Mr Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party for the 2023 general elections, has denied receiving $150 million said to have been donated by Nigerians in the diaspora.
The Tinubu-Shettima Connect had told the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to disqualify the former Anambra Governor over the alleged funding which was argued by the group as not being in accordance with the Nigerian Electoral Act.
Peter Obi who had earlier left Nigeria on August 25 to drum support from Nigerians abroad, broke his silence on the issue during a meeting with Nigerians in London on Tuesday where he denied the report, adding that it was a mere speculation.
In the words of the LP flagbearer, the purpose of his consultative visit was not to gather funds to run the electoral campaigns but to ensure that Nigerians in the countries he visited also partake in the election process.
He said: “Nobody has given me anything. That is speculation. What I need is not what they would give me. But what they would give Nigeria, because we need them to turn around Nigeria.
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“This is the energy, the capacity that we need to turn around Nigeria. Every country that was turned around, was done by the diaspora. Even in the Bible, Joseph who left later came back to feed his people.
“It is not campaign, it is consultation. I am consulting Nigeria diasporans to know why they should be involved in the Nigerian electoral process. And you can see from my conversation and everything that what I am doing is saying let’s get involved.
“They are the most critical components of turning around Nigeria. The investment Nigeria needs to turn around is diasporans. If they believe in Nigeria and bring their resources, both in terms of their material, talent and energy, we will turn around the country.”
By Mohammed Taoheed…
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