Obi: 2023 Polls Proved Yoruba Don’t Hate Igbo

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

Presidential candidate of Labour Party (LP) in 2023, Peter Obi, said the last general election was proof that the Yoruba did not hate the Igbo. Obi added that the election was not a Christian or Igbo agenda.

He said the 2023 election saw Nigerians unite across tribes and religious lines, adding that the poll corrected the impression that the Yoruba hated the Igbo
The former Anambra State governor spoke while receiving the 2024 Courageous Citizen Award from the Nigerian-American Coalition for Justice and Democracy (NACJD) in Abuja on Saturday.

Obi noted that the massive turnaround was an indication that Nigerians desired a change from the status quo.
He stated, “It was a time that Nigerians united and spoke with one voice regardless of tribe, tongue or religion. The 2023 election wasn’t a hristian or Igbo project.
“It was a Nigerian project. I saw our legends and elder statesmen come together for the first time. I was glad to see people like former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Pa Ayo Adebanjo and others stand their ground.

“I am saying this to correct the impression that the Yoruba hate Igbo people. A lot of people made certain sacrifices because we just wanted to say ‘Enough is enough’ in Nigeria. Imagine those who had lost their lives for the cause of a new Nigeria.”
Obi came third in the 2023 presidential election, after the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and the winner, President Bola Tinubu of All Progressives Congress (APC).

Prior to the election, a lot of Nigerian youths bought into the Obi ideology and voted massively for him, using the OBidient Movement, which cut across the length and breadth of Nigeria.