As Nigerians countdown to February 25th 2023 for the most critical presidential election in the annals of our nation’s history, the campaign train of the presidential candidate of the Labour Party HE Peter Obi makes further and farther inroads into the nooks and cranies of Northern Nigeria, to the disappointment of naysayers who had earlier written him off as being an unpopular and unsaleable candidate in the North.
There is no doubt of the fact that the former governor or Anambra State and Harvard alumnus has redefined Nigeria’s electioneering campaign and raised the standard very high. Has anyone seen our old brigade politicians roasting corn by the road side or braiding women’s hair in saloons or rolling on the mattresses of students in their hostels in hypocritical show of humility and solidarity with the masses? No! Those inanities have ended because of the high standard introduced by HE Peter Obi and Dr Datti Baba-Ahmed. Both are gentlemen per excellence, whose lifestyles edify the Nigerian youths and resonate hope.
One presidential candidate whose inability to play in the new order introduced by LP candidate and whose efforts to play catch up have failed, has resorted to hauling insults at the other candidates and sundry politicians. He is the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who in recent months has turned himself into a laughing stock while thinking that anyone takes him seriously. Against the Peace Accord that he signed with the other presidential candidates in Abuja, Bola Ahmed Tinubu has crossed every known red lines in this election.
No one has been spared of his insults, neither have Nigerians been spared of his gaffee. He has insulted the President, other candidates, and even Nigerians whom he insulted by his embarrasing outing at the Chatham House recently. In Akwa Ibom State where he went for campaign, he insulted his host governor, HE Emmanuel Udom, whom he referred to as “that boy”. And his acolytes applauded him for that thus confirming their solidarity with him in such un-presidential silliness. Also, in Awka, the capital of Anambra State, he once again insulted HE Peter Obi and extended the insult to all serious minded Christians when he made use of Holy personages in the Bible such as St. Peter the Prince of the apostles and our Lord Jesus Christ for his insult materials.
This is coming just some months after his distasteful metaphor of “Poisoned Holy Communion eaten by Chruch rat” by which he irked many Catholics. Do we need to remind anyone the reason why Deborah was stoned to death in the North last year? She was accused of derogatory comment against Prophet Muhammed on a class WhatsApp group. And here is Bola Ahmed Tinubu on campaign ground toiling with the religious sensitivity of Christians, and he thinks himself a serious person.
Isn’t it ironical that the same Asiwaju who, on few occasions, could not recite basic Islamic prayer at his campaign rallies, has suddenly turned into a Biblical exegete, quoting the Holy Bible and drawing typological analogy between St Peter, the Head of the Apostles and HE Peter Obi, all in the bid to insult and distract the former two-term governor and current LP presidential candidate, while hiding his inability to speak to issues that Nigerians are interested in. And on top of that, he does so in total insensitivity to the Holy personages that Christians hold in reverence.
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HE Peter Obi has shown uncommon restrain in this campaign season, unsurprisingly, because he is truly a man of peace and a serious minded man of valor whose mind and heart are bent on engaging Nigerians and leading the cavalry to reclaim this country from those holding her down. Recall that at the Chattam House last month, the presidential candidate of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso also derogated HE Peter Obi when he dismissed Obi as an “ordinary trader”. The same man they wrote off some months back as unpopular, in a “structureless” party has suddenly become their common threat, and a punching bag of their insults, with the APC candidate leading the others in the gutter politics.
I personally take offence at Tinubu’s penchant for irreverence to persons and things that Christians hold sacred, particularly our Blessed Lord, Jesus Christ. He can rant to his heart’s contents, but bringing the Holy Bible and Jesus Christ into his dirty politiking is crossing the line way too far. No doubt, he is losing steam as he battles even with his shadow, and perhaps having a foretaste of defeat in the poll, he has decided to go the lowest there could be.
It would be good to remind him that even defeat can be honorable if one had waged the battle with sense of honour. But whatever his take, he should beware of irreverent remarks about things and *persons* that are sacred to Christians.
Kezie Jr. is a Political Analyst based in Lagos.
