Former Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election, has dismissed allegations by Daniel Bwala, a policy communication adviser to Bola Tinubu, that he attempted to recruit him into his campaign.
In a statement issued in Abuja on Friday through his media aide Ibrahim Umar, Obi described the claim as baseless and said he had no dealings with Bwala. He stressed that he would not be associated with what he termed transactional politics.
The statement noted that the allegation would ordinarily not warrant a response but said clarification was necessary in the public interest.
“Normally, we would not dignify Bwala’s baseless accusations with a reply, given his well-documented history of dishonesty. However, we feel it is necessary to address this matter for the benefit of the public, who may be misled,” the statement said.
Obi’s camp also rejected any suggestion that he engages in political bargaining, contrasting his approach with what it described as Bwala’s style of politics.
“Obi has made it clear that he excludes individuals like Bwala from his political activities and any form of transactional politics that sustain people like him in political circles. He would rather allocate resources to provide desks for children in Bwala’s village than pay him to concoct falsehoods for public consumption,” the statement added.
It concluded with a call for Bwala and others to abandon what it described as self-serving politics. “For the umpteenth time, we call on Bwala and others like him to count Obi out of their greed, repent, and join us in the quest for a new Nigeria,” the statement said.
The rebuttal followed remarks by Bwala during an interview with media personality Daddy Freeze, where he alleged that Obi attempted to bring him into the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential campaign through former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo.
According to Bwala, the approach was made during a meeting at the Hilton Hotel in London attended by Obasanjo, Obi’s running mate Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, and other political figures. Bwala said he declined the offer despite his respect for the former president.
