Former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has strongly criticized the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, accusing it of abandoning the core tenets of democratic governance in favor of political maneuvering.
Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja on Thursday, June 12, to mark Nigeria’s Democracy Day, Obi delivered a sobering assessment of the country’s condition and urged a return to purposeful leadership.
Obi began by paying tribute to the late Chief MKO Abiola and other democracy activists, acknowledging their sacrifice in Nigeria’s long struggle for democratic governance. However, he lamented that the nation today is far removed from the vision for which those heroes laid down their lives.
“It is both ironic and disturbing that Nigeria is, in name only, a democracy,” Obi said. “The ideals for which people like Abiola fought and died—justice, equality, and accountability—are glaringly absent in our current reality.”
Central to his critique was the state of Nigeria’s economy, which he described as “depressing and deteriorating.” According to Obi, multiple indicators reveal a nation in decline. “By 2023, roughly 38.9% of Nigerians were living below the poverty line. Today, that figure has risen to an alarming 54%.
Meanwhile, less than 10% of the country’s primary health care centers are operational,” he stated. He recalled recent visits to several states, where he personally witnessed the dire conditions in maternity wards. “In many of these facilities, childbirth is a gamble—a 50/50 chance of survival for both mother and child.”
Obi painted a grim picture of worsening hunger and mental health crises, noting that food insecurity has reached catastrophic levels. “Millions of Nigerians are unable to afford basic food items,” he said.
“This desperation is driving many into organized street begging. The World Health Organization recently reported that over 20 million Nigerians are suffering from mental health conditions—an epidemic fueled by poverty and hopelessness.”
The former governor also decried the country’s soaring debt, attributing it to reckless borrowing with little to show in terms of public service improvements. “Under the Tinubu administration, Nigeria’s debt burden has ballooned to N188 trillion,” Obi revealed.
“Yet, the lives of ordinary Nigerians remain untouched by this mountain of debt, as corruption continues to flourish unchecked. The National Assembly’s blatant padding of the 2025 budget is yet another symptom of this growing rot.”
On the issue of energy and infrastructure, Obi criticized the worsening electricity situation, highlighting the contradiction between rising tariffs and declining service quality.
“Nigerians are paying more, but getting less—more tariffs for more darkness,” he said. “This contradicts the president’s campaign promise, where he said that if he failed to improve power supply within four years, he shouldn’t be re-elected. We are holding him to that promise.”
He urged President Tinubu to abandon what he described as “governance by remote control,” and engage more directly with citizens. “The president must return from his frequent foreign trips and face the realities at home,” Obi charged. “If he had spent as much time touring Nigeria as he does abroad, he would have firsthand knowledge of the people’s suffering.”
Security, Obi emphasized, remains a critical concern—especially in rural areas where agriculture is essential to economic recovery. “Farming communities are under siege, and without security, we cannot produce food or attract investment,” he warned. “Reviving agriculture should be the first step in unlocking our economy.”
To that end, he called on the government to create an enabling environment for local manufacturers, stressing the need to lower production costs and encourage industrial growth. “The manufacturing sector is suffocating under the weight of poor infrastructure and high costs. The government must act quickly if it hopes to reverse this trend.”
Obi struck a hopeful yet urgent tone, encouraging Nigerians not to give up. “This is a critical moment in our history. I urge all Nigerians to stay engaged and hopeful,” he said. “But I also urge those in power to govern with integrity, put the people first, and restore the democratic ideals for which so many have suffered.”