The Labor Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections, Peter Obi has lamented that democracy has not passed any of the hurdles, and negative scenarios from the era of former military President, Ibrahim Babangida, declaring that “we are worse off than we were from the IBBs era.”
He stated this on his X handle early on Friday, February 21, 2025, after gracing the launch of IBB’s autobiography at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja.
Obi said two key observations emerged from the keynote address, particularly regarding the reflections on the 1993 elections.
“First, the keynote speaker emphasized the poignant remark in French, “rien n’a changé,” meaning “nothing much has changed. In the context of Nigeria, we find ourselves in a more precarious situation than we were during President Babangida’s administration.
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“When he left office in 1992, countries such as Bangladesh, India, Vietnam, and Ghana were all categorized as having low human development index levels—similar to Nigeria.
“Today, however, these nations have advanced to either medium or high human development index levels, while Nigeria remains stagnant or declined within the low human development index category.
Secondly, he said the keynote speaker remarked that Ghana has maintained a genuinely democratic environment for the past three decades, exemplified by leadership transitions that accurately reflect the electorate’s will.
In contrast, Obi asserted that Nigeria has faced challenges where electoral outcomes do not truly embody the people’s choices, adding that “Ghana has witnessed instances of ruling party candidates conceding defeat, thus honouring the principles of democracy.”
He commended IBB for accepting responsibility for the truncating of the June 12 election, “this admission represents a critical step towards national healing, unity, and progress for Nigeria.
“It is my hope that in the future, other prominent figures within Nigeria’s democratic landscape will summon the courage to recognize the true outcomes of past elections, allowing our nation to recount its history with honesty and reflection.”
