2027 elections: Peter Obi clarifies ‘ready to die’ stance

The 2027 presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Development Congress, Peter Obi, has clarified his recent remark that he was “ready to die” for his votes, saying the statement was symbolic and not a call for violence.

Obi made the clarification during an interview on Arise TV on Thursday, explaining that the remark was made in response to comments by a participant at a recent gathering in Port Harcourt.

According to Obi, the participant had said Nigerians were prepared to die to defend their votes in the 2027 election. He said his response was intended to encourage the participants and demonstrate his personal commitment to protecting the votes of Nigerians.

Obi explains controversial remark

Obi said the statement had been taken out of context by those who did not listen to the full conversation. He explained that the Port Harcourt gathering was largely about listening to Nigerians and responding to their concerns rather than making political declarations.

“Well, you see, people didn’t listen. What I did in Port Harcourt is more of listening to the people. It wasn’t me talking. They were asking questions,” Obi said.

He explained that one of the participants declared that Nigerians were ready to die to defend their votes, prompting him to respond in solidarity.

“And one of them said, we are prepared to die this time to defend our votes. And I said to encourage them that I’m prepared to die with them. It’s symbolic,” he said.

Obi stressed that his intention was to emphasise the importance of ensuring that every vote cast during the election is protected, accurately recorded and counted.

“What we are saying is that we are prepared to ensure that our vote counts, and it must count,” he said.

Obi promises vote monitoring system

The former Anambra State governor also outlined plans by his team to monitor election results from polling units across the country.

Obi said the process would involve ensuring that votes were properly counted and recorded at each polling unit before the results were transmitted.

“We must make sure that at every polling unit, the votes are counted, the votes are recorded properly, the votes are transmitted properly,” he said.

He added that his team planned to establish a system that would allow election results to be transmitted through an additional channel, alongside the official process.

“And we will have even a dual transmission so that as it’s going to the proper designated INEC portal, it’s also being transmitted where the people can see it,” Obi said.

He said the arrangement would help improve transparency and enable Nigerians to independently follow the collation and transmission of results.

Focus remains on protecting votes

Obi’s clarification comes amid growing political attention to the 2027 general election and concerns over the credibility of the electoral process.

By describing his earlier “die” remark as symbolic, he sought to distinguish his position from any suggestion that violence should be used during the election.

His comments instead focused on voter participation, proper documentation of results and the need for citizens and political actors to ensure that votes are not lost or improperly recorded.

Obi maintained that the central message from the Port Harcourt gathering was the determination to ensure that Nigerians’ votes count and that the results reflect the choices made by voters at the polling units.