Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, has warned the former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi against making promises of a one-term presidency, claiming that such commitments are deceitful.
Wike, speaking during his monthly media interaction in Abuja on Monday, supported former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s opinion that it is unreasonable for any presidential candidate to guarantee only one term.
According to him, political realities frequently evolve after a person takes office, making it impossible to rule out pursuing re-election.
According to the minister, if Obi is elected president, situations may change.
He said, “Even if you give him the six million votes back, all those who voted for him will continue to vote for him. What happened in 2023 will not be the same.
“Even if you give him the six million votes back, all those who voted for him will continue to vote for him. What happened in 2023 will not be the same.
“In this era of social media, which party will you run for? Is it labor? Where will he get the six million votes—under the PDP? Under the Labour Party? If you are running, people should know the party you are running for.
“They should know the platform. Is it in December that he will mention it? Atiku has said he will run in the ADC, and Amaechi said ADC, but he has not said where he will run.
“Why are you keeping your supporters guessing? So he goes where he likes, and when we have finished working, he comes back because he’s a saint and there is nobody in PDP.”
The former governor of Rivers State argued that Obi’s supporters were being misled, stressing that no president can genuinely commit to serving only one term.
He added, “It’s very clear El-Rufai said stop saying that you will run for four years, it’s not correct. I don’t want people to be deceived, circumstances will change. How do you sit down and a president tells you, ‘I will run for four years,’ then you believe him?
“How can you say that? That is not correct. Don’t tell Nigerians such a story; when you get there, you will now find out if you will run for a second or third term. Some people tried to run for a third term.”
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")