Peter Obi: age, career, wife, children
Peter Gregory Obi CON (born July 19, 1961) is a Nigerian politician and businessman who ran as the People’s Democratic Party’s vice-presidential candidate in the 2019 Nigerian general election (P.D.P). He is also a presidential candidate in Nigeria’s general election in 2023.
He served as governor of Anambra State from 17 March 2006 to 2 November 2006, when he was impeached, then from 9 February 2007 to 29 May 2007, when his impeachment was overturned.
Despite the fact that a new election was held on April 29, 2007, he has reappointed governor on June 14, 2007, following a court decision that he should be allowed to finish his four-year term.
During the gubernatorial election on February 6, 2010, he was re-elected to a second term in office.
Early life and education
Peter Obi was born in Onitsha on July 19, 1961. [7] He completed his high school studies at Christ the King College in Onitsha. [8] He enrolled at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 1980 and graduated in 1984 with a B.A (Hons) in philosophy.
Peter Obi studied at Lagos Business School in Nigeria, Harvard Business School in Boston, Massachusetts, where he completed two programs, London School of Economics, Columbia Southwest School in New York, New York, USA, and Institute for Management Development in Switzerland, where he earned two certificates in Senior Executive Program and Chief Executive Officers Program.
He also studied at the Kellogg Graduate School of Management in the United States, the Said Business School at Oxford University, and the George Business School at Cambridge University.
Pre-political career
Before entering politics, Peter Obi worked as a businessman and dealer. Peter Obi claims that he began his career as a trader after being born into a trading family before moving into the corporate world.
He held positions of leadership in a number of private businesses. Next International Nigeria Ltd, Chairman and Director of Guardian Express Mortgage Bank Ltd, Guardian Express Bank Plc, Future View Securities Ltd, Paymaster Nigeria Ltd, Chams Nigeria Ltd, Data Corp Ltd, and Card Centre Ltd are just a few of the firms he has worked with. He was Fidelity Bank Plc’s youngest chairman.
Political career
Governorship
First-term
In 2003, Peter Obi campaigned for governor of Anambra State as a candidate for the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), but the Independent National Electoral Commission-certified Chris Ngige of the People’s Democratic Party the winner (INEC)
On March 15, 2006, the Court of Appeal overturned Ngige’s victory after nearly three years of litigation. On March 17, 2006, Obi was sworn in as the president of Nigeria.
He was impeached by the state house of assembly on November 2, 2006, after only seven months in office, and was replaced the next day by Virginia Etiaba, his deputy, who became Nigeria’s first female governor.
Obi successfully appealed his impeachment and was re-instated as governor by the Court of Appeal in Enugu on February 9, 2007. Following the court verdict, Etiaba returned power to him.
Obi resigned from the government on May 29, 2007, after Andy Uba won the general elections.
Obi went back to court, this time claiming that the four-year term he had won in the 2003 elections only began to run in March 2006, when he took office. Obi’s claim was upheld by the Supreme Court of Nigeria on June 14, 2007, and Obi was reinstated in office.
The election of Obi’s successor, Andy Uba, was invalidated by the Supreme Court on April 14, 2007, on the grounds that Obi’s four-year mandate should have been uninterrupted until March 2010.
Second term
Peter Obi was proclaimed the winner of the 2010 Anambra State gubernatorial election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), defeating Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo, former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Governor Obi was re-elected for a fourth term as governor of Anambra State as a result of this election triumph. On March 17, 2014, Peter Obi completed his second tenure as governor and handed over the reins to Willie Obiano.
President Goodluck Jonathan selected Peter Obi as head of the Nigerian Security and Exchange Commission following the 2015 general election (SEC).
2019 presidential elections
On October 12, 2018, Peter Obi was announced as Atiku Abubakar’s running mate in the Peoples Democratic Party’s presidential election campaign in Nigeria. His political party came in second place.
2023 presidential elections
Peter Obi announced his desire to run for President of Nigeria on the Peoples Democratic Party platform on March 24, 2022.
Leaving the PDP
Peter Obi wrote to the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party on May 24 to quit his membership, according to an exclusive revelation by Peoples Gazette.
Obi feared being humiliated at the party’s presidential primaries, according to the article. Mr. Obi verified the report to the newspaper, claiming that he was being pursued by a gang.
Awards
These are some of the notable awards of Peter Obi
- Sun Newspaper’s Man of the Year (2007)
- ThisdayNewspaper’s Most Prudent Governor in Nigeria (2009)
- Champion Newspaper’s Nigeria’s Most Trustworthy Governor (2009)
- West Africa ICT Development Award for Governor of the Year (2010)
- Zik Leadership Prize (2011)
- Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Best Performing Governor on Immunization in South-East Nigeria (2012)
- Ezeife Leadership Foundation’s Leadership and Good Governance Award (2012)
- Methodist Church of Nigeria’s Golden Award on Prudence (2012); Business Hallmark Newspaper’s Man of the Year (2012)
- Silverbird’s Man of the Year (2013)
- The Voice Newspaper’s Award for Outstanding Example in Leadership and Governance (2014)
- Champion Newspaper’s Most Outstanding Igbo Man of the Decade (2014)
- Nigerian Library Association’s Golden Merit Award (2014)
- Catholic Diocese of Onitsha’s Golden Jubilee Award (2015)
Wife and Children
Obi and Margaret Brownson Usen married in 1992 and have two children together. He’s a devout Catholic. Read More…
