The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has said he has no evidence to substantiate his claim that he won the 2023 presidential election, but maintained that he still believes he won the contest.
Obi made the statement during a recent interview with BBC Africa while responding to questions about his repeated claim that the 2023 presidential election was rigged against him.
When asked whether he had evidence to prove that he won the election, the former Anambra State governor responded, “There’s no evidence. Everything is not based on evidence.” He, however, immediately reaffirmed his position, saying, “I won the election and that’s where I will end.”
Obi, who contested the 2023 election on the platform of the Labour Party, was also asked about the legal challenges he mounted against the election result. His petition was dismissed by the Presidential Election Petition Court, and the Supreme Court subsequently upheld President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s victory. Obi nevertheless said he did not want to dwell on the past, adding, “I don’t like going back to the past. I sustain what I said.”
According to the results declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) won the 2023 presidential election with 8,794,726 votes, followed by Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with 6,984,520 votes, while Obi came third with 6,101,533 votes.
Obi is now preparing for the 2027 presidential election, where he is expected to contest on the platform of the NDC. During the interview, he also discussed issues including fuel subsidy, corruption and his approach to governance if elected president.
