The Presidency has criticised the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, over his recent appearance on Channels Television, describing the interview as a “PR disaster” and accusing him of making false claims while refusing to accept the outcome of the 2023 presidential election.
In a post shared on X on Monday, Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, said Obi’s interview failed to revive what he described as the former governor’s fading political ambition.
“If the political nomad thought the interview would re-energise his ebbing 2027 presidential ambition, it turned out to be a PR disaster, judging from the spate of reactions to the many lies he referenced,” Onanuga wrote.|
Onanuga also faulted Obi’s comparison of his political journey with that of President Tinubu. According to him, while Tinubu moved through different political parties, he remained committed to the same progressive ideology from the Social Democratic Party (SDP) to the Alliance for Democracy (AD), Action Congress (AC), Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and eventually the All Progressives Congress (APC).
In contrast, he alleged that Obi changed parties mainly to advance his personal political ambitions, moving from the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), then the Labour Party, before later aligning with the African Democratic Congress (ADC)-led coalition.
“You do not build; you always want to reap where you did not sow,” Onanuga said.
The presidential aide also criticised Obi over his continued position on the 2023 presidential election, saying the former Anambra governor had failed to accept the outcome despite the Supreme Court’s judgment affirming President Tinubu’s victory.
“You lost, Peter. You didn’t win that election. You came third,” Onanuga wrote, adding that the Supreme Court had already dismissed Obi’s petition challenging the election result.
He concluded by urging Obi to move on from the 2023 election and stop insisting he was denied victory.
