Grace Adeleke
Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, has pledged that his campaign for the 2027 election will not be driven by religion or ethnicity.
Obi made the declaration on Friday in Onitsha, Anambra State, while speaking at a press conference as he formally stepped up his political activities ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
The former Anambra State governor urged Nigerians to reject what he described as campaigns built around propaganda, religious sentiments and ethnic considerations.
He said the 2027 election should be centred on the competence, capacity, character and compassion of candidates rather than their religious or ethnic identities.
“Nigerians must reject and disregard any campaigns driven by propaganda, ethnicity and religion,” Obi said.
“Our campaigns will focus on urgent concerns of Nigeria and not on ethnicity or religion.”
The NDC chieftain said his campaign team had been engaging Nigerians across the country to understand their concerns and present its plans for addressing the nation’s challenges.
“As my team and I travel across the country, we listen to Nigerians, understand their needs and concerns and assure them that we have the competence, character and compassion to lead and reset Nigeria for the benefit of all,” he added.
Obi stressed that Nigeria needed leaders who would listen to the people, respond to their needs and transform the country through policies capable of delivering sustainable economic growth and development.
His latest position, however, comes against the backdrop of his campaign for the 2023 presidential election, during which a leaked audio purportedly captured him seeking the intervention of Bishop David Oyedepo of the Living Faith Church to mobilise Christian voters.
In the audio, which had previously been reported by Peoples Gazette, Obi was heard appealing to Oyedepo to speak to Christians in parts of the South-West and central Nigeria.
The politician was quoted as describing the 2023 election as a “religious war” and asking the cleric to help mobilise support for his presidential bid.
Oyedepo was also heard responding to the appeal and promising to circulate further messages to Christians on Obi’s behalf.
Obi contested the 2023 presidential election on the platform of the Labour Party and finished third behind the eventual winner, Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress, and Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party.
He is now seeking the presidency again under the NDC.
As the 2027 contest gathers momentum, Obi said the focus should shift from identity politics to the issues affecting Nigerians, including economic hardship, governance and the need to build a more productive and inclusive country.
He called for a political leadership capable of transforming Nigeria and ensuring that development benefits citizens irrespective of their ethnic or religious backgrounds.
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