I’m More Qualified Than Peter Obi, Kwankwaso to Be President — Seriake Dickson
Senator Seriake Dickson has declared that he possesses stronger credentials to contest for Nigeria’s highest office than former presidential candidates Peter Obi and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, although he said he deliberately decided against pursuing the presidency.
The former Bayelsa State governor made the remarks during an interview on Arise Television’s Prime Time programme on Wednesday, where he spoke extensively about the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), the party’s leadership and its relationship with Obi ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Dickson maintained that the NDC leadership played a major role in providing a political platform for Obi without placing any financial demand on him.
According to the senator, neither Obi nor his running mate paid any amount to secure the party’s presidential and vice-presidential tickets.
He argued that the growing belief that the NDC was benefiting from Obi’s popularity was inaccurate, insisting that the party was instead extending an opportunity to the former Labour Party presidential candidate.
“If we didn’t like them, if they are not people who have confidence in me or I have confidence in them, we wouldn’t offer the platform.
“And they didn’t pay one naira. They didn’t pay ‘shishi’. Okay, nobody pays ‘shishi’.
“So, if a presidential candidate didn’t pay shishi to be made sole presidential candidate, and a vice-presidential candidate didn’t pay shishi to become sole vice-presidential candidate, that same party cannot be the one saying …
“I think that I have to be given the credit. There is no one more qualified than me to run for the presidency. And for some reasons, I did not want to.
“So don’t make it look like anyone is doing me and the NDC a favour. No one is. Rather, the NDC is the one granting a platform, and that narrative is important.”
The senator also dismissed reports suggesting that there is a crisis within the NDC over Obi’s emergence. He described the former Anambra governor as a respected member of the party and insisted that both sides are working together without any internal conflict.
According to Dickson, some of the tension being reported is being fuelled by individuals who claim to support Obi while attacking the party and its leadership.
“You cannot be supporting Peter Obi, if you are genuinely supportive, and at the same time discouraging me, the leader, or the platform itself. That is nonsense. If it were easy for people to form a party, if it were easy…
“Now, before Peter, I received Binani from Adamawa and several other people for five months. People should be careful. Okay, as we move on, the platform is there.
“Peter Obi is a cherished member of the party, and on our own, we have made him the sole presidential candidate. And that counts for something.
“And we are working well together.
“There’s no crisis. It is these supporters who I don’t know what they gain by disparaging the platform.”
