From an analytical standpoint, this exchange highlights how quickly political discourse in Nigeria can shift from policy to identity. Senator Shehu Sani’s claim that Peter Obi’s support base is largely tribal touches on a sensitive but persistent fault line in Nigerian politics.
While identity-based voting has historically influenced elections, reducing Obi’s support to a purely ethnic phenomenon overlooks the broader coalition he built in 2023, particularly among urban voters, youth, and segments of the middle class across different regions. For many observers, such sweeping generalisations risk oversimplifying a more complex political movement.
The reactions from Odinkalu and Yesufu also reflect how contested this narrative has become, with both pushing back against what they see as an outdated or politically motivated framing.
However, the tone on all sides underscores a larger issue, the tendency for political debates to become personalised and polarised, rather than evidence-driven.
The recommendation here is that political actors and commentators should anchor their claims in verifiable electoral data and shift focus toward substantive issues such as governance outcomes, economic policy, and institutional reform.
Ultimately, voters are better served by debates that clarify choices and priorities, rather than those that deepen divisions or recycle untested assumptions.
