Veteran Nigerian comedian, Atunyota Akpobome, popularly known as Alibaba has revealed some political strategies he learned from former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo.

In an interview with Outside the Box Podcast, aired on YouTube on Saturday, Alibaba shed light on the political dynamics in Nigeria, disclosing the steps required to win a presidential election in the country.

According to Alibaba, Obasanjo thought he was venturing into politics and, in their discussion, outlined a series of strategic moves essential for success in Nigerian politics.

“Ali, I’m happy you’re catching up with politics but you still have a lot to learn, like how you get governors and presidents elected,” Alibaba quoted Obasanjo.

Reading from a chat with Obasanjo, Alibaba explained that one of the key insights was the importance of securing the support of certain state governors to win a presidential race.

According to Obasanjo, a candidate needs at least seven governors to have a viable chance of winning a presidential election.

Alibaba said, “You need seven governors to win an election: Lagos, Bayelsa, Delta, Rivers, Kano, Kaduna and the CBN governor. Then I said Kano and Kaduna don’t have money, he said that is for numbers, and what it money, that is numbers too.”

Reading further, he said, “You need 44 of the most popular senatorial districts. You need to have awarded 10 contracts and 15% of that contract can give you a marginal impact at the polls. And you must award this contract in your first year of assumption of office.”

“If you don’t do that then, you can’t ask the people for anything because when you give them at the first year of your getting into office, when it’s time for elections you just tell them ‘Do you want to continue this contract or…?'” Alibaba added.

The ace comedian revealed that their conversation also delved into the importance of strategic appointments.

Obasanjo reportedly emphasised the need to hand-pick key officials such as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, the Inspector-General of Police, the Comptroller-General of Customs, the head of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, and the Central Bank Governor.

According to Alibaba, Obasanjo also advised that pending cases of corrupt former governors who are “loaded” should be suspended.

“You must suspend pending cases of corrupt past governors who are loaded,” Alibaba quoted Obasanjo.

Alibaba explained that these governors could be pivotal allies, especially as they control substantial financial resources.


https://punchng.com/video-infiltrate-parties-secure-governors-alibaba-outlines-obasanjos-political-strategies-for-winning-election/