LAGOS, Nigeria – Doyin Okupe, the former Director General of the Labour Party (LP) Presidential Campaign Council, has announced he can no longer support Peter Obi, LP’s 2023 presidential candidate.
While speaking on Channels Television on Monday, November 4, 2024, Okupe criticised Obi’s recent remarks about the South-West, calling them an “insult” to the region.
Okupe’s comments follow a viral podcast in which Obi discussed Nigeria’s economic challenges, including the high price of rice and other essentials.
In his comments, Obi questioned the benefits the South-West has seen under President Bola Tinubu, despite Tinubu being a native of the region.
“Let us talk about what is happening today. Rice is about N100,000. We are not even sure where we are going to be,” Obi stated in the podcast, the ‘Honest Bunch’ anchored by media personality Nedu.
He added, “It’s our turn, he is a Yoruba man — ask the people in Ogun if there’s any place you people buy bread cheaper?”
Okupe described Obi’s remarks as hurtful, pointing out that many prominent Yoruba figures supported Obi during his campaign.
“When Obi made that statement, it insulted us. I am a Yoruba man; I left everything and followed Obi,” Okupe said.
He referenced former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s endorsement of Obi, which Okupe saw as a significant deviation from the norm.
Okupe clarified that while he does not regret his initial support for Obi, he can no longer back him.
He explained, “The reason why I did it was because we agreed that a southern president must emerge. I said the South-East should take that lead. But if all these eminent Yoruba people supported you, why now bring us down publicly? It is wrong.”
Okupe’s withdrawal marks a notable division within the Labour Party’s former leadership and has sparked debate on social media, with mixed reactions from both supporters and critics of Obi’s comments.
In January 2024, Okupe formally resigned from the Labour Party, citing “ideological difference” with the left-leaning party and from then on, began to launch media attacks on Peter Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate of the party.
In a resignation letter addressed to Labour Party National Chairman Julius Abure, Okupe expressed his appreciation for the party’s support during the 2023 presidential campaign, where he served as a close ally and advocate for Peter Obi’s candidacy.
Okupe characterised the Labour Party as a “special purpose vehicle” used to support Obi’s presidential bid after both Okupe and Obi left the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
He emphasised his long-standing commitment to right-leaning and liberal democratic principles, which he said no longer aligned with the Labour Party’s position on the political spectrum.
“I have been a rightist and a Liberal Democrat my entire life,” Okupe wrote.
“It is therefore this ideological conflict that makes me seek an exit so that I may continue my political activities with liberalism, sincerity, and freedom.”
Okupe’s political journey with the Labour Party began as an impromptu shift when Obi, Okupe, and their supporters exited the PDP in search of a new political platform.
The Labour Party welcomed the duo, with Obi quickly securing the party’s presidential ticket, and Okupe initially serving as the campaign’s Director General and a temporary running mate until Ahmed Datti’s appointment.
Okupe’s tenure as campaign leader came under scrutiny in December 2022, when he resigned after being convicted of money laundering by the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Presiding judge Ijeoma Ojukwu found Okupe guilty on 26 out of 59 counts brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, sentencing him to two years imprisonment with an option to pay a fine of N500,000 per count—totalling N13 million.
Okupe opted to pay the fine and subsequently stepped down as campaign director.
