Peter Obi To Tinubu: “You Cannot Govern By Proxy, Campaign Through Surrogates, And Expect Votes From Nigerians

By Gideon Njoku

The Media Office of the Presidential Candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, Peter Obi, has asked President Bola Tinubu to join the campaign train for his second term in office instead of doing so through surrogates.

The Obi Media Team was reacting to the President’s comment on Wednesday when he inaugurated his Campaign Committee at the State House, Abuja.

President Tinubu had said  that the demands of governance may keep him away from the campaign trail; that he would make out time, atimes to speak to the people, but may be bugged  down by governance to skip travelling from place to place for campaigns.

In fact, Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma, had at the event, asked the President to keep busy with governance and leave the Presidential Campaign for the Campaign Council and the Governors who will carry the message to everywhere.

But Obi’s Media Team, in a statement Wednesday night, signed by spokesperson, Idris Zekeri Jnr, disagreed with the President. “You cannot govern by proxy, campaign through surrogates, and expect Nigerian to vote for you”, the team told the President.

Said the statement “If he cannot make time to face the electorate, why should surrogates be sent to ask for their votes?

“The President cannot delegate accountability. He cannot outsource the defence of his record to political allies, party chieftains, and praise singers while millions of Nigerians struggle with the consequences of his government’s policies.

“Surrogates can speak for the President, but they cannot answer for his failures. They can repeat his promises, but they cannot make those promises a reality. They can campaign in his name, but they cannot carry his responsibility.

“If the administration has delivered on its promises, why should the President be reluctant to defend that record before Nigerians himself? If the economy is improving, let him explain how that improvement is reflected in the cost of food, transportation, electricity, housing, and necessities. If his policies are working, let him face the citizens who want to know when the hardship will end.

“Mr President, governance is not an excuse to avoid accountability. In a democracy, governance is the very record a candidate must defend before asking for another mandate.

“Nigerians are not being asked to elect your surrogates. They are being asked to assess you, your policies, your promises, and your performance. No surrogate can stand in your place when it is time to answer for the state of the nation.

“You cannot send surrogates to collect the votes while keeping the President away from the questions. You cannot delegate the campaign and expect Nigerians to forget who must answer for the record.

“The Nigerian people deserve a direct conversation with their President, not a relay of rehearsed talking points from political messengers.

“If there is a record to defend, let the President defend it. If there are promises yet to be fulfilled, let him explain them. And if Nigerians are being asked to renew his mandate, let him have the courage to face their questions.

“A President who seeks the people’s mandate must be prepared to face the people. Surrogates may carry the message, but they cannot carry the burden of accountability.”