Peter Obi comes across as a humble, conciliatory, mild-mannered, and good-natured person—in contrast to his toxic, obnoxious online devotees whose rhetorical causticity he habitually has a need to restrain with words of caution.
I honestly have a hard time understanding the untempered hate often directed at him by his critics. You may disagree with his politics, but he has such a peaceful, restrained, and likeable public persona.
He never requites the unkind digs thrown at him by his opponents.
He always rises superior to mud-slinging. He is always kind and respectful even to his traducers. What’s not to like about that?
He understands that to broaden his base, he needs to win over people outside his fanbase. It takes maturity, intelligence, and self-awareness to do that, particularly in our increasingly polarized world.
Yes, it’s legitimate to disagree with him (the choices he made as governor of Anambra, his fibs, exaggerations, self-serving autobiographical embellishments, messianism, etc.), but how can you hate someone who radiates such infectious likeableness?
*Kperogi is a Nigerian Professor of Journalism and Emerging Media at Kennesaw State University, Georgia, United States, and a popular socio-political commentator