Former Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, has insisted that the Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, Peter Obi, would not have won the presidency even if he had secured 10 million votes.
Mohammed made the assertion while speaking on Edmund Obilo’s State Affairs Podcast, where he explained that Obi failed to meet the constitutional requirement of securing at least one-quarter of votes cast in 25 states of the federation.
“Even if Obi had got 10 million votes, he wouldn’t have won. This is because he still could not get one-quarter of the votes cast in 25 states. It is even on record that he could not provide agents at about 40,000 polling units,” the former minister said.
Speaking on factors that shaped the 2023 presidential election, particularly in Lagos State, Mohammed noted that ethnicity and religion played an unprecedented role in the political process.
“For the first time in the history of politics in Nigeria, ethnicity and religion played a very frontal role,” he said.
He also pointed to the impact of the #EndSARS protests, especially in Lagos, noting that many youths were driven by anger, which worked against the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu.
“The #EndSARS protests had an impact, particularly in Lagos, where many youths wanted a pound of flesh, and that did not help the APC or Bola Tinubu,” Mohammed said.
The former minister further highlighted the difference between presidential elections and governorship or National Assembly contests, describing presidential elections as less personal.
“I am of the belief that the presidential elections are not as personal as the governorships or national assemblies. In presidential elections, a man might not be affiliated with any of the candidates. But when it comes to governorships, it is particular and peculiar because the candidate lives in the state,” he explained.
Commenting on President Bola Tinubu’s leadership style, Mohammed said the president does not abandon political allies after electoral losses.
“Asiwaju is not the kind of person who will drop his support for you because you have lost the election. No, he will still encourage you,” he said.
He added that Tinubu is often underestimated due to his warm and charismatic personality, describing him as a highly strategic politician with deep understanding of Nigeria’s political landscape.
“He is strategic and really understands Nigerian politics better than anybody you might think of,” Mohammed said.
