The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, on Thursday advised Peter Obi, former presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), to address internal issues within his party rather than making disparaging remarks about Nigeria’s past leaders.
Akpabio made the remarks during a valedictory session held in honour of the late leader of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), Pa Edwin Clark.
His comments were in response to a statement made by Obi at a separate event, where the former LP candidate allegedly suggested that the efforts of Nigeria’s previous leaders were in vain.
“Those who are aspiring as presidential candidates to cause division with their mouths using the social media, tell them to resolve the small party crisis they have before they come to talk about the larger Nigeria,” Akpabio said.
“I am saying this because I understand that just yesterday, one of the presidential aspirants, Peter Obi, said that the labours of our leaders who have passed on were in vain.”
“They were not in vain. The mere fact that Nigeria is still standing together shows clearly that their labours were not in vain.”
He noted that despite Nigeria’s many challenges, the country has remained united, unlike some other nations that have fragmented.
“Very few countries with the size of Nigeria are still together; today, many have been fragmented,” he said.
Akpabio also praised the legacy of Edwin Clark, noting that the elder statesman’s contributions helped to hold the country together.
“Nigeria, in spite of our difficulties, God has kept us together because of the voices of people like Pa Edwin Clark. So clearly, his labour and labours were not in vain,” he added.
He criticised the influence of social media, suggesting that it has become a platform for misinformation and unverified narratives.
“Nigeria has an unregulated social media system, so let them wallow in it and then take this situation and propagate all sorts of falsehood and all sorts of narratives,” he said.
“Some of them on social media were not even born when Pa Clark was very active in service and so they couldn’t have known some of the things he did that we are remembering today.”
“And yet when somebody makes a statement that the labour of our past leaders are in vain, I beg to disagree.”
Akpabio concluded by calling on Obi to demonstrate true leadership by first resolving the crisis within his party.
“He has one of the smallest parties in Nigeria and he cannot even resolve the crisis in that Labour Party,” he said.
(NAN)