The Presidency has dismissed claims by the 2027 presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, that the Federal Government is targeting him and could prevent him from participating in the 2027 general election.
Responding to an inquiry on Wednesday, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, described Obi’s allegations as baseless, saying they were intended to generate public sympathy.
Onanuga was reacting to comments made by Obi during an interview on With Chude, hosted by media personality Chude Jideonwo. During the interview, the former Anambra State governor alleged that the government was deliberately frustrating his activities and suggested he might not be alive to contest the 2027 presidential election.
“I might not even be alive. Every single thing I do for a living, this government is frustrating it—deliberately so. There is even a possibility, if they have the opportunity, I will not be alive,” Obi said.
In response, Onanuga dismissed the allegations, describing them as another example of what he called Obi’s “book of lies and propaganda.”
He also rejected Obi’s claim that the government was responsible for an incident involving his vehicle at an airport, arguing that, based on Obi’s own account, the incident appeared to have resulted from a breach of parking regulations.
According to the presidential spokesman, Obi was attempting to portray personal inconveniences as government persecution.
Onanuga further denied Obi’s allegation that individuals were being pressured not to invite him to social events and rejected suggestions that the politician’s life was under threat ahead of the 2027 election.
“His claim that he may not be alive for the January 2027 election and that people are being pressured not to invite him to social events is nothing more than a fabricated narrative,” Onanuga said, adding that the allegations lacked substance and were intended to attract sympathy and divert attention from challenges facing Obi and his political platform.
The presidential aide also dismissed suggestions that the Federal Government was targeting Fidelity Bank Plc, in which Obi has an interest.
According to him, the financial institution continues to operate successfully under the current administration’s economic reforms, insisting that there is no government campaign against the bank.
Onanuga maintained that the administration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu remains focused on implementing its economic and governance reforms and has no interest in persecuting political opponents.
He said the government would not be distracted by what he described as Obi’s “self-serving narratives,” insisting that the administration’s priority remains policies aimed at improving the lives of Nigerians.
Obi has yet to publicly respond to the Presidency’s latest remarks.
