₦airaland Forum

On Monday night, I appeared as a guest commentator on Prime Time, the popular and thought-provoking Arise Television show that is hosted by the inimitable Charles Aniagolu.

We talked about National Assembly legislators who recently defected from the Labour Party to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC. I disdainfully described them as rats deserting a sinking ship, then said that the ship would not have started to sink in the first place if the Labour Party leader, Peter Obi, had embarked on an aggressive anti-government crusade when the results of blatantly flawed elections were announced in 2023.

I pointed out that Obi had won in every major city in Southern Nigeria, including Tinubu’s Lagos domain. I reminded the world that he is a superstar who was adored by millions of his compatriots.

I also accused Atiku, the other key Opposition leader, and key members of his Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, of being too passive.

I expressed a fear that APC will win the 2027 election despite being far from competent and making endless mistakes; and I urged both Obi and Atiku to prevent this calamity from occurring by copying activists like the fearlessly rebellious Dele Farotimi, who has confronted the ruling elite so many times that he was arrested last week and has become a national hero as a result.

Long story short, I said that I was no longer a member of the Obidient camp because I was disappointed in Obi. But I also made it clear that Tinubu has never been my cup of tea and that I will be delighted if the global trend for unseating incumbents (as recently seen in Syria, Ghana, Botswana, Senegal, etc) is replicated in Nigeria.

As far as I was concerned, I was only complaining about Obi – whom I described as a good man who simply needs to become more pugilistic – because I was a frustrated fan who desperately wants him to succeed and rescue this country.

And I thought it was blindingly obvious that my heart was in the right place because I even, at the end of the interview, told Aniagolu that I was ready to risk arrest by acting as an unpaid and unrepentantly outspoken mouthpiece for Obi.

I was therefore taken aback when a bunch of ill-mannered loutish bush rats who claimed to be Obidients descended on me via Twitter (X) and rained insults on my head. Some insisted that I’m a paid Tinubu agent. Others called me a fool, an evil nonentity and so on.

I expected some Arise TV viewers to disagree with me and say that there is nothing wrong with Obi’s current strategy, but I didn’t expect to be disagreed with in such a primitive and vicious way.

Fortunately, not every Obi supporter is feral and I also received a lot of positive reactions from folks who agreed with me.

Obi himself contacted me and said that he would like to talk to me face to face because he regarded some of my comments as constructive criticisms and wanted to explain his position.

I was totally gobsmacked by his modesty and immediately offered to visit him. But he told me that he’d visit Abuja a couple of days later and would just pop into my house on his way from the airport to the small hotel he stays in here (believe it or not, despite being a billionaire, the only home he owns in Nigeria is in Onitsha!).

So he showed up on my doorstep yesterday morning without an entourage; and my staff and I were blown away by his graciousness, humility and charisma. When I thanked him profusely for taking the trouble to visit me when I – as the non-VIP – should have been visiting him, he laughed and thanked me for having him.


Gaining the opportunity to hear him out was an enormous privilege; and the conversation we had was thought-provoking and illuminating.

I asked him to forgive my bluntness on Arise and explained that I just wanted him to deal with government bullies more decisively to prevent Nigeria from becoming a banana republic one party state.

I will not repeat everything he told me. Suffice it to say that only he who wears the shoes know where they pinch, that he has been through A LOT of stress but is still fighting a good fight, albeit not as radically as hotheads and firebrands would wish. And that I now believe that his civilized methods can achieve desired results under certain circumstances.

He is spending a lot of money on charitable causes in all four corners of Nigeria. He has travelled widely and has a clear vision of the things that need to be done to put this nation on the same footing as more sophisticated nations in which most citizens are comfortable.

His grasp of statistics relating to development is impressive, as is his understanding of alternative political systems that he feels we will benefit from emulating (he talked at some length about the merits of South African style proportional representation).

He promised me a formal interview in the New Year and I am looking forward to providing Vanguard readers with more insights into the mind of this iconic gentleman.

By the way, I have just been told by someone else that some government supporters PRETEND to be Obidients on social media platforms and are deliberately offensive to give Obi a bad name.


https://www.vanguardngr.com/2024/12/i-am-a-born-again-obidient-by-donu-kogbara/

Toh

Obidients and born again? We are yet to see, what we have been seeing are burnt again .

They should prove it this time.

Coincidentally, some retractable comments are coming after the social media bill is also currently looking into

You first admitte that those that attacked you were uncouth obidients(Personal confirmation)

You then said "you were told" that those that attacked you were some government supporters pretending to be obidients (A hearsay)

This dude or girl or whatever, had to accept a hearsay as her source, above what she saw firsthand on her own page


Are they this daft?

Must you shift blames and absorb yourself of any responsibility of your ill-doings?

we don't know you,

helinues:
Toh

Obidients and born again? We are yet to see, what we have been seeing are burnt again .

They should prove it this time.

Coincidentally, some retractable comments are coming after the social media bill is also currently looking into

Loitering around?

Hmmm..

Jasix:
Hmmm..
All I need now is a good Samaritan who can assist me with five thousand to get my drugs and some food. I'm a sickler, and I have no support from any quarters. I regret my existence right now

DrMrsAdeniran:
Loitering around?

Stop this petty scam.

Aren't you Ashamed of yourself?

On this same thread, you have used your alternative to be trolling others senselessly while switching to this moniker to be begging .

Dont let us use Oshiomole's line for you oo.. stop the petty scam

When I saw this format, I knew you must have used trolling monikers above or below me.. Na regular pattern.

Stop the cheap scam that can buy you ordinary Ferrari tyre

Oya oo, na one of the Obidients on this forum be this, and the writer is talking about Obidients and born again

You can't help but like Peter Obi.

But unfortunately some Nigerians prefer thieves that oppress them.

KEVIND:
I was therefore taken aback when a bunch of ill-mannered loutish bush rats who claimed to be Obidients descended on me via Twitter (X) and rained insults on my head. Some insisted that I’m a paid Tinubu agent. Others called me a fool, an evil nonentity and so on.

https://www.vanguardngr.com/2024/12/i-am-a-born-again-obidient-by-donu-kogbara/

You were surprised that obidients abused you because you said you true (non abusive) feelings about Peter Obi?

Where have you been living Donu, under a rock abi?

So Vanguard is the print version of Asleep Tv? Donut abi Donu thinks we ponu and we wouldn't ronu ONKR!

Key problems with Obidents
1. The f00Iery that a faiIed governor is coming to rescue Nigeria when can't rescue a small state that everyone including him and his family are running away from, even Obidents are running from the state, no non lgb0 Obident will ever choose that state as the state of their NYSC if it's left for choice.


2. The f00Iery that Lienus won election because he won "major cities" in the south.
There are 36 states in Nigeria, 19 are in the north, u have to win in majority of those states before u can have the guts to say you won election not by making roadside permutations.



3. They all know that they are a group of mob, the mobs who has been àttàcking everyone as a pack, from Kenneth Okonkwo to Doyin Okupe to Wole Soyinka etc etc, if Jesus comes and say anything that is not praises for their audio messiah, they will crucify Jesus again, they don't mind burning him alive.
But when they attack each other, they bIame others, Obidents are a mob and their leader will NEVER be president of Nigeria.

Millimann:
You can't help but like Peter Obi.

But unfortunately some Nigerians prefer thieves that oppress them.

We prefer thieves that we know are thieves not a thief pretending to be a saint.

Thank you sister kogbara, that Man PETER OBI has leadership qualities that will make NIGERIA great and break the circle of tribalism and nepotism.

Many of supporting PETER OBI know that he can bring the dream of Nigeria to reality.
His modus operandi may not be the aggressive and militant way many are wishing because he is a perfect gentleman who loves Nigeria and believe that Nigeria can be better for all of us.

LET TOGETHER SUPPORT THE MAN PETER OBI TO BECOME THE PRESIDENT OF NIGERIA FOR THE GOOD OF NIGERIANS.

Justnation:
Thank you sister kogbara, that Man PETER OBI has leadership qualities that will make NIGERIA great and break the circle of tribalism and nepotism.

Many of supporting PETER OBI know that he can bring the dream of Nigeria to reality.
His modus operandi may not be the aggressive and militant way many are wishing because he is a perfect gentleman who loves Nigeria and believe that Nigeria can be better for all of us.

LET TOGETHER SUPPORT THE MAN PETER OBI TO BECOME THE PRESIDENT OF NIGERIA FOR THE GOOD OF NIGERIANS.

Let him also release the election expenses he promised to do before you accord him any messiah status.

aswani:
Let him also release the election expenses he promised to do before you accord him any messiah status.

The money you contributed abi?

Tell tinubu and APC to release their account to you that is the one that should concern you most not LP matters.

Justnation:
The money you contributed abi?

Tell tinubu and APC to release their account to you that is the one that should concern you most not LP matters.

Nobodi force am wen im prick stand becos Obidients dey hail am and he tok say he go release im election expense.

The others were not foolish enough to say such. They all know themselves, we know all of them. None of them are clean and it was the height of silliness for him to get carried away to make a promise he cannot keep.