Peter Obi, a former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, has strongly responded to Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s accusations of him “demarketing” Nigeria on the global stage.
Sanwo-Olu criticized Obi for his recent statements at Johns Hopkins University in the U.S., where Obi highlighted concerns about Nigeria’s increasing poverty, insecurity, and governance issues.
The Lagos governor accused Obi of making derogatory remarks that damage Nigeria’s reputation internationally, and also questioned Obi’s credibility to make such criticisms, referencing rising poverty rates during Obi’s tenure as Anambra governor.
Without naming Sanwo-Olu directly, Obi said:
“People say I am demarketing Nigeria. When is truth being demarketed? The World Bank has just shown that 75% of Nigerians in rural areas are poor. Is the World Bank demarketing Nigeria?”
Obi also cited a disturbing UNICEF report stating that Nigeria now has the second-highest rate of malnourished children globally, with over 2 million children affected. “Are they demarketing Nigeria?” he asked.
The former governor didn’t stop there. He expressed deep concern for the state of governance in Nigeria, stating that the sacrifices of the country’s founding fathers and former leaders had been rendered meaningless by widespread lawlessness, democratic backsliding, and poor leadership.
“I listened to my brother Mike when you talked about, ‘may the labour of our heroes past not be in vain.’ I’m happy that General Gowon is here, Jonathan is here. But I can tell you their sacrifice is in vain,” Obi declared.
He added, “We were in this country when people were protesting under Jonathan, when there was no need to protest. Jonathan increased fuel from N87 to N120, but when it was N900, they were not protesting. Where are those protesters today? Have they died?”
In a further swipe at the state of Nigeria’s electoral integrity, Obi referenced the recent elections in Edo State, which he alleged were rigged.
“Everybody knows who won that election,” he said, without naming names.
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