Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, has called for electoral accountability and renewed political engagement ahead of the 2027 general elections, declaring that votes will count, urging Nigerians to remain resolute in their demand for change.
Speaking on Tuesday at the launch of a political biography titled “Obi: The Political Change Agent, The Inevitability of a New Nigeria”, authored by journalist Ike Abonyi, Obi seized the moment to reinvigorate members of the Obidient Movement and push for systemic reform.
“The votes will count and those who think they will not count will be counted,” Obi asserted, promising a broader and more organized mobilization effort for the next elections.
The former Anambra State governor warned that no real progress would be made unless Nigeria dismantled the “criminal enterprise” currently driving the country’s leadership, accusing those in power of prioritizing personal wealth over the wellbeing of citizens.
Obi likened Nigeria’s current state to the Titanic, saying:
“When it was sinking, some people were on the upper deck celebrating. They didn’t know it was going down, till everybody sank. So when it comes, it will consume everybody, nobody will be safe, whether you’re very rich.”
Drawing comparisons with countries like Afghanistan and Lebanon, he cautioned against the false security of material wealth in a nation lacking justice and equity.
“Today in Nigeria, we’re not at war, yet Nigerians are in refugee camps in their own country. Nigerians are refugees in Cameroon, and we are not at war. The only reason is that we don’t have a people-centric government.”
Obi decried the government’s apparent disregard for human life, lamenting a culture where tragedies go unacknowledged while the elite engage in lavish spending.
“They make you president, and all you want to do is renovate houses at the expense of the people, renovate conference centers in a place where women are dying.”
He called for an end to the celebration of wealth amid national suffering, saying it is time to dismantle unjust structures and build a nation that works for all.
“We must gang up to remove this because it’s not sustainable.”
Obi urged his supporters to return to their communities and spread the message of change at the grassroots, assuring them that their efforts and sacrifices would not be in vain.
“Stay the course. We will make sure we are everywhere in 2027. We will vote, and the votes will count.”