A rights group known as the Global Network for Sustainable Development has described unnecessary, controversies about the purported leaked audio conversation between the Labour Party Presidential candidate, Peter Obi and the founder of the Living Faith Church, Bishop David Oyedepo.

The group insisted that although the allegation has been refuted by Obi’s media team on the ground that his conversation with Oyedepo was ‘badly doctored’, there was nothing wrong with the call even if it was true.

The convener of the group, Amb. Phil Roberts noted that even if the purported conversation were to be true, key political actors have made worse statements in the past and even in the present, yet, they remain in power with no one denigrating them.

He said: “President Muhammadu Buhari, while contesting for the presidency once said that Muslims should not vote for Christians, and today, he sits comfortably as the President of Nigeria.

“He even threatened that the dogs and the baboons would be soaked in blood should the election not be conducted as expected. The question is: who are the dogs, and who are the baboons?

“At the height of the tension over the Muslim-Muslim ticket, some Islamic clerics gathered and declared that it was a Jihad and that if Tinubu and Shetima should lose the election, it would be a loss or defeat for Islam.

“What is worse, perpetrating an evil or creating awareness about the evil being perpetrated? What is worse, waging a religious war or crying out that a religious war is being waged? What is worse, killing a people or crying that people are being killed? He asked.

Roberts, therefore, described those calling out Obi today as a bunch of shameless hypocrites.

Adding: “Can you say that the Muslim-Muslim ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is in the interest of religious balance and equity in a hyper-sensitive religious climate like Nigeria? Can you say that it was conceived and executed in good faith? The architects of this evil plot bragged that it was a Jihad. Is Jihad not war? Which religious bigotry is worse than a Muslim-Muslim ticket? Why are the architects of the same faith tickets not being shamed today by the gullible public? It is the height of inhuman cruelty to beat a child and declare his tears illegal. To cut the skin and not expect it to bleed is lethal insensitivity.”

Roberts noted that Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution as amended, provided for the Right to Privacy of citizens and as such, “every citizen of Nigeria is entitled to their privacy. Be it in their homes, communications with people by way of letters, telephone or telegraph is protected and guaranteed by the Constitution).”

“Those who leaked the purported telephone conversation acted in breach of a citizen’s confidentiality and right to privacy, and it is malicious, callous and criminal. For placing Obi’s purported private conversation in the public domain, those behind this despicable plot are liable to criminal prosecution. “

The group further accused APC of allegedly orchestrating the blackmail in order to distract Nigerians from challenging the party’s purchased victory at the fraudulent presidential poll.

“It is unfortunate that the ruling party has reduced politicking in Nigeria to cheap blackmailing and throwing of tantrums. It is a pity that issue-based politics have been murdered by sycophants and desperate politicians who thrive on blackmail and character assassination.

“It is a shame that a party that claimed to have won electoral victory has resorted to underhand practices and cheap blackmail against a purported loser instead of defending their purchased victory in court”, Roberts said.

The group also flayed Femi Fani-Kayode for asking security agencies to declare Obi a master terrorist for purportedly describing the election as a religious war.”

“We also want to use this medium to ask Obi to press charges against those who leaked and doctored his telephone conversation with Bishop Oyedepo. The leaked conversation is an invasion of his privacy. With incidents like this, one may be forced to ask how safe Nigerian telephone conversations are.

We, therefore, call on telecommunication companies in the country to rise up to their responsibility of protecting their customers’ privacy.

“We also call on Nigerians to ignore the blackmail and focus on retrieving the mandate they gave to Obi from those who stole it. The wishes of the people expressed at the poll can never be suppressed”, Roberts stated.