The Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has berated the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general election, Peter Obi, over his recent statement describing internet fraudsters as geniuses who need redirection.
Naija News recalls that Obi, while addressing participants at a youth conference in Onitsha on Saturday, had said that many internet fraudsters possess creativity and intelligence that could be channelled towards productive ventures if properly guided.
However, speaking via a statement issued on Sunday by its spokesperson, Seye Oladejo, the Lagos APC described Obi’s remark as “morally reprehensible”
Oladejo asserted that the statement by Obi was unbecoming, insisting that such statement trivialised criminal behaviour.
He said, “There’s nothing genius about crime. Yahoo-Yahoo is a social tragedy, not a talent.
“We are genuinely concerned about Obi’s moral compass, how can someone who constantly condemns corruption also glorify cybercrime? Such contradictions reveal a dangerous moral confusion that has no place in leadership.”
The APC spokesman also accused Obi of seeking political relevance through controversial statements, describing his position as a “reckless attempt at attention-seeking,” Oladejo said.
“His desperation for attention has replaced reasoned leadership with reckless speech. There should be a limit to unrestrained desperation,” he added.
Oladejo also alleged that Obi misled many young Nigerians during the 2023 elections through what he called “propaganda, misinformation, and emotional manipulation.” He urged the LP candidate to apologise to the youth for his recent comments, warning that such rhetoric could encourage moral indiscipline
While affirming the APC’s commitment to youth empowerment and innovation, the Lagos chapter rejected any attempt to romanticise or justify cybercrime, insisting that leadership must be rooted in “values, integrity, and moral responsibility.”
