I Am Opposite of What You’re Saying About Me, Obi Replies Nnamani

•Ex-Enugu gov accuses Ugwuanyi, others of working against him

The presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Mr. Peter Obi, has replied the Senator representing Enugu East senatorial district, Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani, who after losing his seat to a Labour Party candidate, on Saturday, accused him of all sorts of things including playing ethnic and religious politics.

This was just as Nnamani blamed Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, for being responsible for his defeat.

Nnamani of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had lost the election to Kelvin Chukwu of the Labour Party.

Chukwu scored a total of 69,136 votes to defeat the former governor of the state, who polled 48,701 votes.

Since then, he has been groaning over his loss, blaming it on so many factors and persons, including Obi.

Nnamani, on his Twitter handlem had derisively described the former governor of Anambra State as ‘Gringory’, saying his brand of politics had set the political trajectory of the Igbos backward.

But Ob, in a letter to the former Enugu State governor, wondered if he knew who he was talking about, saying he was the direct opposite of all he accused him of.

The letter read: “Throughout these electioneering campaigns, you have consistently cast aspersions on my person, despite my always being respectful to you as an elder brother, and never publicly or privately commenting negatively about you.

“I am really surprised that you as my dear elder brother would go out of the way in the exercise of his fundamental rights of freedom of speech and expression as enshrined in our law to go into saying what he knows is not true.

“I find it very shocking that you had to label me as an ethnic and religious bigot and as one who indulges in a campaign of hatred. In this instance, I like to state unequivocally that I am the direct opposite of what you said in your statement and what my campaigns have been.

“I want to believe that my dear elder brother must have mistaken me for someone else because, in this campaign, I have consistently championed issues-based campaigns, and maintained so, even using illustrations and data to buttress my position, to the extent that I have been accused of using data wrongly and media houses had to create fact check desks just to monitor and address issues I raised during campaigns.

“I have been on record to have insisted severally throughout the country that I should not be voted for based on any ethnic or religious link, but to be considered based on character, character, capacity and compassion. I have always respectfully requested that my track records & integrity be verified.

“I will also like to challenge anybody including, my dear elder brother to show anywhere in my public appearance where I in any way portrayed ethnic, or religious bigotry or where I called names, even when I came to campaign in Enugu State.

“I was also taken aback at your attributing the “Lagos is no man’s land” statement to Igbos because there is no evidence of that which I see as a case of giving a dog a bad name just to hang it.”

Obi added: “Maybe my brother would like to know that I got more votes from non-Igbos in Lagos, Abuja, & other parts of Nigeria, and even if Igbos voted for me should it be the reason why they should be chased away from where they are living and making tangible contributions to development?

“Britain will not send Indians packing because they voted for an Indian to become the Prime Minister. I also noticed the spirited efforts you put up to tag me a tribal bigot but such would be hard to prove empirically and I would like to advise my dear elder brother not to join in such senseless and unsubstantiated allegations just to dent one’s image.

“As I very much know that among the critical characteristics of every good leader are listening, and learning and my brother advised that I should return to school to learn some aspects of leadership I am lacking.

“Why should I go to school to pay huge fees when I can get it free of charge from my dear elder brother who knows it better? I respectfully appeal that I be invited by my Senior brother to teach me accordingly. My warmest regards to the family and God bless.”

Meanwhile, Nnamani continued to groan over his loss in the Enugu East senatorial district election, seemingly also blaming Ugwuanyi as being responsible for his defeat.

Nnamani questioned the meaning of someone saying, “we all will lose,” a statement which was alleged to have been used by Ugwuanyi after losing his senatorial election, believing he (Ugwuanyi) worked against him.

In a series of tweets yesterday, Nnamadi claimed that Enugu PDP and his Ebeano political structure were overtly schemed out.

He wondered who organised and financed his suspension following his expulsion from the party and the thought process of choosing agents chosen for him, whom he believed worked against him.

Nnamadi also raised a question about who put together the PDP/Labour coalition, which he claimed ensured that the PDP voted Labour Party for Senate and Labour Party voted PDP for governor.

He wrote, “Given the choice, Enugu PDP and Ebeano will not overtly scheme me out to the extent of losing centres won by PDP candidates in the same polling booths. Who is an Emeka Anyogu, an INEC staff on a night shift across the Halls of Enugu Local Govt and INEC fine-tuning things.

“What was the ultimate effect of the cliche we all will lose? What was the thought process of all my agents chosen for me? And my agents directing voters to vote for PDP Governor and Labor Senate? How does one explain the huge disparity between votes for Governor and Senator?

“Who chastised Local Chairman who were interested in the Senate Project, including Enugu North Chairman ordered to leave Enugu Central? What were the roles of the Reps who lost elections earlier and the Governor too, some losing their Polling booths?

“Who put together the PDP/Labour coalition that enforced PDP voting Labour for Senate and Labour voting PDP for Governor? Who brought stakeholders, including traditional rulers, to pass instructions.

“Who organised and financed my suspension? Ditto my expulsion? As you know, the kola nut has to be chewed with oiled peanuts. Who facilitated and oiled it? Who financed the announcement of my ” non-contestation” prior to each postponement?”