A close ally of Peter Obi, Ibrahim Hussain, has provided insight into the reason behind former Anambra State governor’s strategic philanthropy toward nursing schools across Nigeria.
In a revealing Daily Trust interview from 9:57, Hussain recounted a personal conversation with the former Labour Party presidential candidate about his educational contributions: “I have always had this conversation with Mr. Peter Obi. He said ‘Ibrahim, do you know why I’m donating money to the School of Nursing?’ I said, ‘Why?”
According to Hussain, Obi explained his forward-thinking approach: “He said, ‘Because I don’t want to come in as a president and get confused.’ One of the things I realized that I have to do is called move Nigeria from consumption to production. It’s ultimately healthy people that can do production. Sick people cannot do production. So, we need knowledge, which is education, and also health.”
He noted how Obi outlined his specific healthcare plans: “He said, ‘I’m planning to see how I’m going to revive all the primary health centers. At least, put three nurses there.’ So, if I’m thinking of that, I have to start thinking of what the position is going to be before I become a presidential candidate. Go and look at all what the other people are doing. Who among them is thinking towards this direction?'”
Shifting to coalition politics, Hussain challenged assertions that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar possesses superior political credentials to Obi. “Atiku got 6.9 million votes from an existing party with governors and House of Reps members. Peter Obi got 6.1 million votes without structure, with no governor. He won 11 states plus Abuja, which is 12 states, won 12 states outright winning, and President Tinubu won 12 states.”
The Obi ally indicated that these metrics should inform coalition discussions as he questioned Atiku’s independent political strength without the PDP. “What we are trying to see is that if you are coming to coalition and you want to know who becomes what in that coalition, it is for you now to make the analysis. If we remove the PDP, where is the structure of Atiku Abubakar? We all know that the PDP is having a problem today.”
