The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) on Tuesday asked the Labour Party presidential flagbearer to provide documents or a manifesto to show Nigerians before debating its presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu.
Responding to the Labour Party’s challenge to Tinubu for an open debate with Obi, the Minister of State for Labour and Employment who is also the Director of Public Affairs for the Tinubu/Shettima Presidential Campaign Council, Festus Keyamo (SAN) said Obi should first release his manifesto and then list his achievements during his tenure as the governor of Anambra State.
He said Obi should also tell Nigerians the people he has mentored in politics who are still with him today, mention any political party he has formed and then mention his contributions to the return of democracy to Nigeria after years of military rule.
He said if the conditions are fulfilled, the APC will send one of its spokespersons to have an open debate with Obi.
Keyamo’s statement partly reads ”They have no manifesto, so what are we debating? What documents are we comparing?
"He said Nigerians should depend on what is inside his brain, not on any document. So, Asiwaju will then be debating with what?
"Is this campaign a joke to them? Do they think this is a Debating and Dramatic society in school?”
”Before Obi can stand shoulder to shoulder with Asiwaju to debate, he should first release a manifesto for scrutiny; then he should list his tangible achievements as Governor of Anambra State compared to the tangible achievements of Asiwaju as Governor of Lagos State.
”Then he should list those he has mentored in politics from the days of his being Governor who is still with him now; then he should tell us any political party he has either formed or partnered to form and which he still belongs to today.
“Then he should list his democratic credentials, that is what he did to contribute to the return to democracy from military rule and what he has since done, better than Asiwaju, to sustain our democracy.”
