By Olatunbosun Obafemi
Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has condemned the conduct of local government elections in Rivers State by Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas (rtd), the sole administrator appointed by President Bola Tinubu, describing it as “rascality taken too far, and a mockery of democracy.”
In a post on his official X handle, Obi said it was a “double tragedy for our democracy when a Sole Administrator – himself illegally appointed – dares to conduct an election that should empower the people.”
The former Anambra governor insisted that the exercise was unconstitutional, legally untenable, and morally indefensible.
“This is not democracy,” he said, arguing that such actions desecrate the very foundation of democratic governance.
Obi warned that “illegality can never give birth to legitimacy,” stressing that any structure erected on lawlessness poses a danger to both the state and its citizens.
He cautioned against what he described as a perilous path for Nigeria, where leaders silence the will of the people, particularly at the grassroots where democracy is most vital.
“If we truly seek progress, we must uphold the sanctity of the ballot, safeguard the people’s right to choose, and insist that leadership at every level flows from their mandate – not from contraptions that mock democracy,” Obi said.
According to him, only by restoring the people’s mandate can governance regain meaning and the sacred bond of trust between leaders and citizens be rebuilt.
