Presidential candidate of the Labour Party Peter Obi has denied allegations that he received $150m in donation from diaspora sources.
A group linked to the All Progressives Congress and the Tinubu Campaign Organisation had called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to disqualify Obi and his running mate over the alleged funding, stating that it violates the Electoral Act on campaign funding.
However, Mr Obi said at a meeting with Nigerians in London on Tuesday that it was just speculation.
“Nobody has given me anything. That is speculation. What I need is not what they would give me. But what they would give Nigeria, because we need them to turn around Nigeria.
“This is the energy, the capacity that we need to turn around Nigeria. Every country that was turned around, was done by the diaspora. Even in the Bible, Joseph who left later came back to feed his people,” he said.
Obi, who has been meeting with Nigerians in Europe, US and Canada, noted that his meetings were not part of campaign activities.
“It is not campaign, it is consultation. I am consulting Nigeria diasporans to know why they should be involved in the Nigerian electoral process. And you can see from my conversation and everything that what I am doing is saying ‘Let’s get involved.’
“They are the most critical components of turning around Nigeria. The investment Nigeria needs to turn around is diasporans. If they believe in Nigeria and bring their resources, both in terms of their material, talent and energy, we will turn around the country,” he said.
