Fresh cracks have emerged within the political movement that backed Peter Obi during the 2023 presidential election, following the announcement of a major restructuring that led to the expulsion of Obi, Yunusa Tanko, and other prominent figures associated with the group.
At a press briefing in Abuja on Thursday, leaders of the movement announced the disbandment of the #Obidient Movement and unveiled a rebranded structure now known as the #OBEDIENT Movement, declaring that the organisation would no longer operate under the influence or control of Obi and his loyalists.
The group’s International Coordinator, Barry Avotu Johnson, said the decision was driven by concerns that the original ideals of the movement had allegedly been compromised after the 2023 elections.
According to him, the movement’s founders believed the structure had drifted away from its founding principles and had become vulnerable to what he described as “political prostitution” and exploitation for “personal advantage and private gains.”
Johnson stated that the rebranding became necessary because “after the 2023 elections, the original vision and founding ideals of the #Obidient Movement were no longer adequately represented by those who assumed control of its structure.”
He further clarified that the newly rebranded #OBEDIENT Movement had not adopted any presidential candidate ahead of the 2027 general elections and had formally severed ties with the Labour Party.
The announcement marks a significant twist in Nigeria’s evolving opposition politics ahead of the next electoral cycle, especially considering the strong youth-driven momentum the Obidient movement generated during the 2023 elections.
The group also announced the immediate expulsion of Obi, Yunusa Tanko, and all persons appointed under what it described as an “unauthorised leadership structure” that emerged after the last general elections.
