Tony Nwoye, an Anambra Senator elected on the platform of the Labour Party, has confessed that Obi’s broad support in the eastern region where he got an overwhelming share of the votes cast in the last presidential election was due to his ethnicity, not competence or any objective assessment of the candidates’ pool.
He made the confession in a television appearance on an evening political program hosted by Seun Okinbaloye of Channels Television. The Senator said the east, the home region of the Igbos, had no regret voting for “our brother” even while insisting that the eventual winner, whose victory was due to his cross-cultural and national appeal, must increase the number of appointments given to the Igbos.
He said, “We voted for our brother and we don’t regret it, but we are appealing to the President to obey federal character laws and give us more slots like he gave to other regions.”
TINUBU'S CABINET FORMATION: SOUTH EAST REGION GETS MINIMUM NUMBER OF NOMINATIONS
"We voted for our brother and we don't regret it, but we are appealing to the President to obey federal character laws and give us more slots like he gave to the other regions." pic.twitter.com/Ckn5uCgSY7
— SeunOkin Channels tv (@seunokin) August 9, 2023
His confession affirmed the conclusion of several post-mortem reports of the election which held that Peter Obi weaponised ethnicity and religion to garner support in the eastern region.
The former Anambra governor portrayed himself as an Igbo-Christian candidate, leading to his popularity in the eastern region, but also his eventual doom in other parts of the country where such a divisive approach attracts political punishment and repudiation.