Obi Slams Tinubu’s St. Lucia Trip Amid Bloodshed, Teacher Protests and Security Collapse

DDM News

Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has criticized President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for embarking on an eight-day state visit to St. Lucia while Nigeria faces severe internal crises.

Diaspora Digital Media (DDM) reports that Obi took to his verified X handle to express deep concern over the President’s priorities, describing the trip as poorly timed and disconnected from the realities of Nigerians.

Obi stated that while the presidency was basking in the euphoria of accolades and titles in St. Lucia, Nigerians at home were grappling with bloodshed, economic hardship, insecurity, and a collapsing educational system.

He condemned the growing culture of celebrating titles and honours in Nigeria without demonstrating commitment to solving the people’s problems.

Obi stressed that his objection to the St. Lucia visit was not about disrespect to the Caribbean nation, but about the lack of sensitivity to Nigeria’s dire situation.

According to him, a President whose nation is “bleeding” should not be spending over a week abroad receiving personal accolades.

He noted that while the President was receiving honours, at least 37 people were killed in a fresh Boko Haram attack in Yobe State.

Obi also pointed out that protests had broken out in Kwara State over rising insecurity, unemployment, and poor governance.

He revealed that since Tinubu left for St. Lucia, at least 200 Nigerians have died in different crisis-related incidents, including terrorist attacks and banditry.

Obi decried the continued neglect of education, highlighting that many teachers across Nigeria have remained unpaid for nearly three years, forcing school closures and mass protests.

He cited a protest in Abuja, where unpaid teachers are demanding their wages, even as schoolchildren remain out of classrooms nationwide.

The former Anambra State governor said Nigeria had become a nation in crisis without a leadership willing to acknowledge the depth of suffering.

Obi described it as tragic that while teachers were protesting and people were dying, the President was celebrating in a country “1/6th the size of Lagos and with only 1% of its population.”

He accused the President of favouring personal engagements over national responsibility, saying Tinubu had only ever spent the night in his Lagos residence or Katsina, where he attended a wedding.

Obi said Tinubu had never visited or spent time with people in some of the country’s most troubled states like Taraba, Plateau, or Niger.

He questioned what development benefit the trip to St. Lucia had brought, noting that no bilateral agreements had been signed or announced after four days.

Obi said the justification by Tinubu’s media handlers, who claimed the trip was tied to cultural and economic diplomacy and linked to the upcoming BRICS summit, was a distraction.

He clarified that the BRICS summit would hold on July 6 and 7, and most leaders, including those from the founding member states, had chosen not to attend.

Obi cited China’s official position that its leader would not attend the summit due to scheduling conflicts, while Russia’s President would be absent due to the war in Ukraine.

He pointed out that India’s Prime Minister had not left his country but would be visiting five countries within the same eight-day timeframe, suggesting better time management.

He argued that leadership must be present during national emergencies, not indulging in celebratory tours overseas.

Obi concluded that Nigeria was becoming a country obsessed with titles, while its citizens suffered from hunger, fear, displacement, and death.

He said leadership denial and disconnection from the people’s reality would only worsen the country’s crisis.

He called on the President to return home and focus on resolving urgent national issues, including insecurity, unpaid teachers, and the collapse of essential public services.

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