Special to USAfrica magazine (Houston) and USAfricaonline.com, the first Africa-owned, US-based newspaper published on the Internet.
By Chido Nwangwu
It’s truly a shameful chapter for the government of Nigeria led by its former dictator and retired army General, Muhammadu Buhari, to attack Obi for allegedly being involved in “treason”.
Buhari’s hyperbolic and incredible Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed attacked Obi in Washington DC, a few days ago in April 2023.
USAfrica has learned that to the astonishment of the American editors he travelled to talk to in Washington DC., Mohammed continued to claim the factually incorrect and discredited line that the February 25 2023 “general elections in Nigeria is the fairest, most transparent and authentic in the history of Nigeria.”
Obi’s crime is that he has the “balls” to go to court and the designated election tribunal to seek an accurate verification of the votes and with simple evidence challenge the qualifications of Buhari and Lai’s candidate for their APC political party, Alhaji Bola Ahmed Tinubu!
These rulers believe that any questions and criticisms of their actions, deeds, litigating evidence of impropriety, corrupt activities or serial failures undermine the State, the country and its purposes.
It’s a familiar strategy of discredited despots. In the recent history of leadership and control of several countries across the African, Arab, Asian, European, and South American continents, the world witnessed the hijack and personal appropriation of the powers and authority of the State and government.
The basic principles and responsibilities of constitutional order are swept aside to the primitive order of ruling.
Whatever remained as the public purse and commonwealth for the service of the citizens are smashed as consequences of the corrupt practices of the leaders. Most things, almost everything important and reflective of the collective aspirations of the ruled are voraciously consumed by the psychotic appetite, whimsical desires, quixotic swings and criminal activities of the dictators and incompetent charlatans who believe that they are State.
They have no room or tolerance for criticism and alternative viewpoints towards improving and improving the country.
But it’s not only from ancient history that the world has witnessed these actions.
Republican strategist, Rick Wilson said recently a few years ago that “For Donald Trump, any opposition, either personal, ideological, or political is treason. Anyone who stands in his path betrays the Great Leader. Anyone who fails to take the knee is a traitor.”
Obi, the presidential candidate of Nigeria’s Labour Party in the February 2023 election, has dismissed the allegations of treason and incitement of insurrection made by Mohammed. He accused Obi and his deputy, Sen. Baba Datti-Ahmed, of treason and inciting Nigerians to oppose INEC’s declaration of former Governor of Lagos State, Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the President-elect.
Obi has also asked “how opting for the tribunal by myself and my Deputy amounts to treason…. Minister Lai accusing me of stoking the fire of insurrection is totally fictitious and malicious. I have never advocated or encouraged anyone to undermine the Nigerian State….”
Obi, a very frugal businessman, condemned Mohammed’s trip as a waste of Nigeria’s resources and is laughable since “most of those countries sent their people to monitor the election and have all received reports from the monitors, as well as from their embassies…. Between Lai Mohammed and their monitors/embassies, who would these countries believe? The billions spent on those meaningless trips would be enough to fix several dilapidated schools in the country.“
The treason allegation seems to be a form of intimidation and threat against those seeking the legal road of litigation of rigging issues, and violence against targeted voters and ethnicities!
•Dr. Chido Nwangwu, author of the forthcoming 2023 book, MLK, Mandela & Achebe: Power, Leadership and Identity., is Founder of the first African-owned, U.S-based newspaper on the internet, USAfricaonline.com, and established USAfrica in 1992 in Houston.
He has appeared as an analyst on CNN, ALJazeera, SKYnews, and served as an adviser on Africa business to Houston’s former Mayor Lee Brown. Follow him on Twitter @Chido247
Thanks Dr. Nwangwu for helping to keep hope alive in the struggle to reclaim the people’s stolen mandate. In this period of lull, you are playing a very useful role. Please sustain it.
Lai Mohammed is either a genius or a very big fool. As a genius he is using threats and intimidation against those seeking legal redress. And as a big fool he wants America and the whole world to believe him more than their embassies and foreign observers who oversaw the elections.
Strategic thinking and statements of facts. I love reading your articles. USAfricaonline is a great source of information.
Very well said. The article is a conundrum of facts that provokes deep concern for our beloved country. Dr Nwangwu is always on point.
The article is so powerful and meaningful. Their move was abortive and meaningless, wasting our resources. Kudos bro Chido!
Strong and explicit truth extinguishing the destructive lies that were embedded in the wasteful and unnecessary trip of what I titled ‘Going to America’ by Lai Muhammed.
Indeed. Thank you, sir.