‘I’ll never knowingly break any law’ — Obi speaks amid row over detention in UK

Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), says he has lived in a most law-abiding manner all his life.

His comment comes in the wake of his reported detention at Heathrow Airport in London by UK immigration.

On April 12, LP announced that Obi was harassed and detained by London immigration officials over alleged impersonation.

The party said Obi was questioned for a “long time” and that it took the intervention of Nigerians for him to be released.

“He was questioned for a long time, and it was very strange for a man who lived for over a decade in that country,” the party had said.

“The high implication of the offence is that the impersonator could be committing all kinds of weighty crimes and other dubious acts and it would be recorded in Obi’s name.”

UK immigration remained silent about the incident, and Obi did not make an official statement regarding the development for almost a week.

However, in a Twitter thread on Tuesday, the LP presidential candidate said although “humans make mistakes,” he has never “knowingly” contravened the law.

Obi added that he is “not afraid of the lies and propaganda against my person” and has always known that the “journey to a New Nigeria” would be tough.

He then reiterated the cause of “regaining my mandate” and “transforming Nigeria starting from the North to every part of the nation”.

“I never expected the journey to a New Nigeria to be an easy one. The forces, who had over the years, lived off the old order, are bound to fight back, as is being experienced now,” the tweet reads.

“If they come at us through land, air and sea, we will respond to them through land, air and sea but, we will remain law abiding and will never give up on the nation. We are on the right path and we will remain committed to the course.

“I reiterate my commitment to building a Nigeria that will be beneficial to every Nigerian. The struggle to reclaim this mandate is not about me as a person but, about millions of Nigerians who placed their trust in me through their votes.

“There may be more mud-slinging from those who are against the emergence of the New Nigeria but, I would never be deterred by the obstacles along the way to victory. I have always lived my life in the most law-abiding manner.

“Sometimes as humans, we make mistakes but, I will never knowingly break any law. I am therefore not afraid of the lies and propaganda against my person. They are part of the journey to a New Nigeria.”

Obi finished third in the February 25 presidential election and has disputed the poll’s results and tendered a petition to the election tribunal.