Peter Obi Admits No Evidence He Won 2023 Election, Maintains He Won

Former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi has acknowledged that he has no evidence to prove that he won the 2023 presidential election, while maintaining his belief that he emerged victorious.

Obi made the statement during a recent interview with BBC Africa, where he was questioned about his long-standing claim that the election was rigged.

Asked whether he had evidence to establish that he won the election, Obi initially responded, “There’s no evidence. Everything is not based on evidence.”

He, however, immediately reaffirmed his position, saying, “I won the election and that’s where I will end.”

Obi maintains election was rigged

The former Anambra State governor was also asked why he continued to claim that the 2023 election was rigged despite his legal challenges being dismissed by the courts.

“I don’t like going back to the past. I sustain what I said,” Obi said.

The Independent National Electoral Commission declared Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress the winner of the 2023 presidential election, with Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party finishing second and Obi third.

Obi and Atiku challenged the results at the Presidential Election Petition Court, but their petitions were dismissed. The Supreme Court subsequently upheld Tinubu’s victory.

Obi explains position on fuel subsidy

During the interview, Obi also addressed his position on fuel subsidy and rejected suggestions that he had changed his stance on the issue.

“I’ve not changed. What has changed is that whenever I talk about methodology, people say, oh, it has changed,” he said.

Obi said his position had always included concerns about corruption within the subsidy system, arguing that the problem was not simply the existence of subsidy but how it was administered.

“I talked about the corruption. The corruption is the problem of the subsidy,” he said.

‘I would be in charge’ of anti-corruption fight

Asked how he would tackle corruption if elected president, Obi said he would personally take responsibility for the fight.

“If you are not stealing, if you are not involved, your wife and family are not involved, you reduce it by 50 percent,” he said.

When asked about corruption during the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari, Obi said his approach would be different because he would personally oversee the anti-corruption campaign.

“He wasn’t in charge. The difference is this. I would be in charge,” Obi said.

Obi rejects stepping-down question

The Labour Party candidate was also asked whether he would withdraw from the 2027 presidential race if opposition parties agreed to support another candidate.

Obi rejected the premise of the question, arguing that opposition parties should concentrate on increasing voter mobilisation rather than asking candidates to step aside.

“We don’t need to step down. We need to do the right thing,” he said.

His comments come as opposition parties and political figures continue discussions over possible cooperation ahead of the 2027 general elections.