The spokesman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Felix Morka has denied threatening the former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr Peter Obi, after coming under condemnation but insisted he crossed the line.
Morka had criticised Peter Obi over his New Year message saying “Obi has crossed the line,” which would be dealt with.
Morka, who appeared on Arise TV where he issued the alleged threat, came under fire and asked to explain exactly what he meant by “crossing the line.”
Obi while responding to Morka’s threat said he had faced death threats alongside his family since his new year message.
Atiku Abubakar, former presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) speaking on Tuesday condemned Morka for his statement and asked for clarification accusing the APC of stifling opposition elements.
The embattled spokesman has responded, trying very hard to clarify his statement saying he never threatened Peter Obi.
In a statement he signed on Tuesday, Morka said he “has absolutely no reason to, and has never, threatened Obi or anyone. Nothing that Morka said in that interview or any other forum remotely contains or suggests threat against Mr. Obi or anyone else.”
Morka referenced his statement during the interview that he said, “I am not somebody to go on the offensive in that manner, but Mr. Obi has crossed the line so many times and I think that at this point he has coming to him, whatever he gets, he needs to manage it”, describing it as being “in specific and exclusive response” to a question, denying his response constituted a threat.
He added, “While everyone has a right to free speech, no one has a right to peddle misinformation or outright falsehood. The right to free speech granted by our country’s Constitution is not Mr. Obi’s exclusive right but a right that is available to all Nigerians, including Morka. Mr. Obi cannot disseminate misinformation and demand or expect that no one should disagree or challenge his false narrative.
“Ours is a democracy where every citizen, irrespective of political affiliation, is entitled to agree or disagree with other political views or opinions.
“More than any other Nigerian in this political dispensation, Mr. Obi has exercised his fundamental liberty to speak and disseminate his political views in person, in the formal and on social media.
“Obi leads a restless band of online mob who continue to attack, intimidate, bully and issue death threats to other citizens who dare disagree or criticize Obi or his opinions or position on any subject or matter of national conversation.
“Many eminent and highly respected elder statesmen have been serially attacked, humiliated and bullied by Obi’s online followers. Obi has never condemned their conduct or called them to order.
“Obi must think himself to be Nigeria’s sacred cow, the super citizen, quintessential, without blemish, beyond reproach, always right, never wrong, and endowed with the supreme and inalienable right to deride, castigate, intimidate blackmail and incite Nigerians against other political leaders who disagree with him, even those who defeated him decisively in the last general election.
“Mr. Obi is not entitled to any monolithic or exclusive constitutional or extraterrestrial liberty over and above any other citizen,” Morka said.
According to him, “There’s no doubt that Mr. Obi has crossed the line of truth in his many assessments. As a candidate for the office of President in the last general election, Mr. Obi made very bold electoral promises to implement specific economic policies to tackle the country’s economic crisis. For example:
“Mr Obi promised to abolish the system of fuel subsidy from day one. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu abolished the system of fuel subsidy on day one.
“Obi has continued to lambast and incite Nigerians against the Tinubu administration for doing exactly what he promised he would do if he was elected president. That is crossing the line of truth.
“Mr. Obi promised to abolish the dual foreign exchange rate system. President Tinubu has abolished the dual exchange rate system.
“Obi has continued to lambast and incite Nigerians against the Tinubu administration for doing exactly what he promised he would do if he was elected president. That is crossing the line of truth.
“Mr. Obi promised to transform Nigeria from a consumer to production economy.
“Under President Tinubu’s leadership, Nigeria now exports more petroleum and agricultural products than it imports with a record of three consecutive quarter massive trade surplus to show.
“Obi has continued to lambast and incite Nigerians against the Tinubu administration for doing exactly what he promised he would do if he was elected president. That is crossing the line of truth.
*Crossing the line of truth and peddling false narratives, arrogant unwillingness to acknowledge obvious markers of progress, mobilizing outrage and stoking tension against the government are not exactly the most admirable hallmarks of leadership.
“Peter Obi’s constant flip-flops have crossed a critical line, exposing a disturbing lack of principled commitment. By altering his stance to suit his political interests and drumbeats of the vocal online supporters, Obi undermines his credibility and raises serious concern about his leadership capabilities.
“Nigeria deserves opposition leaders who uphold principle and engage in fact-based critiques rather than barefaced indulgence in opportunistic and manipulative politics.
“The trust of the people is sacred, and Obi’s vacillations demonstrate a willingness to sacrifice this trust for political gain.
“As the National Spokesman of the ruling Party, I will continue to hold Obi and other opposition actors accountable for their actions just as they seek to, and should, hold our great Party and administration accountable, when truth and public trust are compromised.
Mr. Obi’s allegation that Morka “threatened his life is a self-evident malicious lie and an attention-seeking, playing-the-victim, emotional blackmail. His claim is patently false and reprehensible.
“By falsely claiming that Morka threatened his life, Mr. Obi has libeled Morka in the extreme, and has incited his online mob to make death threats against Morka and members of his family. That is unacceptable.
“As a public figure, Mr. Obi bears a responsibility to provide accurate and truthful information. Instead, he has chosen to peddle falsehood and mislead Nigerians in quest for political currency and relevance.
“We call on Mr. Obi to immediately set the record straight, withdraw his false allegation against Morka, and call his online supporters to order.
“Morka, stands ready to explore all available recourse mechanisms in valiant defence of his decency and impeccable reputation,” the statement added.