Reject proxy campaigns, no candidate is demigod, Obi tells Nigerians

By Jude Opara

As campaigns for the 2027 general elections get underway, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr. Peter Obi has urged Nigerians to reject candidates who feel too big to meet and talk to them, insisting that nobody who wants to lead should feel too big to personally engage with the electorates.

In a statement on Tuesday, the spokesman of the Peter Obi Media Reach (POMR), Idris Zekeri said it has been observed that President Bola Tinubu is positioning himself for a reelection without meeting with the people.

Zekeri further that there are indications that Tinubu plans to remain in Aso Rock while his surrogates campaign for him.

“The Peter Obi Media Office has observed some disturbing trends ahead of the January 16, 2027, Presidential election that should be nipped in the bud before it develops. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is positioning himself to be re-elected for a second term without meeting the electorates.

“Indications are evident that the President plans to hide in Aso Rock and expect hired surrogates to meet the people on his behalf. This is not democracy and must be rejected by the people.

“President Tinubu can deploy surrogates to speak for him, sign documents on his behalf, or represent him at some public events, but he cannot send a surrogate to meet the Nigerian people on his behalf.

“The 2027 election is not a ceremony to be performed by representatives. It is a contest for the leadership of more than 200 million Nigerians, and those seeking the mandate must have the courage to stand before the people, answer their questions, and defend their records”.

He added that what happened at the peace signing event recently and the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) summit in Port Harcourt where the President failed to appear shows that he sees himself as too big to engage with the Nigerian people.

“At the National Peace Accord convened by the National Peace Committee under the leadership of former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, the President was missing, disrespecting the painstaking work of General Abdulsalami Abubakar, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah, and others in promoting peaceful elections.

“The Nigerian people need to see the candidate. They need to hear the candidate. They need to question the candidate. The same applies to every major national platform, including the ongoing Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) conference and other forums where candidates are expected to engage Nigerians on the state of the nation.

“A President asking Nigerians for another four years cannot permanently hide behind ministers, party officials, media aides, governors, or other political surrogates. The office belongs to the people; the mandate belongs to the people; and the accountability must be directly to the people.

If the President believes his administration has performed well, let him come before Nigerians and say so himself.

“Let him explain the economy.

Let him explain the hardship confronting families. Let him explain his policies.

Let the candidate explain what has changed since 2023. Let him tell Nigerians what he intends to do differently in a second term.

And let him hear directly from the citizens whose votes he seeks.

“This is not disrespect. It is democracy. We, therefore, challenge the President and the APC to stop campaigning through surrogates and start engaging the Nigerian people directly.

Nigeria does not need another election in which Nigerians hear more from political surrogates than from the presidential candidate himself.

“If President Tinubu wants a second term, let him come to the people.

Let him see and hear the people. And let Nigerians question him and decide — not on the voices of his surrogates, but on the record and vision of the man asking for their votes. This is the spirit of democracy. We are electing a servant of the people, not a demigod”.

He insisted that the 2027 election must be a contest of candidates, competence, records, ideas, and character, and not a contest of who can deploy the loudest army of surrogates.