Peter Obi says that as Nigeria’s president he would negotiate with armed groups willing to lay down weapons but fight those who refuse, renewing his pledge to contest the 2027 election.
He made the comments on a podcast hosted by journalist Rufai Oseni, answering how he would tackle the insecurity that has gripped large parts of Nigeria. Obi cast his approach as a plain choice for those behind the violence. “Anybody who wants war, we will go to war,” he said, after offering talks to any group ready to give up arms.
He went further than the general principle, naming people he would bring to the table. They included the Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, who is known for urging dialogue with bandits, the Yoruba nation activist Sunday Igboho, and Biafra separatist agitators. His remarks followed debate over Gumi’s contacts with armed gangs in the north.
Obi argued that people who renounce violence deserve a route back into society. He recalled visiting a university in the United States where, by his account, staff from the dean down had served prison terms before rebuilding their lives, using it to make the case for reform over permanent exclusion.
He tied the security message to a wider promise of unity, saying his government would carry every ethnic group and region and leave no community behind.
Obi came third in the 2023 presidential race as the Labour Party candidate, behind President Bola Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar. He has said he will run again in 2027 and is part of the opposition coalition built around the African Democratic Congress, while still describing himself as a Labour Party member.
Negotiating with bandits remains divisive in Nigeria. Supporters say talks can stem the kidnappings and killings that troops have failed to halt, while critics argue that bargaining rewards criminals and invites more violence.
