A revelation has emerged from former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Dr. David Babachir Lawal, who boldly declared today that Peter Gregory Obi of the Labour Party (LP) secured victory in the presidential election held on February 25, 2023.
This surprising announcement contradicts the official results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which declared Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the winner of the presidential race.
Dr. Babachir Lawal, known for his close ties to Bola Tinubu, based his assertion on what he referred to as “available factual data” gathered from various independent sources. According to him, these sources indicated that Obi had garnered the majority of votes, with Atiku Abubakar coming in second place.
In his strongly worded statement issued in Abuja, Babachir Lawal expressed, “I have resisted the temptation to engage in the contemporary political discourse since the May 2023 election faux pas. I did this for two reasons; the first being that as an active player in the drama, I needed time to analyze and digest the data that led to the outcome(s) so I could arrive at an informed decision; the second, being that the rainy season had just set in and it was necessary that I focused my attention on my farms which are the mainstay of my livelihood.”
The central question now dominating political discussions is whether Bola Tinubu indeed won the presidential election and whether he was ethically qualified to participate in the election, given the recent revelations about his background.
Babachir Lawal unequivocally asserted, “My answer to the first inquiry is that regardless of whatever INEC or Appeal Court said or did, Bola did not win the election. Right from the start of the campaigns, Bola knew he was not going to win the election in a free and fair contest, so he decided to go by all means. Available factual data as aggregated from several independent sources indicate that Obi got the majority votes while Atiku came second. Bola came a distant third in the number of votes scored.”
Regarding the second inquiry, Lawal suggested that Tinubu should have voluntarily withdrawn from the election due to the “deluge of uncomplimentary information” about him, stating, “Leadership is all about integrity; sound pedigree, trustworthiness, and the ability to unite and instill hope and confidence in the people one seeks to lead. In these qualities, most Nigerians are in total agreement that Bola has them in very very short supply indeed.”
He further criticized the current state of affairs under Tinubu’s leadership, highlighting concerns about insecurity, economic challenges, and political appointments. Babachir Lawal concluded by stating, “Fuel prices will continue to gallop upwards until only they can afford it; the Naira will continue to race downhill in a free-fall until only they can afford anything in the market; insecurity will continue its escalation until every community in the nation is consumed by it.”
This shocking revelation by a prominent political figure has thrown the 2023 presidential election results into turmoil, and it is expected to generate significant debate and controversy in Nigeria’s political landscape.