PETER OBI & THE ADC UNHOLY ALLIANCE -Gbadebo Adeagbo, Member the Alternative Platform

PETER OBI & THE ADC UNHOLY ALLIANCE

Peter Obi’s recent defection speech to the African Democratic Congress (ADC)  in Enugu is one clearly crafted to stir emotions.

However, beyond the strong language and heavy intellectual references, the speech raises serious questions about Obi’s competence, consistency, and preparedness to govern a complex country like Nigeria.

Obi’s repeated portrayal of Nigeria as a “disgraced” or “failing” state may sound bold, but it is not the language of leadership or anyone seeking to govern one of the most consequential country globally.

It is opposition rhetoric pushed to an extreme and fueled by his desire to use cheap blackmails to hijack power at the center.

Nations are not built or rebuilt by constantly telling citizens that everything is heading precipice.

Nigeria’s challenges are real, but so are its institutions & ongoing reform efforts. Progress comes from fixing systems, not delegitimizing them entirely.

Demonizing the whole political structure deepens division and weakens national confidence rather than inspiring collective progress which should be the focus of any leader aspiring to govern our dear country.

Obi spoke extensively about electoral integrity, yet offers little beyond warnings, threats of resistance, and perpetual suspicion.

Democracy is not strengthened by endless doubt; it is strengthened through participation, reforms, and respect for institutions.

It is important to stress that much of the speech leans heavily on foreign examples: Rwanda, Indonesia, Singapore, and long lists of books read and global figures encountered.

While learning and exposure are commendable, Nigeria is not governed by comparisons or conference-room theories. Leadership is about making difficult decisions in real time, often under pressure. 

On this course, the APC can point to concrete  & tough economic decisions taken so far such as the removal of the enigmatic fuel subsidy, which the former minister of finance Kemi Adeosun recently alluded to as detrimental to Nigeria’s growth.

The removal of fuel subsidy for example aimed at recalibrating the economy and safe guarding the country from sliding into bankruptcy.

On the economy, Obi criticizes taxation and rising poverty but sidesteps a key reality: Nigeria’s economic challenges are global, structural, and decades in the making.

The APC has chosen reform over comfort, removing fuel subsidies, broadening the tax base, and pursuing revenue diversification to stabilize the economy in the long term. These choices are not popular, but leadership is not about popularity; it is about responsibility and securing the future.

There is also a clear contradiction in Obi’s posturing.

He presents himself as an outsider battling a broken system, yet he has been part of that same political class for decades, as a governor, vice-presidential candidate, and senior party stakeholder. 

He forgot that he had not only be part of the previous government but has led a state with no tangible economic progress, a fact attested to by the former governor of Anambra Willie Obiano who exposed Obi’s underperformance in areas of infrastructure and tangible economic growth.

As a matter of fact, Obi’s failed administration have been widely reported by his latter supporters who had once exposed his shambolic performance as governor.

Obi’s defection to yet another coalition raises concerns about structure, stability, and sustainability.

Nigeria needs more than emotionally charged movements; it needs a party with national spread, governing experience, and institutional discipline. Today, the APC remains the only party with that capacity.

In the end, Obi’s speech is emotionally powerful but substantively thin. It amplifies frustration more than it offers solutions. Nigeria does not need another protest figure; it needs steady, experienced governance.

The APC remains the most credible platform to govern Nigeria and deliver sustainable progress, and that national commitment has kick started since President Bola Tinubu’s electioneering victory in 2023.

 

•Gbadebo Adeagbo, Member the Alternative Platform