Applauding Peter Obi’s Emotional Intelligence -By Isaac Asabor

Once again, Nigerian voters are preparing to elect a president, come February 25, 2023. Thus, it is expedient to say that the ongoing electioneering has given the electorates an ample opportunity to appraise the temperament that characterized each of the presidential aspirants affiliated with the 18 political parties, and has particularly afforded them the real impression of Mr. Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), AlhajiAtikuAbubakar of the People Democratic Party (PDP) and Mr. RabiuKwankwaso, the presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP).

Now, as the campaign intensifies in view of the election, not a few Nigerians have been witnessing a blizzard of campaign spin and unguarded public statements and the use of social media platforms to spread fear. Given the foregoing, it is not ill-conceived to say that honest political debate has been thrown to the dogs.

However, despite the seeming bedlam, some people will vote on issues; others will vote on their visceral assessment of the candidates. Even then, many uninspired voters will have doubts and wonder if they have missed something consequential about a candidate’s character or personality. The answer probably is, yes, something not easily discernible to most of us.

To an inquisitive reader, it is not out of place to ask, “What is that something that is not easily discernible that this writer is talking about?” The answer to the foregoing question cannot be farfetched as it has to do with the quotient of a presidential aspirant’s emotional intelligence. For the sake of clarity, emotional intelligence is not just a matter of intelligence, political prowess, and communication skills. Against the foregoing backdrop, not a few political observers are unanimous with the view that as important as other leadership qualities of a presidential candidate are, nothing has a greater bearing on presidential leadership than the emotional strengths and weaknesses of the person that occupies a presidential position.

At this juncture, it is expedient to ask “Why should voters care about a president’s emotional intelligence?” The answer to the foregoing question cannot be farfetched as a president needs to have the mental resolve to make decisions on complex issues and the interpersonal skills to engage political adversaries and global leaders. Additionally, our next president, who is invariably Mr. Peter Obi of the Labour Party, will need his already demonstrated emotional intelligence to unite Nigerians across the ever-widening political differences and restore trust in our government’s ability to get things done. Finally, a president needs to have a vision around which he or she can rally Nigerians of diverse backgrounds.

Graciously enough, Obi has for the umpteenth time shown Nigerians that he has an appreciable quotient of emotional intelligence, particularly through his responses to his traducers. For instance, when the outspoken Catholic priest, Rev. Father Ejike Mbaka in one of his weekly ministrations, said Mr. Obi would not be president of Nigeria in 2023 because he is a “stingy man who does not give out money to people,” Obi demonstrated his emotional intelligence as he kept his shirt on.

Surprisingly to not a few of his supporters and admirers, Mr Obi, while appearing as a guest on a programme on Voice of the People FM, Lagos, said he has no “issue” with the cleric.

In his reply to the fiery preacher, he said, “Whenever he (Mr Mbaka) says something wrong, I pray over it. If he says something right, I pray over it. So, mine are prayers. Whatever he does, I love him.

“This is me because he is a priest of God. I don’t have any problem with him. Whatever he says, I will put it in prayers,” the former governor added and said he still loves and respects Mr Mbaka, despite his outburst.

He continued, “For me, Father Mbaka is an ordained priest of God. And as a priest, he remains my priest. And I will always respect and show my allegiance to the church.

“Whatever he says, I will take it because he is my father in faith. And I respect him any day. And he is my brother. We are close,” Mr Obi said.

Also, when faced with a similar challenge from the Governor of Anambra State, Professor ChukwumaSoludo, Obi, told him to do better than he did while he governed the state.

It will be recalled that he reacted to the bashing he had received from Soludo, at the 2022 Lagos Business School Alumni Conference in Lagos, Obi said since the current Anambra State governor is a professor, he was in a better position to be able to do better in governing than he (Obi) did.

It would be recalled that Soludocalled out Obi saying his investments in Anambra were next to nothing and added that Obi would not win the presidential race come 2023.

Obi said, “He (Soludo) remains my brother. For other things (that) I did not succeed (in doing), God has given him the opportunity to succeed. For me, you don’t finish governance. You stop where you stop and other people continue from there. He is the governor of my state, he is my senior brother and he is even more intelligent than me because he is a professor and I am a trader.

Also in a similar vein, Obi has described Chief Arthur Eze, who recently pooh-poohed his candidacy, and urged him to step down from the presidential contest, as a respected Nigerian who is entitled to his own opinions and beliefs.