If every major ally of Peter Obi behaved exactly like Alex Otti, the practical effect would be a significantly weakened, fragmented, and less confrontational opposition ahead of 2027. And this isn’t because , he didnt move to the NDC with Peter Obi. This is because if all Obi’s allies adopted the same stance, the opposition would still exist, but it would look more like a collection of locally focused pragmatists than a disciplined alternative government-in-waiting.
The moral and mobilising force of the Obidient project would be substantially diluted. Governor Hope Uzodinma declared that all Igbo governors were united in working for Tinubu’s re-election. The people have often defied their governors at the polls.
Yet Governor Otti quickly issued a disclaimer, insisting that Uzodinma, no matter how hopeful, could not speak for him. At a reception for Tinubu’s wife in Aba, however, Otti all but publicly endorsed the President with a deluge of superlatives. Is Otti’s disclaimer merely an otiose subterfuge?
One function of a good leader is to offer the people authoritative direction with moral clarity at critical moments. Otti can no longer sit on the fence. His neutrality will amount to an endorsement of Tinubu’s continuation.
If Tinubu has performed as outstandingly as Otti has proclaimed, then Otti should endorse him fully and stop playing hide-and-seek. He cannot run with the hare and hunt with the hound. If Otti is afraid of the consequences of criticising Tinubu, then he is neither a man of courage nor of conviction.
The most committed Obidients thrive on moral clarity and a sense of existential struggle. When high-profile figures who rode the 2023 wave treat Tinubu with awe and admiration while focusing on state-level delivery, it becomes far harder to sustain the intensity, volunteer networks, and pressure that once characterised the movement. Many Obi supporters are not wrong to feel betrayed.
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