Akin Osuntokun has been initially announced by Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi as the new Director General of the Obi-Datti Presidential Campaign Council.
On Tuesday, hours after Julious Abure, the national chairman of the Labour Party, announced the appointment of the former political adviser to former president Olusegun Obasanjo, Obi formally revealed Osuntokun in Abuja.
Following the unveiling event, Obi answered questions from reporters and stated that Nigeria will continue to be an IDP camp as long as people were being forcibly ejected from their homes to live in camps for internally displaced people.
The LP candidate added that his desire was founded on his belief that Nigerians deserve better leadership than they now receive.
Peter Obi said, “We are trying to build a better Nigeria. Over this period, I have been traveling, I have been in various states visiting people in difficult positions, and living in IDP camps.
“If Nigerians are made to leave their homes and live in IDP camps, then Nigeria as a country is an IDP camp because these are Nigerians that should be in their homes.
“The purpose of government is to care for its citizens and the first line of care is the less privileged, government takes care of the less privileged people.
“My commitment is to ensure that every Nigerian sleeps and wakes up feeling proud to be a Nigerian and not live in an IDP camp.”
When asked whether the most recent projection put him at a disadvantage compared to the other competitors, Obi responded, “Projection is different from (opinion) polls. A poll is when you ask actual people, a projection is when you imagine, they are two different things.”
He expressed optimism that young people in Nigeria, whom he classified as resourceful and diligent, are motivated to take back the country and make it work for everyone this time around.
He claims that young people in Nigeria are not lazy; rather, they are simply searching for opportunity to compete well with their peers on the international stage. He said the sort of leadership he and his group were providing Nigerians would make such ambitions come true.
In a previous statement, he clarified that removing Okupe as Campaign DG did not necessitate a shift in strategy.
He stated that the party’s pledge to retake Nigeria from the forces that have left it in ruins is still part of its campaign plan.
Dr. Doyin Okupe, who had resigned from the job, was succeeded by Osuntokun.
This has put a stop to weeks’ worth of rumors surrounding Doyin Okupe’s potential successor.
Okupe had left his job in order to appeal his money laundering conviction.
He chose to pay N13 million as a fine rather than serve a two-year prison sentence for the offense.
Osuntokun served as the Obi-Datti Campaign’s Zonal Coordinator (South) before to his appointment.
He is a professional political scientist from Nigeria with expertise in media advocacy, policy research and implementation, and political analysis. He is also an accomplished strategist, researcher, administrator, journalist, and writer.
Osuntokun formerly held the positions of political adviser to former president Olusegun Obasanjo and director of the People’s Democratic Party’s presidential campaign in 2011. He was also the managing director of the News Agency of Nigeria at one point.
He is said to bring a wealth of political and media expertise to his new role.
