Felix Morka, the National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has denied allegations made by Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, that he threatened his life and that of his family.

Morka dismissed the claims as a “self-evident malicious lie”, accusing Obi of engaging in “attention-seeking, playing-the-victim, emotional blackmail.”

Obi, in a post titled “Have I Really Crossed the Line?” shared on his X handle on Monday, alleged that Morka had issued threats following his criticism of President Bola Tinubu’s administration in his New Year message.

In the post, Obi wrote, “My New Year Message has now led to threats to my life, my family, and those around me. While I have received all sorts of messages, one Mr. Felix Morka has gone further to accuse me of ‘crossing the line’ and has warned that I will face consequences.”

This followed Morka’s comments during an Arise TV interview on Sunday, where he said, “Peter Obi has crossed the line so many times and he has what’s coming to him, and whatever he gets, he should manage it.”

Reacting to Obi’s allegations in a statement on Tuesday, Morka denied the claims, asserting that his words were taken out of context.

The statement read, “On his verified official X handle, Mr Peter Obi, former Governor of Anambra State and presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general elections, has alleged, in his own words, that ‘my New Year Message has now led to threats to my life, my family, and those around me. While I have received all sorts of messages, one Mr. Felix Morka has gone further to accuse me of “crossing the line” and has warned that I will face consequences.’

“Ostensibly, Mr Obi’s allegation is in reference to Morka’s answer to a question during an interview on Arise TV’s THIS WEEK programme on Saturday, January 4, 2025. To be clear and for the record, Morka did not threaten Mr Obi, his family, or those around him, or anyone. Morka has absolutely no reason to, and has never, threatened Obi or anyone.”

He supported his position by quoting the interview, “Nothing that Morka said in that interview or any other forum remotely contains or suggests threat against Mr. Obi or anyone else, as the verbatim transcription of the relevant clip indisputably attests: Arise TV: ‘You have actually hit back with a volley of attacks, calling Peter Obi a prophet of doom. Some of you have said he is always embarking on voodoo economics that is not in line with current realities. Don’t you think that is a slingshot that has gone beyond normal politicking?’

“Morka: ‘No, he is the one throwing darts. Mr. Obi is shooting from the hip. He is not looking, he is not taking aim; he just shoots wildly like what we used to see in movies back in the days in “Wild, Wild West.” He is not being rational; he is absolutely irrational in his thinking and in his commentary for a man who was Governor for eight years and left nothing to remember in Anambra State by way of legacy or transformation. But all of a sudden, he had served as Governor for eight years, he didn’t have the wisdom or the smartness to change Anambra State, to make Anambra the beacon, the example of governance in the country.’’

He added, “But then he runs for President in 2023, and now that he didn’t win, he is sulking. Rather than get a perspective of what he did to lose so he can get better in future, he thinks that he can bring down the government by being maliciously deceptive.

“That is wrong. I’m not someone to go on the offensive in that manner. But Mr. Obi has crossed the line so many times. And, I think that, at this point, he has coming to him whatever he gets. He should manage it.”

Morka also clarified that his comments were solely in response to the interview question and were not intended as a threat.

He explained, “Morka’s answer was in the exclusive context of the question. The last sentence of that answer, ‘I am not somebody to go on the offensive in that manner, but Mr. Obi has crossed the line so many times and I think that at this point he has coming to him, whatever he gets, he needs to manage it,’ was in specific and exclusive response to the question’s reference to ‘prophet of doom’ and ‘voodoo economics.’ Again, nothing in that sentence constitutes or suggests a threat to Obi or anyone.”

He emphasised that free speech is a right available to all Nigerians, including himself.

He stated, “While everyone has a right to free speech, no one has a right to peddle misinformation or outright falsehood. The right to free speech granted by our country’s Constitution is not Mr. Obi’s exclusive right but a right that is available to all Nigerians, including Morka.

“Mr. Obi cannot disseminate misinformation and demand or expect that no one should disagree or challenge his false narrative. Ours is a democracy where every citizen, irrespective of political affiliation, is entitled to agree or disagree with other political views or opinions.

“More than any other Nigerian in this political dispensation, Mr. Obi has exercised his fundamental liberty to speak and disseminate his political views in person, the formal and on social media.”