Labour Party’s former presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has explained why he met with the late former Head of State, General Sani Abacha, during Nigeria’s military era.
He recently had his say via a press statement titled “Our Engagement with General Abacha: Setting the Record Straight,” made available by Obi’s Media Aide, Valentine Obienyem.
He stated that their meeting was not political in any way, and he only paid Abacha a visit to complain about the prolonged delays in clearing goods at the ports.
According to him, the late military president had to be approached because concerned traders and importers were seeking pragmatic solutions to an issue that was affecting their livelihoods and the economy.
Obi insisted that the clarification became necessary so that the truth would be established once and for all.
“The meeting with General Abacha was not political in nature. I had never met General Sani Abacha prior to that encounter. Our meeting with him was borne out of collective concern as traders and importers over the prolonged delays in clearing goods at the ports.
We approached him not as political actors, but as concerned citizens seeking pragmatic solutions to a matter affecting economic activity and livelihoods,” he said.
Obi further noted that the visit was meant to restore order and productivity at Nigeria’s ports.
He concluded by saying that his action was nothing but a sense of civic duty and not political ambition.
“The objective of the meeting was to advocate for efficiency and to propose practical steps to restore order and productivity at the nation’s ports. Our actions were driven solely by a sense of civic duty and not political ambition. This clarification is offered in the interest of truth,” he added.
