Nigeria’s Minister of Arts, Culture, and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, has asserted that former Anambra State Governor and Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi lacks the political structure and regional support necessary to win elections in Nigeria’s core northern states.
Musawa, a long-time supporter of former President Muhammadu Buhari, likened Obi’s political movement to Buhari’s early presidential bids, which repeatedly failed due to the absence of broad national backing.
“In the core North, there is nothing Peter Obi can do that will secure him election victories,” Musawa said in an interview with Seun Okinbaloye on Mic On. “Peter Obi reminds me of Buhari.”
She recalled that despite Buhari’s popularity in the North between 2003 and 2011, electoral success remained elusive until a strategic alliance was formed with Bola Tinubu, whose support in the South proved decisive.
“I was a Buharist from 2003. What Peter Obi represents reminds me exactly of Buhari’s movement in 2003, 2007, and 2011. We believed Buhari alone could win, but we couldn’t deliver on our own,” she said.
Musawa emphasized that Buhari only won the presidency in 2015 after a political “bridge” was established between the North and South-West through Tinubu’s political machinery.
“It was not until we had that bridge with President Tinubu giving us base support in the South that we were able to win,” she said. “On our own as Buharists, we failed. Peter Obi is in exactly the same situation.”
She dismissed suggestions that Obi could turn his fortunes around in northern Nigeria, stressing that regional voting patterns remain deeply entrenched.
“Unlike in the South, if you put Peter Obi in the North, he’s not going to win. In the core North, there’s absolutely nothing he can do to achieve electoral success,” she added.
Peter Obi, who rose to prominence during the 2023 presidential election, enjoys strong support among young voters and urban populations, particularly in the South and parts of the Middle Belt.
