You Will Hurt Your Supporters’ Pride’ – Stop Apologising, Shehu Sani Tells Peter Obi

Shehu Sani, Former federal lawmaker and renowned social critic, issued a public plea to Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s candidate, imploring him to stop apologising for his supporters, known affectionately as ‘Obidients’.

Senator Sani warned that continued apologies might “kill the libido of his movement.”

The statement was shared through Sani’s Twitter account on Thursday, May 11, 2023, responding to a cry for help from Obi, a former two-term governor of Anambra State, who decried the misuse of his supporter base’s name, ‘Obidients’, to insult and abuse eminent personalities in the country.

Obi has recently been in the spotlight for his public dissociation from any untoward behavior by his supporters. He has consistently maintained that his supporters are law-abiding citizens and has condemned any actions to the contrary as unacceptable.

Sani, however, urged Obi to stop this pattern of apologizing and drew comparisons to Bola Tinubu, Atiku Abubakar, and President Muhammadu Buhari, none of whom, Sani noted, have ever apologized for their supporters’ actions.

“Asiwaju, Atiku & Buhari never denounce or apologise for whatever their supporters say or do,” Sani tweeted. “Peter keeps apologising & dissociating. If you keep moving on this apologetic path, you will kill the libido of your movement. You sparked a fire, embrace the inferno with courage.”

Sani’s tweet, perceived by many as a call for political resilience, has sparked widespread debate about the role of political leaders in moderating the actions and speech of their supporters.

As the heat of the debate intensifies, all eyes are on Obi, waiting to see if he heeds Sani’s counsel and what effect, if any, it may have on the direction and momentum of his campaign.