“Ọgbọ́n ju agbára lọ”—wisdom is greater than strength. Yet in the case of Peter Obi, one is left searching for evidence of either, as the man who once governed Anambra now presides over a burgeoning pandemic of “Olodoism” threatening to engulf Nigeria’s political discourse.
Peter Obi’s political brand rests on a foundation of tautological mumbling and conveniently unverifiable statistics. His favourite refrain, “Go and verify,” has become the ultimate shield against scrutiny. When challenged, he retreats into the comfortable echo chamber of what critics term “Chinese data”, statistics that exist only in the imagination of their creator. The famous claim that Anambra rose from 26th to 1st position in education under his watch remains precisely the kind of “tales by moonlight” that his successors have publicly debunked.
While Obi paints himself as a fiscal messiah, the reality of his Anambra tenure tells a different story. Under his watch, poverty in the state allegedly increased from 41.4% to 53.7%, a staggering regression that critics attribute to his obsession with banking state allocations rather than building infrastructure. His successor, Professor Charles Soludo, has reportedly surpassed Obi’s eight-year record in just three years.
An impossible Obi presidency would be disastrous for a nation that requires substance, not slogans. His tendency to undermine institutions, calling Nigeria’s judiciary a “slap” while conveniently forgetting how the same courts twice restored his stolen mandate reveals a dangerous disregard for democratic structures. As IPOB rightly noted, Obi’s call for Nnamdi Kanu’s release represents a cynical political ploy rather than principled conviction.
Nigerians deserve a leader with actual intellect, not one who mistakes mumbling for profundity and fake statistics for evidence. The Olodo pandemic must end before it infects the presidency.