A former member of the Labour Party and close associate of Peter Obi, Doyin Okupe, on Tuesday revealed that the party was merely a “special purpose vehicle” for their political ambitions.
Okupe, a self-proclaimed liberal democrat, while speaking during an interview on Arise TV, stated that he and Obi, a businessman and trader, never truly identified with the Labour Party’s leftist ideology.
“Peter Obi is not a labour person. He is not a leftist person, he is a trader, he is a businessman just like me. I am a liberal democrat, I believe in liberal democracy, I believe in free enterprise.
“I am not a social worker. As far as I’m concerned, my membership of labour expired the moment we lost that election,” he said.
Okupe clarified that his membership in the Labour Party expired after their electoral defeat, and he no longer considers himself a part of the party. He emphasized that he is not a social worker and never operated on the left, but rather used the party as a means to an end.
According to Okupe, if they had won the election, they would have sought to find common ground with the Labour Party and move towards the center, as there are no hard and fast rules about ideologies.
However, this plan was never realized, and Okupe has since distanced himself from the party.
“The LP for us — for Peter Obi and I — and those in the leadership of the movement… the party was a special purpose vehicle (SPV).
“I have never been a labour person, I have never operated on the left before but we needed a platform and this was the only platform readily available to us.
“We thought that if we won the election… there are no fast and hard rules about ideologies. You can always find a shade between the left and the right. You can always move to the centre.
“We were hoping and praying that if we won we would find a way to come to some consensus with the labour.”
This bombshell interview has sparked controversy and raised questions about the true intentions of Peter Obi and his associates during their time in the Labour Party.
Okupe’s candid admission has shed light on the political maneuvering and ideological flexibility of some Nigerian politicians, leaving many to wonder about the authenticity of their political beliefs.
