A well-known tribal "warlord" on Twitter was last week quoted as saying "only Nigerians tired of bad governance will vote LP". Unfortunately, that statement was an attempt by that pseudo-nationalist to manipulate patriotic Nigerians into voting for a tribal candidate who stands no chance whatsoever in the 2023 Presidential election apart from acting as a spoiler hellbent on enhancing the fortunes of our oppressors.

The 2023 Presidential election must not be reduced to an ethnicity contest or a circus run by an emergency church attendee trying to manipulate churchgoers into thinking he has an overnight solution that could transform Nigeria into Dubai overnight. A magic wand he failed to use as Governor of Anambra state for 8 years where public hospitals and universities were closed for over a year and many people died.

Wisdom and foolishness are not the same. According to the Institute Of Security Studies, there have been more than 40 peaceful (post-election) leadership changes on the African continent since 1990. But only in 16 cases that involved 13 countries has the opposition triumphed. This clearly tells us that opposition wins on the African continent don't come cheap.

The padded results of the 2019 presidential elections indicated a difference of 3,928, 869 between the APC and the PDP. This figure included trees and ghosts counted by the APC and included in the final results. The actual figure was 1,615,302 votes in favor of the PDP.

The 2023 Presidential election is expected to be different with the introduction of the BVAS and increased voter awareness. The number of votes and margin of a win by any candidate is expected to be smaller and tighter.

There are 21 APC governors trying to shove Tinubu down our throats, this excludes the sea of other federal and state appointees hellbent of ensuring that the current disasters in government are sustained.

At the Republican State Convention in Springfield, Illinois on the 16th of June, 1858, Abraham Lincoln paraphrased Matthew 12:25, when he spoke of a house divided:

And Jesus knew their [the Pharisees'] thoughts, and said unto them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house.

To Judge APC for the calamity they brought upon us is up to God, but to ensure they never win the 2023 Presidential elections is a duty that requires the efforts of all patriotic Nigerians with the ability to see beyond their noses, tribes, or religion.

Nigeria's best chance of getting rid of the current cankerworms in government is to identify and queue behind the strongest opposition party and a candidate with the capacity to wrestle power from our oppressors. Dividing our votes among parties we know cannot win will only enthrone our oppressors.

As of today, that party is PDP with H.E. Atiku Abubakar as its Presidential candidate and Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa as his running mate. A vote for LP or Peter Obi is an indirect vote for APC and Tinubu the Bulaba coroner, a mistake that comes with tragic consequences.

May God Help Us to Help Ourselves On the 25th of February 2023.

Dr. Oche Otorkpa (FRSPH-UK)