Peter Obi: I won 2023 election but there’s no evidence

Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), stated in a recent BBC Africa interview that he has no evidence to support his claim that he won the 2023 presidential election. However, he remains convinced of his victory. During the interview, Obi explained, "There's no evidence. Everything is not based on evidence."

Despite the lack of evidence, Obi affirmed, "I won the election and that's where I will end. I don’t like going back to the past. I won the election (2023). Well, there's no evidence but I won the election." The interviewer followed up on Obi's repeated claims that the 2023 election was rigged, despite his legal challenge to the outcome being dismissed by the courts.

Obi responded: "I don’t like going back to the past. I sustain what I said." In the 2023 election, Obi, running under the Labour Party banner, finished third with 6,101,533 votes. Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) won the election with 8,794,726 votes, while Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) secured 6,984,520 votes.

Obi and his party challenged the results before the Presidential Election Petitions Court, citing electoral irregularities and non-compliance with electoral laws. The court dismissed the petition on September 6, 2023, and confirmed Tinubu's victory. Obi then appealed to the Supreme Court, but the court upheld the lower court's decision on October 26, 2023, affirming Tinubu's election.

The Supreme Court dismissed Obi's appeal, ruling that it had no merit. Despite the judicial verdict, Obi continues to hold onto his belief that the 2023 election did not accurately represent the voters' choices. Currently, the former Anambra State governor is preparing for another presidential contest in 2027, this time as the candidate of the NDC.