Factual Pursuit of Truth for Progress
A spokespeople of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign Committee, Senator Dino Melaye, has alleged that supporters of the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi are being paid to march on the streets.
Melaye, who made the claim while featuring on a television programme, on Monday, said that their rally in the streets of Nigeria would not determine what way presidential election would swing in 2023.
The former Kogi West lawmaker was reacting to one million-man march for Peter Obi, over the weekend in Abuja.
According to him, the 2023 presidential election will be between PDP’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar and others including the candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Labour Party, and New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP).
He insisted that the so-called Obi supporters are just hungry Nigerians who are paid N1000 to N2000 and assembled from all parts of Abuja and Nigeria, in general, to say they are Obi-dients.
“Just like if you go to court, they’ll say Federal Government vs Dino Melaye and others and this particular case you have Atiku Abubakar and others including the APC, Labour Party, SDP, NNPP all of them are others in this regard.
“And I want to tell you that to assemble a crowd is just to bring out the money. Mobilization is very very cheap in this country.
“People are hungry. If you go to Nyanya, Mararaba people were being loaded in buses from Lugbe and every part of the country to stand and say they’re supporting…let them go to the election.”
He added, “I think Peter Obi was in Osun. He spoke in Osun, and we saw the result of the Labour Party in Osun – 2700 votes – while PDP was counting four hundred and something thousand votes… so it’s not about the commercial mobilization of the people.
“Nigerians are hungry definitely; if you go to Mararaba today to say you need 5000 people with the blow of a whistle, they’ll assemble and collect their N1000 or N2000. It is not the match on the streets that will determine the votes.
“We’re talking of proper votes and Nigerians know that Atiku is speaking to the issues. We’re not on hype movements.”