victory come 2023 by the special grace of God”.
See the mammoth crowd, and the reactions, as Nigeria’s incoming President, Mr. Peter Obi arrives Jos, Plateau, State.
— Aku-N’esi-Obi-Ike (I) (@Makavelli275) September 28, 2022
Goosebumps all over me! What a time to be alive! pic.twitter.com/sf1ETsmMbb
Peter Obi is the next president of Nigeria. 🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬 pic.twitter.com/8ooWumY5dX
— NEFERTITI (@firstladyship) September 28, 2022
Before Peter Obi flew to the city of Jos in North Central Nigeria, he had visited the Paramount Ruler of Ile-Ife, known as the Ooni of Ife, the cradle of Yoruba civilization and origin.
Then Internationally recognized Bloomberg magazine made a prediction, calling Peter Obi, “a surprise Presidential candidate leading the race to be Nigeria’s president in a poll showing a score of 72% among those who have decided how to vote.
My Remarks at the Jos Rally.
— Peter Obi (@PeterObi) September 28, 2022
My fellow Nigerians and OBIdients, I join you today as we mark the formal start of the 2023 campaign season. We must all reflect on the journey we are embarking upon. We seek a new nation, but to arrive there, we need prayers and courage. #POinJos pic.twitter.com/5up433jzsZ
It went on to say that the main party candidates were much less favored in Premise Data poll.
Obi is said to be a third-party candidate who is the top choice to become the next president of Africa’s most populous country, according to a new opinion poll.
That verdict has gotten the media supporters of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar very angry, despite the images they see at rallies for Peter Obi.
“A clear majority of respondents said they intend to vote for Peter Obi, a former state governor, in elections scheduled for February. The results of the survey conducted for Bloomberg News by Premise Data Corp. were published on Wednesday as the official campaign to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari kicked off.
Of the 92% of participants who said they’ve decided how to vote, 72% named Obi as their first choice. Of those who are still unsure, 45% said the 61-year-old is their preferred candidate.
Source: Premise Data
The San Francisco-headquartered data company surveyed 3,973 Nigerians from Sept. 5-20. Respondents to the app-based poll were selected from quotas developed by age, gender and location across the country’s six geopolitical zones. Results were then weighted against the original quotas to ensure national representation. About 44% of Nigerians own smartphones, according to the Alliance for Affordable Internet.
The candidates of the two parties that have ruled Nigeria since the restoration of democracy in 1999 fared less well. Bola Tinubu of the ruling All Progressives Congress garnered 16% of decided voters and 23% of those yet to make up their minds. Atiku Abubakar of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party tallied 9% and 17% respectively.
A former two-term governor of the southeastern Anambra state, Obi is running on the ticket of the Labour Party, which won a single seat in the Senate and House of Representatives in the last election in 2019. The APC and PDP dominate both chambers of parliament.
In a relatively short time, Obi has built up an enthusiastic base known as “Obidients” — initially online, but increasingly in the streets — who aim to cause an upset on Feb. 25. Still, the Labour Party has a much smaller nationwide presence than the two rival parties, which are experienced at turning out voters across the vast West African country. Obi’s supporters will need to rapidly scale up their organizational infrastructure if they’re to capitalize on the campaign’s momentum.
Obi originally sought the PDP’s nomination before withdrawing from a party election that Abubakar, a former vice president and perennial presidential candidate, won in May. Tinubu, who used to govern the commercial hub of Lagos and is the most influential politician in southwestern Nigeria, triumphed by a landslide in the APC’s primaries the following month.
The five-month race to the general elections gets underway as Nigerians contend with soaring inflation, a plunging currency and pervasive insecurity. Production of the economy’s historical mainstay — crude oil — has also slumped to multi-decade lows, while the Buhari administration’s debt service bill in the first quarter of the year exceeded the revenue it was able to earn.
Three-quarters of respondents said that their country is heading in the “wrong direction.” A combined 88% listed the economy and jobs, corruption, and security — three pillars of the campaign that brought Buhari to power in 2015 — as the most important issues facing their communities.
More than 65% named Obi as the candidate best able to improve the economy, tackle corruption and reduce insecurity. Tinubu ranked second on each measure, ahead of Abubakar.
Obi also came out in front in two other opinion polls published since Sept. 15.
Despite the general disenchantment about Nigeria’s trajectory, most respondents said that they trust the election to be run fairly and think their vote will make a difference — even if almost half expect the polls to be marred by violence.
For further reading:
https://twitter.com/BloombergAfrica/status/1575094084255055872?s=20&t=LG17hezAU98EXQb7SNnsYg
Greg Abolo
gregabolo@gmail.com
Additional information: Bloomberg
