•Peter Obi and Tinubu
Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, says President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been driving democracy backward as the system has been in recession since he took over two years ago.
He said this yesterday in a statement titled ‘Democracy in Decline: Reflecting on Two Years of Tinubu’s Governance’, reports Daily Trust.
The former Anambra State governor said after a comprehensive look at the two-year reign of President Tinubu, it is safe to conclude that a lot is not right in governance and policy delivery of the administration.
Obi rated the Tinubu-led All Progressives Congress (APC) administration low in virtually all indices of governance including corruption, prudence, economy insecurity and politics, during the period under review.
He urged the president to stop touring outside Nigeria and use his remaining two years to tour the 36 Nigerian states instead.
“Mr. President you have already made over 30 international trips, spending nearly 150 days abroad. If you tour Nigeria’s 36 states and dedicate just 2 days to tour each state, it would take only 72 days for you to do so, less than half the time you have already spent in other areas of the country on foreign trips. You need to go around the country to see,” Obi said.
Addressing the challenge of deepening democracy, Obi urged President Tinubu, “to emulate late President Umaru Yar’Adua, who was honest enough to admit the process that brought him into office was wrong and not sufficiently credible,’ and insisted on rapidly doing what is right to save our democracy.”
He also recalled that former President Goodluck Jonathan saved the democracy by accepting defeat even before the election result, announced in the dark.
He said, “We must end this troubling governance era that is filled with impunity, state capture, and absolute disregard for the rule of law and the checks and balances required of any worthwhile democracy.
“In our present state, our dear country, Nigeria, cannot be justly classified as a democratic country. The vital indications of democracy are noticeably absent. Some do not even exist.
“Democracy is said to be ‘a government of the people, by the people, and for the people,’ yet none of these three measures exist in our democracy today.
“Rules, regulations and requirements to participate in elections or be elected for are not followed, consequently, individuals who are to be disqualified ab initio are now holding, including public offices.”
He said it is most troubling that in its two years in office, the present government has brought the nation to the point where the leaders now celebrate and endorse failure, lies, and propaganda.
Obi said, “The government today, rather than show genuine accountability and measurable progress, focuses on manipulating narratives, gaslighting the public, shifting blame and weaponising governance.
“Nigerians live in a worsening and worrisome insecurity, widespread corruption, hunger, and general despondency. There are no clear benchmarks for measuring tangible development, as we continue to witness the collapse of key indicators, like education, healthcare, and poverty alleviation, which are presently measuring national progress.
“Our country today can best be described as a nation declining fast in all its facets. The security of lives and property has worsened, and the rule of law is virtually non-existent.
“These are the hard-verifiable facts: “On May 29th, 2023, when the organisation was sworn into office, Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) stood at $364 billion. As of today, it has declined to $188 billion, a decline of almost fifty per cent (50%).
“Nigeria’s GDP per capita was $1,640 as of May 2023, but today it has dropped drastically to about $835, a devastating decline of about 50%. Nigerians living in multi-dimensional poverty increased from 38.9% to 54% within this period, with about 129 million Nigerians now living below the poverty line.
“The World Bank reported recently that 75% of Nigerians in rural areas now live in poverty as of 2025, and even more than previously recorded in the urban areas.
“Today, more than 18.3 million Nigerian children are out of school, the highest number in the world. The quality of education in Nigeria is also deteriorating rapidly. Many of our children are being taught sciences without any science labs and computer studies without any computers.
“Students are now writing WAEC and other national exams in the dark, relying on candles. There are now even glitches in their exams.”
Obi said that on healthcare services, the situation has worsened drastically as “the National Primary Health Care Development Agency decried that less than 20% of over 30,000 Primary Health Care Centres across the nation are fully functional.
He said, “I have even, recently visited some Health centres where delivery rooms were without toilets. The United Nations recently reported Nigeria as the world’s worst country to give birth, with one death recorded every seven minutes. Ditto Nigerian businesses that have continued to collapse at alarming rates.
“Within the past two years, approximately 7 million Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) shut down across Nigeria. Over 80 manufacturing companies have permanently closed their operations. Funding costs, including the cost of raw materials and energy, have surged to an incredible level, forcing these manufacturers to shut down.
“Over 15 major multinationals (including GlaxoSmithKline, Diageo, Procter & Gamble, and Shoprite) have exited Nigeria due to the harsh operating environment.”
He added, “The hunger crisis arising from food insecurity has deepened in these 2 years. Based on the Global Hunger Index (GHI) report, Nigeria’s hunger situation has taken a hit, as we are now one of the hungriest countries in the world. Millions can no longer afford food due to the high costs of food and nonexistent disposable income.
“Our national population is experiencing a mental health crisis as the mental health and stress levels in this period have increased drastically. Nigeria is now one of the top three (3) most successful organisations in the world.
“Fifty-nine per cent of the organisation’s population is under daily stress. Mental health experts and advocates have warned that the present situation in Nigeria is having extremely adverse effects on the population as it contributes to anger, anxiety, and depression levels in the country.
Obi noted that despite the trillions of naira purportedly saved from the removal of fuel subsidy (a policy initially justified as a means to curb borrowing), this government has, within two years, borrowed far more money than the administrations of President Umaru Yar’Adua, President Goodluck Jonathan, and President Muhammadu Buhari combined.
He said, “Today, Nigeria’s overall public debt is estimated at close to N188 trillion. Nigerians were informed that these borrowed funds would be allocated to critical sectors of development. Still, there has been no significant improvement in education, healthcare, or poverty alleviation; critical sectors that are vitally important for national development.
“Brazen Corruption is at its worst under this administration. Nigeria has now become a crime scene. Now our national budget is routinely inflated and padded without consequences. One of the most glaring manifestations of this is the extensive padding of the 2025 national budget. BudgIT revealed that about N7 trillion was questionably inserted by the National Assembly. These figures suggest a pattern of inflated costs and misappropriation of funds.”
