Otega Ogra, Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on digital engagement, strategy, and new media, has challenged Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, regarding his recent comments on the President’s visit to Saint Lucia.
Mr Obi condemned Mr Tinubu for undertaking the trip amidst ongoing security challenges in Nigeria, labelling it as an ‘ill-timed and insensitive leisure’ journey.
The former Anambra State governor notably questioned the President’s decision to travel for leisure when he had not visited disaster zones, specifically mentioning Minna, Niger State, where over 200 lives were lost and more than 700 individuals remain missing due to flooding.
He expressed disbelief that any leader in authority would contemplate a vacation during such a critical period.
In response, Mr Ogra took to social media, noting that Obi’s criticism stemmed from a perceived failure in his own gubernatorial tenure.
READ ALSO: ‘Mr President, this isn’t time for holidaying’ – Obi slams Tinubu’s trip to Saint Lucia
The presidential aide contended that Mr Obi, as a former governor who served for eight years, ‘failed to plan for Anambra’s future’ and could not identify any lasting legacies from his administration.
Mr Ogra suggested that Obi’s understanding of the President’s trip was limited, framing it as beyond his grasp of geopolitical realities.
He characterised Mr Tinubu’s visit to the Caribbean nation as a strategic manoeuvre aimed at appropriately positioning Nigeria on the global stage.
In his tweet, Mr Ogra stated, “Someone who failed to plan for Anambra’s future and can’t point to a sustaining legacy from his admin can certainly not understand the importance of this trip by his President to the Caribbean. To him, it is a ‘holiday’. To those in the know of geopolitics and where Nigeria needs to be and how it can get there quickly, it is a masterstroke.”
