I’m more qualified to be president than Obi, Kwankwaso – Dickson

By Tolulope Oke

Senator Seriake Dickson has said he is more qualified to contest Nigeria’s presidency than prominent opposition figures, Peter Obi and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, but chose not to seek the office.

Dickson spoke on Wednesday during an appearance on Arise Television’s Prime Time, where he addressed issues surrounding the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, its leadership, and the party’s relationship with Obi.

The former Bayelsa State governor said the NDC gave Obi its presidential platform without demanding any payment, insisting that both Obi and his running mate did not pay “one naira” to secure their nominations.

According to him, the party should be credited for making Obi its sole presidential candidate, rather than being portrayed as a beneficiary of Obi’s presence.

Dickson said the narrative that Obi was doing the NDC a favour was misleading, stressing that the party was the one that provided the platform for his presidential ambition.

He also dismissed reports of a crisis in the NDC, describing Obi as a cherished member of the party and insisting that both sides were working well together.

The senator blamed the alleged tension on some supporters of Obi, whom he accused of attacking the party while claiming to support its presidential candidate.

Dickson said: “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. 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…”

He added: “I think 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.”

Dickson warned that genuine supporters of Obi should not undermine the party that gave him a platform.

“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,” he said.

The former governor also disclosed that several politicians had approached the NDC before Obi joined the party, including Senator Aishatu Binani from Adamawa State.

“Before Peter, I received Binani from Adamawa and several other people for five months. People should be careful. As we move on, the platform is there,” he said.

Dickson maintained that Obi remains a valued member of the NDC and that there is no internal crisis in the party.

“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,” he said.