Senator Adams Oshiomhole, representing Edo North, has dismissed claims that Peter Obi poses a significant political threat to the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 presidential election. Oshiomhole argued that Obi's strong performance in the 2023 election was a result of extraordinary circumstances, not genuine grassroots support.
Oshiomhole Downplays Obi's Political Relevance
Speaking on Monday during an appearance on TVC News' Beyond The Headlines programme, Oshiomhole responded to questions about whether the APC was underestimating Obi, who won Lagos State and performed strongly across the South-East in 2023. The former Edo State governor dismissed such concerns, stating that Obi's votes were produced by voter anger rather than popularity.
"No, not at all, not at all. Obi was produced by an unusual situation when a ruling party decided to destroy itself, making anybody running on its platform almost unelectable. It was that confusion that produced those votes," Oshiomhole said, as reported by The Punch.
Voter Anger as Key Driver in 2023
According to The Sun, Oshiomhole pointed specifically to the naira redesign policy and the fuel scarcity that preceded the 2023 election as the key drivers of public dissatisfaction that benefited Obi at the polls. He described scenes of Nigerians queuing through the night at ATMs, only to withdraw as little as N10,000, before those machines ran dry. Many were then forced to pay Point of Sale operators inflated fees, with one woman reportedly having N2,000 deducted from a N5,000 withdrawal.
"People had money in the bank but couldn't access it. They queued all night at ATMs just to withdraw N10,000, and after a week, even the ATMs were dry," Oshiomhole recalled. He highlighted a question from one of his constituents: "Someone asked why people would queue all night to withdraw N5,000, then queue again for fuel, and still expect them to queue on election day to vote for the same government. That anger was what produced Obi."
Oshiomhole also recounted a conversation with a woman in his village who confronted him directly: "You said I should keep my money in the bank, but when I went to collect it, they said there was no money. At the POS, they deducted N2,000 from N5,000. How do I survive?"
Oshiomhole Distances APC from Buhari's Policies
The senator argued that voter disillusionment with the Peoples Democratic Party was already well established before the APC government implemented policies that deepened economic hardship on the eve of the 2023 vote. He maintained that those policies did not reflect the party's political programme and that the APC should not be held responsible for them going into 2027.
"Voter anger fuels Obi: Oshiomhole claims Buhari's policies did the trick," he stated, emphasising that the APC has since learned from those mistakes and is focused on a different approach for the next election.
Other Predictions for 2027 Election
The article also noted that former Secretary to the Government of the Federation Babachir Lawal had earlier predicted that Obi and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso would form a formidable pair for the 2027 presidential election. Lawal assigned specific winning chances to each major contender during a televised interview, also commenting on Atiku Abubakar's prospects after his public fallout with the former vice president.
Additionally, Prophet Elijah Bamidele Ilukholor released a prophecy about the likely winner of the 2027 election, which has drawn attention online as Nigerians grow increasingly focused on the upcoming contest.
