Dr. Yunusa Tanko is the Nationwide Coordinator of the Obidient Motion. On this interview, he speaks on repositioning the motion for larger influence and the group’s renewed concentrate on mobilization, construction and youth empowerment, amongst different points. ANAYO EZUGWU experiences
You mentioned that the Labour Party can be repositioned and that Mr Peter Obi has the potential to grow to be president in 2027. What’s your confidence primarily based on?
It was the nice Chuba Okadigbo of blessed reminiscence who mentioned that in case you are emotionally connected to your tribe or faith and political lineage to some extent that justice, equity and fairness grow to be a secondary consideration, then your publicity and your schooling is ineffective.
He went additional to say that the place you can not rise above petty sentiment, then you’re a legal responsibility to mankind. We don’t wish to be a legal responsibility to mankind.
We wish to add worth to mankind. It’s clear to us that there are challenges with the Labour Party and what can we do to mitigate these specific challenges? It’s constructing the constructions of the Obidient Motion.
You bear in mind very clearly that throughout the 2023 normal election, we had been accused, rightly so, that we didn’t have constructions in the entire polling items as 1,760 polling items weren’t coated by the Labour Party.
So, what can we do, studying from that have, is to say, this power that we have now on the Obidient Motion, let’s impress it to some extent that we cowl every of these specific polling items with what we name polling unit commanders.
Once we mobilize these specific unit commanders, and they’re reduce throughout all of those specific polling items, we have now a stable basis to have the ability to push any of the concepts and discover options to many of the challenges that we have now in 2023. This, after all, is our goal.
For us, anyone who’s thinking about good governance, which has already been put in place, and because the type of phrases that His Excellency Peter Obi spoke and made it very clear to the Nigerian folks, the place we have now 12.5 million of them registering to vote, give us this specific ardour to say, sure, we are able to transfer this power into a scientific method, utilizing the ICT know-how as some extent to impress the Nigerian youth into voting. So, we’re getting ready, and we’re able to face the challenges that we had over the 2023 normal elections.
What’s the plan for the Obidient Motion to be greater than Peter Obi? Are there plans in place for that?
Once we took over management of the Obidient Motion, it was superb for the primary time within the Federal Republic of Nigeria, particularly within the northern half, the place folks don’t wish to affiliate with folks from the South, particularly from the SouthEast.
Right this moment, we have now leaders and mallams difficult one another. Right this moment, we have now younger girls and boys saying that within the subsequent election, we’re going for a Christian-Christian ticket.
More often than not, principally while you hear it from the North, you don’t get this specific type of phrase. Whenever you suppose that in all probability that exact quantity is dwindling; from our investigation that quantity is growing. The place you thought we didn’t have them, we are actually having them.
The primary programme we did in Kano, after I took over management, was the place I obtained the sensation that among the key mallams in Kano, particularly, are chatting with us. And the younger era masking 44 native governments in Kano, are saying, the place are the places of work? The place are the factors the place we’ll converge?
This was not completed. So, I can inform you for certain that we’re growing. Most likely what you’re seeing is these specific phrases that in all probability a few of them are on social media.
I’m referring to election outcomes…
Similar to I mentioned, the get together had loads of challenges and that after all, affected us very enormously. However we’re refocusing our thoughts and saying, that is what we have to do. We’ve discovered from Imo. We’ve discovered from Edo. We perceive the challenges, however we’re looking for options to them.
Most Nigerians are disenchanted with Labour candidates that had been elected with the Obi wave within the final election, particularly the lawmakers within the Nationwide Meeting. Why ought to Nigerians belief the Labour Party, and by extension, the Obidient Motion that elected them?
That’s the reason why we’re structurally placing it into place. The explanation why we have now already understood a few of it’s as a result of, , the Obidient Motion was an amorphous group. Folks had been simply doing what they will do. However now we’re structuring every thing into formal formality.
Now, what we have now in place is that the nationwide coordinator, we’re going to have zonal coordinators, we’re going to have state coordinators, we’re going to have native authorities coordinators and we’re ending up with having unit commanders.
Now, there may be going to be a route with the idea notice that we’ve already put in place. I can guarantee you, it should impress everyone into place, so that each one of those points that you just raised won’t rear their heads as a result of if there isn’t a route, we are able to’t maintain anyone accountable.
We’re nonetheless preventing to make sure that Labour Party turns into the get together that everyone will belief. However the place it turns into inevitable that the get together is just not able to assimilate the concept of fine governance and public accountability, we have now to search for one other alternative
Are you saying folks voted for members of Labour Party to be within the Nationwide Meeting and there was no route of the get together to have the ability to inform them what to do?
Secondly, does it imply you don’t have the info of all Obidients now, you don’t know their quantity? We will’t have the numbers as a result of that’s what we are attempting to do.
Sure, that would be the subsequent transfer that we are attempting to do. We wish to have a proper registration for every member. The info can be a lot coordinated in such a method you possibly can simply determine an Obedient the place he resides and the purpose of his vote.
Through the time of the problem of amassing automobiles or no automobiles, His Excellency Peter Obi, in constructing belief throughout the voters, made it clear that he was not in assist of anyone amassing automobiles and that they need to justify their transfer.
It was public. And that’s to indicate you that he has a unique route. Additionally, that you must know that almost all of the individuals who got here into the Labour Party at the moment, a lot of them are greenhorns.
They don’t even know precisely what the Labour Party itself is, the structure and manifesto of the Labour Party. So it’s regularly that we’re placing these specific pegs in the appropriate gap.
How do you clarify the confusion between the Obedient Motion and the Labour Party to the Nigerian public?
The get together itself, bear in mind, was made by the Nigerian Labour Congress lengthy prior to now. There have been points fairly all proper throughout the get together. However when members of the Obidient Motion got here into the get together, after all, they confronted a bit little bit of resistance.
However what we wish to do, having discovered from all of these classes is to say, look, the Obidient Motion is larger than the Labour Party. We’ve got them in every single place; academicians, merchants, some members of different political events.
However what we wish to do is to make sure that we give a route, to say, look, we’re shifting right into a political get together, A or B, with this specific ideology and perception. If anyone doesn’t imagine in that, then they will hold away.
His Excellency Peter Obi, who has been shifting from level A to level B, making an attempt to achieve the belief of the Nigerian folks. We had been along with him in Anambra lately. It was one of many monks who even mentioned that sir, you made an announcement that you’re going to come again and you probably did. We had been amazed.
He made an announcement on August 5, and right here he’s on November 10, presenting them with a cheque. That’s constructing belief. So, it’s steady constructing of belief. We wish to reshape that exact ideological perception and the distinction from the get together.
If the platform of the Labour Party is just not obtainable to Mr Peter Obi forward of the 2027 election; are we going to see a scenario whereby the Obidient Motion will search for one other particular goal automobile, as he did in 2023?
Politics is dynamic however as soon as the concept is constant, then after all, you possibly can at all times discover a house. At this specific cut-off date, we’re members of the Labour Party. And we’re nonetheless preventing to make sure that Labour Party turns into the get together that everyone will belief.
However the place it turns into inevitable that the Labour Party is just not able to assimilate the concept of fine governance and public accountability, after all, we have now to search for one other alternative the place we are able to commerce our market.
You spoke about Christian-Christian ticket. Is that the route you’ll go in 2027?
I simply gave you a easy analogy of among the type of pondering that’s taking place even within the North, the place you by no means thought that such an announcement might come out from. Similar to I mentioned, politics is dynamic.
No person would have thought that Goodluck Jonathan, somebody whose state-controlled solely eight native governments, might grow to be the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. So, nothing is unimaginable.
It’s mentioned that Peter Obi has additionally been speaking to Atiku Abubakar. If Atiku offers you a deal, would you guys take it?
In politics, you discuss to lots of people. As we’re talking, lots of people imagine that in all probability a much bigger platform must be one to we should always run with. We’re speaking to one another and there could also be a much bigger platform.
Does that imply you folks will want a much bigger platform?
That’s the reason why we’re independently constructing the Obidient Motion to indicate our power. Inside a brief time frame, you’re going to get our numbers.
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