THE 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has denied ever meeting or working for Nigeria’s former military ruler, the late General Sani Abacha.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) today, Obi shared a copy of his 1996 appointment letter to a Federal Government Task Force on Ports Decongestion to counter the long-standing allegations.
Abacha, who led Nigeria from 1993 until his death in 1998, is widely remembered for human rights abuses and systemic corruption. Critics have accused Obi of collaborating with the regime, an allegation he firmly refutes.
“As I stated during my recent interview, I never met General Sani Abacha before that task force engagement,” Obi wrote. “My involvement was civic, not political, aimed solely at addressing the inefficiencies at Nigerian ports.”
Obi emphasized that his role in the task force was based on professional expertise and a commitment to economic reform, not allegiance to the military government. He stressed that the clarification aligns with his principles of transparency and accountability.
“I do not expect this evidence to silence those driven by mischief or ulterior motives,” he added. “But I have chosen to make this public, for the sake of posterity and in keeping with my pledge to be transparent in all matters that concern me.”
The former Anambra governor maintained that the intervention was purely a patriotic effort to support better logistics for Nigerian businesses, not a political alliance.