Federal Government of Nigeria has challenged the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, to clarify his position on a leaked audio of the conversation he had with the founder of Living Faith Church Worldwide, Bishop David Oyedepo.
Gatekeepers News reports that the Minister of Information and Culture Lai Mohammed, on Monday in London, called on Obi to clarify what he meant by saying the leaked conversation was “a fake doctored audio call.”
Mohammed said: “I need to draw the attention of Nigerians to the recently leaked audio of a conversation between the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, and the cleric.
“The leaked audio rattled Nigerians because we heard Obi pleading with the cleric to interfere on his behalf to convince Christians that this is a religious war and they should support him.”
He added, “If it is fake, it means it never took place. But if it is doctored, it means there was that conversation, but it was manipulated. Obi needs to come out and make clarification whether the conversation did not take place or it took place but it was doctored. If it was doctored, which part of it was doctored? Is it the beginning, the middle or the end, or is it the ‘Yes Daddy’ part of it, or where he said it was a ‘religious war’?”
Mohammed said the leaked audio confirmed the position that Obi’s electioneering was based on religion and ethnicity, claiming it was the first time in the history of Nigeria’s elections that a politician would come out openly to campaign on the grounds of religion and ethnicity.
“From the outcome of the presidential election, you will see that Obi got his vote mostly from areas where he comes from and his religious leaning. This is not good for the politics of Nigeria, and it is very dangerous,” the minister alleged.
“As a result of this kind of campaign, Nigeria is more divided than ever, and people are being heard commenting either based on their religious position or ethnic origin.”
Gatekeepers News reports that in the leaked audio, Obi reportedly called Bishop David Oyedepo on the eve of the election, to help him solicit votes from Christians in the South-West and in central states like Kwara, Kogi and Niger.
“Daddy, I need you to speak to your people in the South-West and Kwara, the Christians in the South-West and Kwara. This is a religious war. Like I keep saying: if this works, you people will never regret the support,” he was heard in the audio.
“I believe that, I believe that, I believe that,” Oyedepo said in response.
“Like I keep saying: if this works, you people will never regret the support,” Obi said with candour, adding that Christians in places like Kogi, Kwara and Niger have been difficult to penetrate.
“We look forward to God’s intervention,” Oyedepo said, promising to circulate more messages to Christians on Mr Obi’s behalf.
Meanwhile, the Spokesperson for the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) Kenneth Okonkwo said “Obi was simply urging the Bishop to help him push this message of equal stake of all Nigerians in the Nigerian project to his people and the Christendom because the politicians of the other party is carrying on this campaign as if it is a religious war.”
Obi, however, described the audio as ‘a fake doctored audio call’, saying it was a plot to put “pressure on me to leave the country.”
“Let me reiterate that the audio call being circulated is fake, and at no time throughout the campaign and now did I ever say, think, or even imply that the 2023 election is, or was a religious war.”
