Indications have emerged that Peter Obi and the Obidient Movement abandoned Doyin Okupe while he was sick and needed them the most.
ENigeria News reports that a controversy has since been brewing on social media following a statement credited to Isaac Balami, a former Labour Party chieftain who accused Peter Obi and the Obidient Movement of abandoning Chief Doyin Okupe at his lowest moment as he battled ill health and went broke on his sick bed.
ENigeria News understands that Doyin Okupe, who died a few weeks ago, was reportedly down with severe illness while serving as the Director General of Peter Obi’s campaign in the 2023 general elections.
A source within the family noted that late Okupe battled health challenges even while campaigning for Peter Obi, and most of his personal resources went into his health issues. According to the source, “Most of his resources had been taken away during his battle with the EFCC. Dr. Okupe needed support and help from where he worked as he struggled to fix his medical problems. He didn’t get enough for his very expensive medical care.
“However, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu reached out and gave him support more than where he called home at his most trying time.
“It was purely his personal decision to leave the Labour Party to where he found love. Most of you attacking and insulting him would do the same, if not worse,” the source noted.
Isaac Balami Accused Peter Obi, Obidients of Abandoning Okupe in his Sick Bed
ENigeria News reports that Isaac Balami, a former National Deputy Campaign Manager of the Obi/Datti Campaign in 2023, lamented that the late Okupe served wholeheartedly as director-general of Peter Obi’s campaign but was deserted when he fell ill.
Balami, whose statement has fueled heated arguments on Twitter, made the comment during a service of songs held in honour of the deceased politician last Saturday.
He said, “When his son was speaking, everything he said was correct except one thing that he did not say very well,” Mr. Balami said. “He said when you offend Dr. Doyin Okupe and you genuinely ask for forgiveness, he will forgive you. Dr. Doyin Okupe was in pain—people that he gave his all for deserted him, betrayed him, lied against him—yet he forgave them.”
“He was deserted by the people he worked with. At some point, I reached out on his behalf. They never called him or asked how he was feeling.”
Mr. Balami recounted how the late Mr. Okupe spent his personal money on the LP presidential campaign, yet was neglected when he fell ill.
“The only campaign I have ever been to, I was the campaign manager nationwide, and Dr. Okupe was the DG of the campaign. We had N100 million available for that day. Dr. Okupe put all the money on the table, and all the directors would sit, and he would distribute the money. After the campaign, he was left in debt. He never went anywhere, even though the campaign had billions. He paid for them himself,” Mr. Balami said.
“After a six-hour flight, he crawled to the car after major surgery. They saw him in pain, but 18 months later, they still never called him. The same people can’t even say a word to acknowledge that he was a good man. The few Obidients insulting this man on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram are very ignorant,” he added.
Balami’s statement followed a series of criticisms hauled at the deceased by aggrieved Obidients who felt that he abandoned Peter Obi after he lost the election.
You would recall that both Balami and Okupe had since left the Labour Party after the 2023 election results were announced. The Labour candidate came in third, according to results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). While the former defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), the latter did not publicly announce defection to any political party but became sympathetic to the ruling party and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
