Peter Obi and labour leader accused of plotting coup against Nigeria’s President Tinubu
A senior official of Nigeria’s Labour Party (LP), Abayomi Arabambi, has leveled serious allegations against the party’s former presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and the President of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero. Arabambi claims that Obi and Ajaero are plotting to overthrow President Bola Tinubu.
In an interview on News Central TV’s Breakfast Central, Arabambi accused the duo of planning to forcibly break into the National Assembly and the presidential residence, known as Aso Rock, with the aim of toppling Tinubu’s government. This assertion comes as the duo plans a mass protest, a one-million-man rally, which Arabambi sees as a ploy to destabilize Nigeria.
Arabambi sees this planned rally as an extension of Obi’s purported unpresidential conduct since his loss in the 2023 general elections. “He [Obi] has never spoken well about our country since 2023,” Arabambi said, adding that such a stance is unbecoming of a former presidential candidate. He argued that the role of the opposition is to hold the ruling party accountable, not to undermine its efforts.
According to Arabambi, the rally is not a mere show of dissent but a calculated move to seize power. He suggested that the rally is a campaign to install Obi as president, outside of the electoral process. Arabambi referred to comments made by Victor Umeh, a former Apga National Chairman, who described Obi as a “rebel” while they served together as governor and party chairman respectively.
Arabambi called on Obi and Ajaero to clarify their intentions regarding the rally, asking, “Are they campaigning for Obi to be president under which party? This is not an election period, and yet they claim to want to mobilize one million people.”
While these allegations are severe, they remain uncorroborated. Both Peter Obi and Joe Ajaero have the right to a fair hearing and to respond to these allegations. It is crucial for all parties involved to respect Nigeria’s constitutional order and democratic norms.
This development comes at a time when Nigeria’s political climate is already tense, following the recent elections and the contentious results they produced. As the nation works towards unity and progress, such accusations could add fuel to the fire, potentially undermining the country’s stability.
Both national and international observers will eagerly await the responses of Peter Obi, Joe Ajaero, and Nigeria’s ruling government to these grave allegations. In the meantime, Media Talk Africa urges all parties to maintain orderly conduct and respect the sovereignty of Nigeria’s democratic institutions.
