Fresh controversy has erupted over comments by former Borno State Governor, Ali Modu Sheriff, on Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, with human rights lawyer and counsel to Nnamdi Kanu, Barrister Aloy Ejimakor, launching a scathing attack that revived long-standing allegations linking Sheriff to the early days of the Boko Haram insurgency.
Ejimakor’s remarks came in response to Sheriff’s recent interview in which the former governor accused Obi of pursuing a divisive agenda and challenged him to publicly declare whether he believes in Nigeria’s unity or still harbours Biafra sympathies.
In a strongly worded reaction, Ejimakor questioned Sheriff’s moral authority to accuse Obi of threatening Nigeria’s unity.
“If Peter Obi wants to divide Nigeria, then what does Boko Haram want? To unite Nigeria? Ali Modu Sheriff should answer that,” he said.
The lawyer further alleged that several prominent Nigerians had, in the past, linked Sheriff to the early emergence of Boko Haram, arguing that the former governor was ill-placed to question Obi’s commitment to national unity.
Ejimakor also claimed that Sheriff’s criticism of Obi was motivated by ethnic bias, alleging that the former governor targeted the Labour Party leader because he is Igbo.
He urged political actors to focus on issues of governance and national development rather than resorting to rhetoric capable of inflaming ethnic tensions.
The exchange followed Sheriff’s assertion that Obi still believes in the Biafra cause and should openly declare his position on Nigeria’s unity.
Sheriff has consistently denied allegations that he founded or supported Boko Haram, and no Nigerian court has found him guilty of any such offence.
The latest verbal clash has added another layer to the increasingly heated political discourse ahead of the 2027 general elections, where questions of national unity, security and identity are emerging as dominant campaign issues.
The comments have since triggered sharp reactions across political circles and social media, further deepening the debate over ethnicity, separatist sentiments and the future direction of Nigeria’s politics.