Peter Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate of Labour Party (LP), has criticised President Bola Tinubu’s trip to Saint Lucia, a Caribbean island nation.
He described it as an inappropriate ‘holidaying’ amidst Nigeria’s severe socio-economic and security challenges.
In a statement issued on his X page on Saturday, Mr Obi expressed his bewilderment at the Presidency’s announcement that Mr Tinubu would depart Abuja on Saturday for official engagements and personal leisure in Saint Lucia and subsequently Brazil.
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This confirmation, he noted, followed earlier reports from Saint Lucia’s Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre, who indicated that June 30 and July 1 would be dedicated to official visits, with the remaining days allocated for a ‘personal vacation.’
Mr Obi condemned the leisure aspect of the trip, especially when, according to him, Nigeria is grappling with an unprecedented level of insecurity, hunger, and economic hardship.
He highlighted that in the past two years, Nigeria has suffered more casualties from criminality than a country officially at war, ranking it among the most insecure places globally.
The former Anambra State governor drew a stark contrast between the President’s foreign travel plans and his perceived inaction regarding domestic disasters.
Mr Obi lamented that Mr Tinubu had not visited Minna, Niger State, where over 200 lives were lost and 700 persons remain missing due to a flood disaster.
He also criticised the President’s visit to Makurdi, Benue State – where over 200 lives were recently lost to violence– as a ‘political jamboree’ rather than a genuine condolence visit.
He noted that a public holiday was declared and children were made to line up, while the President did not visit the actual scene of the attack.
Mr Obi underscored the size disparity between the crisis-hit Nigerian locations and Saint Lucia, pointing out that Makurdi (937.4 km²) and Minna (6789 km²) are significantly larger than Saint Lucia (617 km²), and their populations far exceed Saint Lucia’s 180,000 residents.
“The situation in this country today calls for no leisure for anybody in a position of authority, more so the President, on whose desk the buck stops,” Mr Obi said.
He accused the current administration of demonstrating insensitivity and a lack of passion for the populace, prioritizing the wealthy while the poor continue to suffer.
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Mr Obi called for an urgent reversal of this apparent indifference, urging leaders to focus on alleviating poverty rather than concentrating efforts on the 2027 election and satisfying elites.
He emphasised that Nigeria’s resources belong to all citizens, not just a select few, stating, “The time has come to put a stop to this drift before it consumes all and focus on pulling people out of poverty.”
