The minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has stated that he knew Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, would not win the February 25th, 2023, presidential election.
Wike also stated that the supporters of Peter Obi are oblivious to the modus operandi of Nigerian politics.
Wike made these remarks on Thursday during an interview on Channels TV, a day after the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal upheld Bola Tinubu’s victory in the February 2023 presidential election.
The former Rivers State governor, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, publicly declared support for the All Progressives Congress candidate, Tinubu, and worked for his victory in Rivers State.
His support for Tinubu has earned him the position of minister in Tinubu’s cabinet.
Wike said, “I know that he [Obi] won’t win the election. Let me tell you the truth: I am a realist. For me, the way the election went, it was a tough election. I give it to INEC,” he said.
“Yes, as a young man, people would have preferred that he won, but look at how the votes went.
“There is this generational change; the young people were tired. So, for them, the only hope they had was to vote for Obi as a younger person compared to other candidates.”
Stating emphatically the ethno-religious factors that play key roles in influencing the voting behaviour of voters in Nigeria, Wike said, “there is this generational change; the young people were tired. So, for them, the only hope they had was to vote for Obi as a younger person compared to other candidates.
“But unknown to them, that is not the reality of Nigerian politics. They didn’t take into consideration that ethnicity is a factor.
“They didn’t take into cognizance that religion is a factor, not only competence; that is the reality of Nigerian politics.”
![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")
