How EndSARS Movement Aided Peter Obi’s Emergence – Wole Soyinka

Posted by Nwa Diokpa Latest Headlines, News Across Nigeria Wednesday, April 5th, 2023

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – Nobel Laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka, says the emergence of Mr Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), is a result of the consequence of the “EndSARS movement”.

The African Examiner recalls that the EndSARS movement was a peaceful protest against police brutality, held across Nigeria in October 2020.

Soyinka, speaking in an interview with Arise TV on Wednesday, attributed Obi’s popularity to the EndSars campaign.

He said: “For me, the emergence of the Peter Obi movement is the consequence of events like the EndSARS movement, and all this is done with a democratic spirit, persuasion, campaigning, mobilizing and sometimes even tutoring a prospective candidate.

“Whether or not my position at the time towards Atiku or Tinubu was correct or not is not important. What I am trying to tell you is that we acted out of conviction and therefore, we have absolutely no reason to appear even to be against any new generational possibility when the time for election came.

“I have been distressed, however, by this certain aspect of this movement and we have not come this way, made all the sacrifices to watch the entire procedure being jeopardized permanently with unpredictable consequences if we get to a situation where threatening language is being used.”