Festus Keyamo, Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, has said Peter Obi’s performance in the 2023 presidential election was driven by three key demographic factors that won’t necessarily guarantee success in 2027.
He said this while speaking during an interview on Channels Television on Sunday.
Keyamo argued that Obi’s appeal was largely circumstantial and unlikely to translate into long-term political gains especially in Northern Nigeria.
“Three demographic factors delivered Peter Obi in 2023, but the three will collapse,” Keyamo said.
Keyamo cited the first major factor as religious sentiment, and the second as ethnic solidarity from the South-East.
“The other candidates were Muslims, and so there was only one Christian candidate, and the Christians went to one candidate.
“The South-East felt cheated, so the South-East went to one point because of the Igbo man.”
The third factor, he cited, was the emergence of a youth-driven movement.
He said: “The Obidients, young Nigerians who felt they were angry, they wanted a younger person and all of that because the other candidates were older than him (Obi).”
Keyamo noted that these factors won’t be enough for Obi’s success in 2027, especially if he teams up with Atiku Abubakar.
He added: “This so-called ADC, in 2027, what they are working on is to bring Peter Obi and Atiku together to join those numbers and beat our over eight million votes. Let me tell you why it is wrong.”
He shrugged off the chances of the proposed alliance gaining ground in northern Nigeria, where, he said, the ruling APC has strong structures and control.
“If you put Peter Obi this time as president, he cannot penetrate the north. We have our structures in the north. We have governors and our structures in the north,” Keyamo declared.
“They are going nowhere in terms of demography. I like what is happening; they are putting us on our toes; it is going to make us work harder, but the numbers are not looking good for them”, he said.
