Obi: Visiting People for Me Not About Elections

•Pledges to support in rebuilding Awka Central Mosque 

•Muslim community urges Nigerians to disregard ‘falsehoods peddled against former Anambra gov’

David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka

The presidential candidate of Labour Party (LP) in the February 25, 2023 election and former governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, yesterday visited members of the Muslim community in Awka, the state capital.

This was just as the Awka Muslim Community explained that their invitation extended to Obi, to their mosque was to fraternise with him as they always did in the past, and to encourage him on his journey to ‘New Nigeria,’ not minding the falsehoods peddled against him. In addition, they said that they had wanted to visit Obi at his house in Onitsha. However, on receiving their invitation, Obi offered to visit them at the mosque and celebrate Eid el Fitr with them.

Obi stressed that his visit to them had nothing to do with politics, and that visits should not only be because one is seeking political office.

The candidate donated cartons of noodles, bags of rice and soft drinks to the community during the visit, while also promising to help them in the rebuilding of the mosque, which was undergoing facelift.

Obi said: “I Thank you for inviting me to the mosque to celebrate with you. You wanted to come to my house instead, but I said it will be better for me to come and now that I have come, I have also seen that the mosque is undergoing reconstruction.

“I want to pledge here and now that I shall contribute to the work you have at hand, to ensure that you have a befitting place of worship.

“I am a Christian and you are Muslims, but we are all Nigerians, and Nigeria is one. It is only politics that divides us. But let me tell you, I have never seen any road that is built and it is only for Muslims to drive on. “I have also not seen any market where Christians buy bread cheaper than Muslims. If you know such market, please tell me, let me go and buy.”

Speaking further, Obi said: “If you go to Dubai, the land on which one of the biggest church is built was donated by the ruler of Dubai. In England too, a mosque was donated by the queen, who is the head of the church of England.

“We are one and we are created by the same God. Only religion is dividing us, but we should not let religion or politics to divide us. Nigeria will continue to be one irrespective of politics.

“I told people I will start fighting poverty from the north and people said north is not poorer than South, and that I’m from south, so I should start here. But the truth is that I know that vast land which we would use to solve the problem of poverty is in the north.”

Later, while speaking with journalists, Obi who was asked why he had not taken a rest since after the election said: “People who want to rest can go and rest. For me, I’m not resting. No serious leader will go and rest in Nigeria.

“We will continue to visit as many people as we can, and also support them in the best way we can.”

Speaking at the Central Mosque in Awka during Obi’s visit, the Zonal Chairman of Miyetti Allah, Alhaji Gidado Siddiki, recalled that Obi never failed to celebrate Sallah with them when he was the governor of the state, a ritual he continued after. He praised Obi for his visible contributions to the development of their Community over the years.

Gidado stated that under Obi administration as governor, many of their children received scholarship. He revealed that many of their members were sponsored for pilgrimage to Mecca by Obi, and since Obi left office, that tradition ended.

“No Governor has sponsored any of us to Mecca since Obi left office,” Gidado said.

He continued, “Some of our members applied for agricultural loans under Peter Obi’s administration, and they were approved, without knowing us in persons. Such a thing has never happened. Obi treated us like indigenes and made us feel at home in Anambra. He did not segregate between Muslims and Christians, nor between Northerners and Easterners.”

The Leader of Awka Muslim Community, Alhaji Garba Sarki, in his speech, maintained that the many lies told by traducers to tarnish Obi’s image in the North is sad. He said he was willing to tell the whole world who Obi is, and how he has helped their community to grow in the State.

He said that the Muslim Community in Awka supported Obi’s bid for presidency because they know and understand the kind of person he is and how prepared he is to change the trajectory of the nation.

Earlier, the leader of the Muslim community in Awka, Alhaji Musa Bello, who spoke on behalf of the community said: “You are the only person that has consistently visited us.

“I was among the Muslims you sponsored to Saudi Arabia during your tenure. You did not know me before you did it. You are a lover of all men, and you have been very beneficial to mankind.”

Another member of the community, Abdullahi Garba Haruna also testified that he had his primary and secondary education in Awka, during the period when Obi was governor, and there were all under scholarship.

“Testimony of your scholarship to us is high among Hausa community members in Awka. We know your capacity, that is why when you were contesting for president, it did not matter to us that you were a Christian. We worked hard to sell your candidature to our people in the north.”