“You cannot invoke Ojukwu to mask your own shadows”, Peter Obi's aide, Obienyem, replies Onoh

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By Madu Obi

Awka- Mr. Valentine Obienyem, Media Adviser to the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election, Mr. Peter Obi, has reacted to the statement made by Dr. Josef Onoh, the brother in-law to the late Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, where he attacked Obi’s political integrity and one-term vow, describing the comments as morally hollow and politically opportunistic.

Onoh had accused Obi of reneging on a promise to Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, and said that despite Peter Obi’s claim that “his word is his bond,” his political record suggests otherwise.

He also alleged that Obi did not keep his promise to Ojukwu, highlighting this as an example of Obi’s political expediency.

Dismissing the position of Onoh as both distasteful and desperate, Obienyem challenged him to name those promises Obi reneged on.

In a statement made available to Vanguard, Obienyem said: “It is unbefitting for Dr. Onoh to drag Ojukwu’s name into cheap political commentary.

“Mr. Obi treated Ojukwu with deep affection, visiting him over ten times in a UK hospital. Upon Ojukwu’s death, Obi, who had just returned from visiting him and was at the Abuja airport, immediately switched on his phone.

"Looking pale and sullen, he showed me a message from Ojukwu’s wife, Bianca, which read: ‘Thank you very much. You have tried your best. He is gone. I am in pains.’

Obi had to take the next available flight to Lagos and returned to London that same morning on Virgin Atlantic, where he managed to secure an economy ticket.

He did this out of profound respect for Ojukwu. To the best of my knowledge, Onoh did not even make a phone call, let alone visit once to see his brother-in-law or his sister, who tended to him with deep affection.

Even in death, Mr. Obi’s reverence for Ojukwu was unmistakable. The burial accorded Ojukwu, organized under Obi’s leadership, remains one of the best in history. While funerals should not ordinarily be used as political yardsticks, the scale, solemnity, and dignity of that ceremony reflected the depth of respect Obi had for him."

He also condemned what he called, ‘the reckless invocation of revered Igbo names like Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe and Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu by those he described as political opportunists desperate for visibility and favour.

“I sincerely doubt if others from other parts of the country would take in vain the name of their dead prominent people in such a disrespectful manner. Why then do some Igbo politicians degrade their own icons this way?” Obienyem asked.

He also criticized Onoh’s political inconsistency, describing it as rooted in “stomach infrastructure, rather than principle.”

“Here is someone who vigorously defended Tinubu in 2023, only to turn against the same administration after failing to secure an appointment. Now, with elections approaching, he is once again signalling his readiness to be used - even against his own people", he stated.

He further described Onoh’s public utterances as “abrasive, self-serving, immature, and driven more by ambition than reason.”

Reaffirming Mr. Peter Obi’s one-term vow, Obienyem stated: “Obi’s commitment reflects a deep sense of responsible leadership and moral clarity. For someone like Josef Onoh, dogged by controversy and demonstrably lacking a moral compass, to question that vow, is both ironic and offensive.

“Let him name one promise Obi made and failed to keep. Obi’s record speaks for itself.”

Obienyem also dismissed arguments against single-term leadership, asserting that the framers of Nigeria’s Constitution were not naive in prescribing a renewable four-year term.

“Their intent was clear - and within that constitutional framework, a leader still has every moral right to voluntarily commit to serving only one term, especially to achieve noble end such as respect for equity as represented by zoning.

“In a sane society, character matters. Before one throws stones, they must ensure the platform beneath them is not riddled with rot. Dr. Josef Onoh lacks the moral standing to speak on Mr. Obi - or on any matter requiring sober reflection", Obienyem concluded.