Peter Obi says it’s time leaders stop daily politics and start solving real problems facing Nigerians.
He stressed that true governance means investing in people, not luxury perks for politicians.
The Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, Mr Peter Obi, has urged Nigerian politicians to stop focusing on political campaigns and instead direct their energy toward addressing the country’s developmental needs.
Speaking at the Margaret Ekpo International Airport in Calabar on Friday, after meeting with dentistry students at the University of Calabar, Obi emphasized the need to move away from daily political discussions and instead concentrate on the welfare of the people.
“We must stop discussing politics and start discussing development of the people, investing in the real measurable areas of development, such as education and health and pulling people out of poverty and we can’t do that without investing in the people,” Obi said.
He further explained that true leadership is centered on service and the well-being of citizens. “Governance is about the people, service is about our people, by doing this I want to ensure and create awareness that we politicians should abandon discussing politics daily and start discussing governance and welfare of the people.”
Obi criticised the imbalance in how resources are allocated in the country, noting that while public officials live lavishly, many young people lack basic learning facilities. “We cannot have a society where we spend millions to buy cars for political office holders and young people are looking for tools to get quality education. They don’t have classrooms, they don’t have chairs but we politicians are living like stars, it shouldn’t be, we must dismantle it and invest in the critical areas of development. I was once like them, that’s why I’m struggling to build a society where a child of nobody can be somebody,” he said.
During his visit, Obi donated ₦20 million to the University of Calabar’s Dentistry Department to help purchase five dental chairs. He called on other Nigerians to help the school acquire 10 more. He also advised students to take their education seriously, reminding them that it remains their most valuable tool in life.
When asked about the 2027 elections, Obi responded calmly: “I don’t want to talk about politics, 2027 is not what I want to talk about, let me talk about how the average Nigerian can put food on his table. Today let me talk about how these children can be in school, how our primary and secondary schools can work, how the average Nigerian can go to hospital and be cured and when 2027 comes, we’ll be there and I will surely contest.”
