Peter Obi has made a strong pledge ahead of the 2027 presidential election, promising to defend his votes.
The former presidential candidate spoke at an “Obi Talks Nigeria” town hall in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
He urged Nigerians to prevent a repeat of alleged irregularities recorded during the 2023 election.
Obi said voters must stand together at polling units to prevent intimidation and election manipulation.
“Nobody will intimidate us again at the polling booth. If you get to any polling booth today, the highest number of officials you see is five. The average number of voters is 40 to 50. There is no way five people will intimidate 50 people.”
He then made a strong statement about his readiness to defend the electoral process.
“This time all of us will rescue our country. Somebody said, ‘We are ready to d+e! Let me tell you, l’m ready to d+e too.”
Obi also warned that attempts to manipulate the Independent National Electoral Commission’s Results Viewing Portal could face stronger resistance.
“We will make sure we have coordination to ensure that such intimidation does not arise. Yes, they will try to m@nipulate the IReV. But let me tell you, it will not be easy this time,” he said.
He suggested having backup systems available if technical problems affect the result-viewing process.
“There will be so many IReVs this time. If there is a network glitch, we will give them another one that has no glitch,” he added.
Obi said election problems have serious effects on Nigerians beyond voting day.
“By allowing them to continue, that glitch will glitch our lives. That is what we are suffering today,” Obi said.
NDC Vice Presidential Candidate Rabiu Kwankwaso also urged Nigerians to make careful choices in 2027.
“I believe that Nigerians must not make mistakes again. This is the time to get it right. And anything to the contrary, I believe people, if they make a mistake, certainly people will regret making that mistake. Because it will be too costly for the people and the country.”
The 2027 election remains a major focus as political parties prepare for the next presidential contest.
