Former Anambra State Governor and 2023 presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, has strongly criticized President Bola Tinubu’s ongoing 8-day visit to St. Lucia, describing the trip as ill-timed and insensitive in the face of mounting insecurity, economic hardship, and decaying social infrastructure across Nigeria.
Obi, in a statement made available to journalists on Tuesday, expressed deep concern over what he described as “a government obsessed with titles and honours while the nation is in turmoil.”
“It is alarming that we now live in a country of titles and honours without any passion for the people’s plight. While the Presidency basks in the euphoria of titles in St. Lucia, our people are being killed at home,” Obi declared.
According to him, the visit reflects a misplaced priority at a time when children are out of school and teachers have remained unpaid for years. “A nation where children cannot go to school because some of the teachers have not been paid for almost three years, similar to what I complained about lecturers a few weeks ago — this is not a functioning nation,” he stated.
Obi stressed that his objection to the President’s trip was not out of disrespect for St. Lucia but because of the “inappropriate timing and duration.” He said, “When I said that the President embarking on an 8-day state visit to St. Lucia at this critical time was inappropriate and unacceptable, it was not a lack of respect for the country of St. Lucia; rather, it is about the timing and duration for a President whose nation is in turmoil. Timing is everything, and right now, at this time, Nigeria is bleeding.”
While presidential aides have defended the trip, citing cultural ties, economic benefits, and an onward journey to the BRICS summit, Obi insisted that the government should focus on addressing the country’s deepening crisis. “At this critical time when our people die daily and our schools and hospitals are not functioning, we should focus on fixing our country,” he said.
He lamented that so far, there has been no evidence of any tangible agreements being signed to benefit Nigeria. “Having been in St. Lucia for the past 4 days, we have not seen any agreement being entered or signed that would contribute to Nigeria’s development but rather we are watching Mr. President collect a personal honour and title in St. Lucia because they know we are a country of titles and honour and crave accolades instead of actual development,” Obi noted.
Highlighting the grim realities at home, Obi revealed that as the President received titles abroad, tragedy struck in Yobe State where at least 37 people were killed in a Boko Haram attack. “Just today, as the President received titles in St. Lucia, at least 37 people were killed in Yobe State in a Boko Haram attack, and currently, protesters in Kwara State have been protesting unemployment, banditry and high insecurity in the state,” he said.
He pointed out that since the President departed for St. Lucia, hundreds of lives have been lost to violence and insecurity. “During the period the President has travelled, 200 Nigerians have died in various crisis-related incidents across the country. Russia, a country at war, has not lost as many innocent civilians as Nigeria, which is not officially at war,” Obi said.
Obi also questioned the President’s domestic engagement, stating: “Other than Katsina where Mr. President went to attend a wedding, he has never spent a night or slept in any Nigerian state other than his home in Lagos for an official tour and has never visited some of the most troubled states like Niger State, Taraba or Plateau to spend even a single day with the people, yet he is spending eight days in a Caribbean Island.”
Warning against what he described as a leadership in denial, Obi emphasized: “A nation in pain cannot afford a leadership in denial. At a time when blood is being spilt on our soil, when children are orphaned and communities erased overnight, with families separated at IDPs, our children are not in school, teachers are not paid and basic hospitals are not functional, our leadership must be present.”
He dismissed the BRICS summit justification, arguing that no other leader from BRICS nations is combining the summit with an extended foreign tour at this time. “No vacation, no summit and definitely no conference is more important than the lives of the Nigerian people you swore to protect,” he stressed.
Obi concluded with a call for urgent action: “Our children being in school, our people, especially young ones, being pulled out of poverty — we must now prioritise the security and welfare of Nigerians and vigorously pursue the same. A New Nigeria is POssible.”
