Peter Obi's plans for IPOB if elected president

Peter Obi, the presidential flag-bearer of the Labour Party for the 2023 election, has said he would dialogue with members of the outlawed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) and other agitators “to restore peace in Nigeria” if elected as president.

Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, stated this on Wednesday, November 02, 2022, evening while responding to questions on insecurity in the country at the corporate headquarters of the Media Trust Group (MTG), owners of Daily Trust and Trust TV in Abuja.

Peter Obi on IPOB: Asked whether he shares the Federal Government’s position in designating IPOB as a terrorist organisation, Obi replied: “I don’t want to go into that place. I have told you, I will dialogue with anybody, anything they like let them call you. I will meet and we discuss.”

Why this matters: IPOB campaigns for the secession of a part of southeastern Nigeria where the majority belong to the Igbo ethnic group; Peter Obi's region of origin. Nigerian authorities have labeled the group, founded by now-detained Nnamdi Kanu, a terrorist organisation.

Earlier this year: Obi had said he had observed over the years how issues of agitations were handled in other countries.

He said that the agitation was birthed by poor leadership in the country which, according to him, had been the issue with Nigeria over the years.

Clearing the air on his reported support for the IPOB, Peter Obi said he had never been involved in any agitation.

What you should know: Biafra agitation stemmed from leadership failure on the part of the government, amounting to years of social neglect, and economic and political isolation of the people in Nigeria and particularly people from the South East of the Nation in general.