Peter Obi, the former Labour Party presidential candidate in Nigeria, has expressed deep concerns over Nigeria’s worsening political, economic, and security situation.
In his New Year message, Obi emphasized that despite the government’s claims of improvement, the country remains one of the world’s poverty capitals, with over 100 million people living in extreme poverty and 150 million in multi-dimensional poverty.
Obi criticized the newly approved national minimum wage of N70,000, stating that it’s “useless, as it cannot afford a bag of rice or half a bag of beans.”
He urged President Bola Tinubu to reduce the cost of governance and allocate resources to critical areas like security, health, education, and poverty alleviation.
The former Anambra State governor also stressed the need for a visible and aggressive approach to combating corruption, ensuring proper investigations and recoveries of missing funds.
He advocated for increased transparency and accountability in public procurement and contract award processes.
Furthermore, Obi advised the government to tie future borrowing to regenerative investments and productive assets that benefit the nation, rather than accumulating massive debt with no tangible returns.
He also appealed to President Tinubu to dedicate more time to visiting Nigeria’s 36 states to better understand the economic and security challenges facing the country.
“As President, you are no longer the Governor of Lagos State; therefore, consider spending your holidays in different parts of the country,” Obi said.
“Let your next Sallah, Easter, and Christmas holidays be spent in places like Adamawa, Sokoto, Jos, Akure, Yenagoa, or Abakaliki, among others.”
Obi noted that President Tinubu has spent over 30% of his time in office, around 180 days, on more than 30 publicly recorded overseas trips.
He suggested that the President should dedicate at least 20% of 2025, roughly 72 days, to visiting each of Nigeria’s 36 states for two days each.