Delta North and the Obidient Movement’s Internal Crisis

By Benny Okonkwo

Since inception in 2022, Delta State, and particularly Delta North has remained one of the most vibrant strongholds of the Obidient Movement in Nigeria’s South-South region. The Movement evolved organically, sustained by co-operative leadership and selfless commitment of thousands of volunteers who embraced its ideals without expectation of individual material reward.

It is therefore, deeply troubling that this vibrant and transformative force is now engulfed in tension and uncertainty within the Delta North Senatorial District. More disturbing is the sad fact that the crisis has been precipitated by forces that were external and antagonistic to the movement.

According to credible inside sources-committed members, stakeholders, and kin observers, the current disquiet stems from the activities of recent entrants into the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), many of whom defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC), and specifically those among the defectors who set out to grab the NDC nomination for the 2027 General Election. These newcomers cum aspirants have unapologetically moved aggressively to dominate the party structure and marginalize both founding members of the NDC, and long-standing members of the Obidient Movement who followed Peter Obi to the party. Such development, indisputably, represent not merely a contest for influence, but a bizarre attack on the very values upon which the Movement and the political philosophy of Mr. Peter Obi are founded.

It should be recalled that the Obident Movement emerged in 2022 in the run-up to the 2023 General Election as a citizens’ response to decades of governance failures and Nigeria’s development paradox. Like the Zikist Movement of the anti-colonial era, it embraced a philosophy rooted in transparency, accountability, integrity and civil engagement—rejecting the politics of extremism, bigotry and moral decadence that have long characterized the country’s political culture.

Under the banner “A New Nigeria Is Possible,” the Movement rallied behind Peter Obi’s Presidential bid on the platform of the Labour Party. Within a remarkably short period, it attracted millions of Nigerians (particularly the youth and the educated elite) across ethnic, religious and regional lines, including those in the diaspora. It rapidly transformed from a loose coalition of supporters into an unprecedented political phenomenon driven largely by volunteerism and civic responsibility.

Despite being dismissed by many members of the political establishment and their cronies, the Movement demonstrated its strength in the 2023 presidential election. Within barely six months of mobilization, and without control of state structures, local governments or significant institutional backing, it propelled the Labour Party—previously considered politically dormant, to a level of electoral competitiveness that unsettled the traditional political order.

Since then, the Movement has remained steadfast in its support for Peter Obi’s presidential aspirations. All through the political realignments and shifting platforms, its members and supporters have followed him with remarkable resilience. Their commitment has underscored the depth of belief in the vision of a new Nigeria, and in the values they associate with his leadership. This level of comraderie, persistence and determination demonstrated by members of the Movement have won for it, the admiration of well-meaning citizens, and the envy and fear of its adversaries

As the country approaches another critical general election in 2027, concerns are mounting over the obvious infiltration of old and despicable political habits into this new political structures dedicated to the vision of a new Nigeria. Reports of impunity, exclusion, and attempts at political domination within the NDC in Delta North have raised fears that the ideals which inspired the Movement, currently risk to be endangered from within, even more than by its well-known external adversaries.

Unfortunately, principal among those seeking control and fuelling tension within the NDC, are mostly politicians displaced by the fierce power struggle within the APC. These are persons whose style of politics is well known to be characterized by patronage, personal ambition, sordid bargains and transactional relationships—characteristics that stand in sharp contrast to the very principles that define the Obidient Movement, and the aspirations of millions of Nigerians yearning for a different political culture.

Though many of these politicians may claim to possess considerable political capital. This claim is no doubt on account of their financial resources questionably accumulated from public treasury in the past, and the old patronage networks built upon the illicit wealth. However, such financial war chest and old patronage networks cannot substitute for the moral capital and grassroots energy that have sustained the Movement since its inception.

Nevertheless, members of the Obidient Movement are admonished to exercise wisdom and restraint in the face of the prevailing circumstance. The struggle for a new Nigeria requires broad coalitions, and inclusive political platforms. While the Movement must remain faithful to its core values including maintaining resilience in its defense, it must also recognize that political growth demands openness to new entrants and ideas, but hardly benefits from fixity. Not every defector should be judged by collective guilt. Individuals should be assessed on their merits, and even those with questionable political histories should not be considered beyond redemption. History and faith both teach that transformation is possible-the biblical story of how Saul became Apostle Paul is one popular reference in this regard.

To those new entrants in the NDC poised to reproduce the politics of conquest and displacement, take counsel that prudence demands a different approach. Your experience in the APC, and perhaps from the case of PDP, ought to have taught you that political parties are strengthened not by intimidation and exclusion, but by accommodation, mutual respect and shared purpose.

The Obidient Movement is not a structure built around individuals alone; it is abroad-based movement sustained by conviction and sacrifice. Attempts to undermine or marginalize its members will ultimately prove counterproductive. In politics, as in life generally, victory belongs not merely to those with financial resources, but to those who command the trust and goodwill of the people.

As Nigeria inches closer to 2027, preserving the ideals that inspired the Obidient Movement remains imperative. If the dream of a new Nigeria is to endure, its custodians must resist the temptation to replicate the very political culture the Movement set out to defeat and replace.

Benny Okonkwo wrote from Asaba, Delta State.