From pre-independence ethnic dog whistling, to pogroms, a civil war and the systemic socio-political ostracization that has since followed, the Igbo are the most discriminated ethnic group in Nigeria and ethnic bigotry against Igbo people has been on full display in the 2023 election.
When Peter Obi first declared his interest to run for the office of the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on the Labour Party platform, chances of his success were written off as slim to none.
The People’s Democratic Party (PDP), from which Obi decamped, felt confident that he would neither survive nor thrive outside their established political ‘structures’. Members of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), scoffed at the idea that he could pose a threat to their candidate Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a behemoth of Nigerian politics credited with masterminding the election of President Muhammadu Buhari.
Obi’s initial support base—a diverse group of progressive Nigerians of different ethnic and religious affiliations—knew that the odds were stacked against him from the onset. Nonetheless, they were happy to back a politician who seemed to have genuine zeal to serve the people and stuck with him based on this principle. Only Obi’s kinsmen knew that the conversation would soon become about where he was from instead of what he stood for or what he could offer. True to their fears, Obi’s candidacy soon became ethnically polarizing...
This story is available paywall-free. Simply register or log-in.