those who disagree with Obasanjo’s support of Obi as undemocratic

Yesterday, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) slammed as “anarchists” those politicians who criticized the former president Olusegun Obasanjo’s public support of Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP).

The opposition, they said, was already demonstrating that, if elected, they would be intolerant of other viewpoints and would even turn into autocrats.

The former Anambra State governor, in the opinion of the esteemed statesman, “is amenable to corrections if he goes wrong because he is responsive and receptive to corrections; and the Labour Party candidate has indisputable credibility in all facets of leadership and, therefore, can be trusted to deliver quality leadership if elected Nigerian President in the coming presidential election,” according to an Obasanjo letter endorsing Obi’s candidacy.

As the APC standard-bearer, Bola Tinubu, reportedly said, he pitied Obi because his endorser (Obasanjo) “cannot win his polling unit, therefore Obi is at risk for associating with the former President and as such, the endorsement is meaningless.” HURIWA recalled that the endorsement had drawn criticism from the other political formations, including the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

HURIWA questioned Tinubu in a statement from its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, who also expressed amazement at Tinubu’s claim that he had just visited Obasanjo in his Abeokuta, Ogun State home to solicit his support.

The statement reads: “The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which broadly outlines the human rights that each of us possesses, enshrines the right to freedom of speech in Article 19. A number of international and regional conventions eventually served to safeguard it. Ideas that may be very insulting are nonetheless protected under the right to free speech or expression. While free speech is protected by international law, Section 39 of Chapter 4 of the Federal Republic of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution (as amended) expresses the need for all governments and people to treat fundamental freedoms with the utmost respect. Section 39 also states that everyone has the right to freedom of expression, which includes the freedom to hold opinions and to criticize others.