By Ononye VC
On Tuesday, 14 February 2023, Mr Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate, visited the industrial hub of Nnewi, in his home state of Anambra, as part of his ongoing campaign across the Nigerian federation. This came up after he had held rallies in all 36 states of the country, including Abuja, Nigeria’s federal capital.
During his visit, he received a warm welcome from community leaders, enthusiastic industrialists, and the people of the state, who trooped out in their thousands to catch a glimpse of the man they described as holding the ace in turning Nigeria’s fortune around for the best.
Thousands of traders, youth, the aged, men, women, and community leaders gathered around Nkwo Market where the Labour Party’s ObiDatti 2023 presidential rally was held.
While addressing a cross-section of industrialists at the event, Obi emphasised that Nnewi fitted well into his consumption-to-production policy, given that they were already manufacturing products. He assured the industrialists would play a critical role in enhancing Nigeria’s productivity when elected as President Muhammadu Buhari’s successor on Saturday, 25 February 2023.
The former Anambra State governor said that in all his political journeys, Nnewi had always backed him massively, and he was, therefore, confident of their support at this critical time in the life of the Nigerian nation.
“I am not here to campaign. I know you have already been converted because you have always stood by me throughout my political journeys,” Obi told the audience.
“What I encourage you to do now is to talk to others to join us in this critical endeavour of saving our nation.”
The visit to the palace of Igwe Kenneth Onyeneke Orizu III, the king and spiritual head of the Nnewi Kingdom, was the high point of the tour. Igwe Kenneth Onyeneke Orizu III openly prayed for Obi and pledged his support for his presidential ambition.
In his entourage to the palace of the Nnewi traditional head were Nigeria’s former minister of finance, Nenadi Usman; the director general of the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, Dr Akin Osuntokun; a 2021 gubernatorial candidate in Anambra State and special adviser to Mr Peter Obi on technology and strategic alliances, Mr Valentine Ozigbo; former deputy speaker of the Anambra State House of Assembly, who is the director of mobilisation for the Obi-Datti Campaigns, Hon. Ben Chucks Nwosu; the Labour Party’s national organising Secretary, Mr Clement Ojukwu; and other party officials.
Obi, a former two-term governor of Anambra State, has emerged as a grassroots favourite in the 2023 presidential election, leading in all national and international pre-election polls ahead of his main rivals, Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Asiwaju Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
According to the latest poll released by Bloomberg, an American news medium, Obi has significantly expanded his lead over his rivals.
