Peter Obi
Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in 2023, says highlighting Nigeria’s challenges does not amount to demarketing the country.
The former Anambra governor spoke on Wednesday while delivering a speech at the memorial lecture of Edwin Clark, leader of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), in Abuja.
The ex-presidential candidate was reacting to criticisms that his remarks in international forums often paint Nigeria in bad light.
In April, Obi claimed that Nigeria has more poor people than Indonesia, China, and Vietnam.
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Afterwards, Sanwo-Olu, Lagos governor, criticised Obi over a “disturbing pattern of behaviour” which “de-markets Nigeria on the global stage”.
The Lagos governor said given Obi’s performance during his stint in office, he has lost the moral authority to criticise the President Bola Tinubu administration.
Segun Sowunmi, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), also faulted Obi’s analysis, saying his submissions about Nigeria were extremely skewed.
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However, Obi dismissed the criticism, questioning why he is blamed for tarnishing Nigeria’s image when global institutions have already confirmed the country’s dire economic reality.
“I spoke a few days ago and some people said I am demarketing Nigeria,” he said.
“But World Bank has just shown 75% of Nigerians in rural areas are poor. Is World Bank demarketing Nigeria?
“UNICEF two days ago announced that Nigeria now has over 2 million malnourished children, the second highest in the world. Are they demarketing Nigeria?”
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The former Anambra governor said the sacrifices of past leaders have been “in vain”, adding that Nigeria has slid into poor governance while abandoning democratic principles.
