There is pressure on me to leave Nigeria – Peter Obi

Peter Obi, the candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 presidential election has said he had been pressured to leave Nigeria.

Obi said this in a statement posted on his verified Twitter handle on Wednesday in which he denied telling Bishop David Oyedepo of the Living Faith Church Worldwide that the presidential election was a religious war, as exposed in a leaked audio by online newspaper.

However, Obi’s claim contradicts the position of one of the spokespersons for the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, Kenneth Okonkwo, and the candidate’s Media Assistant, Valentine Obienyem, who had admitted the veracity of the audio.

He said the ruling All Progressives Congress was trying to divert people’s attention from his “stolen mandate”.

He said, “The present attempts by the APC as a Party, and the APC Led-government through some government officials and agencies to divert our attention from our blatantly stolen mandate is unfortunate and sad.

“These have come and continued to manifest in different ways, such as the malicious accusation of the Minister of Information, Mr Lai Mohammed, the circulation of a fake doctored audio call, and a pressure on me to leave the country.”

“Before, during, and after the campaign, it is on record that I have maintained my commitment and focus on issue-based campaign about a New Nigeria that is POssible, a shift of emphasis from consumption to production, a New Nigeria characterized by inclusion, justice, equity, fairness, and prosperity.

“I repeatedly stated that no one should vote for me based on Tribe or Religion, but rather on the assessment of Character, Competence, Capacity, Credibility, and Compassion that can be trusted to create a New Nigeria!” he added.