While In New York For The Peter Obi Event

I travelled to the Hilton Midtown Hotel in New York City’s Grand Ballroom last Sunday to attend “Afro-Economics & Government Policy: A Conversation with Governor Peter Obi” as a Nigerian with a keen interest in public affairs.

 

The event was preceded by others in the US, some of which had been poorly organised by regional organisers who decided to impose a gate fee. Not New York, where all registered attendees had free admission due to the Black Law Students Association and the Africa Business Club of Columbia University.

The Hilton Grand Ballroom is a vast space with seating for 3,000 people. Prior to COVID, there were about 700 hotels in the city, therefore according to Hilton, this ballroom is the biggest one there. It was roughly two thirds packed at its busiest point.

I arrived exactly 30 minutes earlier than expected. The fact that over 100 other Nigerians, some of them from distant states, were in front of me at the door further amazed me.

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Contrary to what some snake-oil salesmen claim, I report that Labour Party presidential candidate Obi is not a phantom or a fabrication based on the facts of the New York event.

He is not just an Igbo man running for president or a product of social media. I spoke with, heard from, and saw Nigerians from all around the country.

Obi is who? He may be a Nigerian who wants to change the course, history, and tale of his country, but he is a candidate of chance and time.

That makes him a strong candidate, and given what happened last Sunday, I now fully understand why the Nigerian political establishment is offended by the footage of broad elation whenever he is recognised in public (structure, if you like).

Peter Obi, the metaphor, is how I previously rephrased the question for the APC and PDP conglomerate in this column.

Nigeria is a pitiful failure, as most Nigerians acknowledge. Obi’s advocacy is a reasonable plan to restructure the nation starting with the selection of its leadership.

The situation’s historical context is clear: Nigeria is experiencing its lowest level of morale and coherence since gaining independence in October 1960. Since then, she has endured unrelenting suffering at the hands of cruel politicians and a mostly corrupt military apparatus that dumps on the country some of its most vicious, avaricious, and arrogant members while they are dressed as civilians.

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The problem is that Nigeria is currently degenerating quickly, rushing towards implosion with nothing working for the majority of the population except from those in positions of power, their allies, and their families. This indicates what the rest of the world already knows: that time is running out for a country with enormous potential.

Mr. Obi’s call to “reset Nigeria” is being fueled by public fury over this catastrophe.

At The Conversation, he fielded inquiries first from a duo of panellists and then from a stack of questions submitted by viewers at the start of the show. It is interesting that he never once read from a prepared text throughout. He didn’t have a horde of assistants whispering answers to inquiries or breaking down simple ideas. He didn’t duck any inquiries.

Was he able to satisfy me with all of his responses? No. He was under-prepared for a few, in my opinion. Was I happy with him, though? Absolutely. It was the first time I had experienced a Nigerian politician at a very high level who talked with confidence, control, and conviction since 1983, when I was a young journalist and joined a panel to question the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo. He lay on the ground for a few hours, only getting up to drink some water. He didn’t stop to use the restroom or wait for a doctor to check his vital signs.

You could tell that Obi was educated and would provide his credentials if you asked for them, in addition to the fact that he was literate. He doesn’t seem to be put off by knowledge or books, and if he saw a library, he wouldn’t enter as a visitor but as a reader.

You could tell that he was educated and that he wanted to give Nigerians the same opportunity in their own nation. He discussed his viewpoint and the absurdity of the ASUU strike being allowed to hold students at home for more than half of 2022 in a nation with a purportedly functioning government.

He discussed the link between education and poverty, arguing that the first was the cure for the latter. He cited examples of how countries like China and India were able to reduce their rates of poverty by simply putting the UN’s Millennium Development Goals into practise.

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Who ought to be the future president of Nigeria? He dismissed the idea that the president would someday be someone’s “turn,” warning that the upcoming election “will be about character we can trust, skill, capacity, and willingness to do the right thing.” He stated that the election “would not be about relationship” and that it is “not a chieftaincy title.”

Mr. Obi highlighted the need of setting an example for others when discussing corruption. He emphasised that in order to combat corruption, the leader, his family, and those around him must set a personal example. “Corruption destroys business, professionalism, and hard work,” he added.

He urged Nigerians not to cast their ballots based on beliefs about religion or ethnicity because all Nigerians face the same problems. Because I’m from the South-East, don’t vote for me, he urged. “The North is not any safer than the South if you travel there. Since Christians do not purchase bread at a lower price than Muslims, it will not be a religious issue either.

Obi’s popularity has frequently been brushed aside by PDP and APC members who claim that his party lacks organisation. “The structure they talk about is the structure of criminality, and that is what I’m here to remove,” Mr. Obi responded.