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Why Sanwo-Olu is Angry with Peter Obi •What Peter Obi Says At Johns Hopkins University

I also find Mr. Obi’s pattern of behaviour disturbing. When prominent Nigerians go overseas, they ought to project Nigeria positively.

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Lagos State Governor , Babajide Sanwo-Olu has lashed out at Mr Peter Obi, of the Labour Party, regarding his recent comments on Nigeria under President Bola Tinubu.

Sanwo-Olu reacted on his X, titled ‘Factually Addressing Mr. Peter Obi’s Criticism of Nigeria at Johns Hopkins University,’ urges Mr Obi to bridle his tongue by not speaking injuriously about his country and the current leadership under President Tinubu.

The statement reads:

“On Thursday, April 24, 2025, former Governor Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate for the 2023 election, was at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, where he made several disparaging comments about Nigeria.

He made the unflattering remarks not just about the incumbent Nigerian government, but also about Nigeria.

I also find Mr. Obi’s pattern of behaviour disturbing. When prominent Nigerians go overseas, they ought to project Nigeria positively.

They do not have to do that for the government. But we all owe a duty to market Nigeria on the global stage rather than de-market her.

On Thursday, April 24, 2025, former Governor Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate for the 2023 election, was at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, where he made several disparaging comments about Nigeria.

That is what true patriotism is about. Because Mr. Obi focused on poverty and said that the current administration’s policies are making Nigerians poorer, I will concentrate on that.

Any leader can fight poverty generationally by promoting education, improving healthcare, providing credit, and granting access to land.

Now, I find it somewhat ironic that a man like Mr. Obi, who did not build a single school or a stand alone hospital throughout his eight-year tenure as Governor of Anambra or sustainably provide credit facilities, would criticise the Government of Nigeria, which is actively doing that.

I say this because the President of Nigeria, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is my predecessor, and as Governor of Lagos and now President of Nigeria, has built over 200 schools and provided student loans to more than 200,000 undergraduates of Nigerian tertiary institutions.

In less than two years, he has provided over half a billion dollars in credit facilities to small and medium-scale enterprises. While he was Governor of Lagos State between 1999 and 2007, the President reduced poverty by more than 46%.

There is every reason to believe that, based on what he did as Governor of Lagos, he will repeat the same feat at the federal level. After all, the best predictor of the future is the past.

But let us examine the messenger, not just the message, and look at the issuer as well as the issues. Mr. Obi talks a good game. But was he able to reduce poverty while he governed Anambra?

Perhaps we can let the facts speak for themselves. Under Peter Obi as a two term Anambra Governor, poverty in Anambra increased.

It did not reduce. Before Peter Obi became Anambra Governor on Thursday, June 14, 2007, the poverty rate in Anambra was 41.4%.

But after only two years in office, the poverty rate in Anambra jumped to 53.7%.

But the interesting thing is that five years after Peter Obi left office, his successor, Willie Obiano, reduced the poverty rate in Anambra from almost 60% to 14.8%.

As such, I am not sure that Mr. Obi is morally well placed to make the alarming claims he made about Nigeria at Johns Hopkins.

Mr. Obi contributed to the increase in poverty in Nigeria. Governor Tinubu, as he then was, was responsible for lifting millions out of poverty.

Being that that is the case, who should criticise who?”

WHAT PETER OBI SAID AT JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY

At Johns Hopkins University, USA, Peter Obi was invited to speak on “Politics and Change in Nigeria” from Professor Peter Lewis, the famous author of “Growing Apart: comparing Indonesia and Nigeria”.

Peter Obi commented on his X: In discussing this very critical issue, which directly impacts the direction of a nation, I pointed out that the failure of a nation depends largely on its Political Leadership. Competent, capable and compassionate political leadership, with integrity, will help nations to achieve sustainable growth and development.

In my speech, I tried to assess 3 of our comparable nations – China, Vietnam and Indonesia, from 1990 till date.
In 1990, the year the measurement of the Human Development Index (HDI) was started, these 3 comparable nations, including Nigeria, were all classified under the medium category of the HDI measurement. 35 years later, 3 of these nations have moved up to the High category of HDI while Nigeria has fallen into the low category.

Within the same period of 35 years, from 1990 to 2025, the GDP Per Capita of these comparable nations have all improved. As of 1990, while Nigeria had a GDP per capita of $556, China had $317, Indonesia had $578, and Vietnam had only $99.

Nigeria, obviously, had higher GDP per capita than China, while Vietnam had less than one-fifth of Nigeria’s per capita.

Today, Nigeria’s per capita is about one-fifth of Indonesia’s ($5000) and Vietnam’s (4400) GDP per capita and below one-tenth of China’s (1300) GDP per capita.

In the area of poverty, Nigeria with about 50 million poor people, had the least number of people in poverty in 1990 than any of the three countries.

While China had about 750 million people living in poverty, Indonesia and Vietnam had 85 million and 60 million poor people, respectively.

China alone had about 15 times the number of poor people than Nigeria.

Today, however, Nigeria has more poor people than these 3 countries combined.

The question then is, what exactly did these countries do to be able to achieve the desired growth and development?

That is where political leadership comes in. These comparable nations, and indeed other progressive nations, unlike Nigeria, have competent leadership with character, capacity and compassion, committed to prioritizing investment in critical areas of developmental measures; Education, Health, and pulling people out of poverty.

A New Nigeria is POssible. -PO ”

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APC Releases Timetable and Schedule of Activities for 2027 General Elections

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The All Progressives Congress (APC) has officially released its Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2027 General Elections.

In a press statement issued on Monday, the party disclosed that the schedule was signed by its National Organising Secretary, His Excellency Sulaiman Muhammad Argungu, OFR.

The timetable provides detailed timelines for key pre-election activities, including the screening of aspirants, appeals processes, primary elections, and directives on the sale of nomination and expression of interest forms.

The APC reassured its members, stakeholders, and the Nigerian public of its commitment to conducting credible, transparent, and inclusive primary elections.

“The party remains dedicated to strengthening internal democracy and consolidating its progressive ideals through a fair and orderly process,” the statement added.

The release of the timetable marks a significant early step by the ruling party as preparations for the 2027 polls begin in earnest.

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Gbenga Daniel shut out from Ogun East APC Meeting

Upon arrival in a white bus branded “BAT OGD Movement,” Daniel—also known as OGD—was reportedly denied entry on the orders of a local government chairman, who allegedly claimed the directive “came from higher authorities.

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• Gbenga Daniel address supporters from his vehicle outside APC East meeting in Ijebu- Ode, Monday April 20.

The former governor and senator representing Ogun East, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, was on Monday blocked from gaining access to the venue of the caucus meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ogun East Senatorial District.

The meeting, held at Adeola Odutola Hall in Ijebu-Ode, included past chairmen, past and present National Assembly members, councillors, among others.

However, videos circulating on social media showed that Senator Daniel’s convoy was prevented from entering the venue.

Upon arrival in a white bus branded “BAT OGD Movement,” Daniel—also known as OGD—was reportedly denied entry on the orders of a local government chairman, who allegedly claimed the directive “came from higher authorities.

”In one of the clips, Daniel’s security personnel were seen engaging individuals at the gate in an attempt to gain access, but were unsuccessful.

The situation turned tense as supporters of the senator gathered, chanting: “OGD, OGD, OGD.”

Daniel later addressed his supporters from his vehicle:”We are here for our caucus meeting, and I got here by 10 a.m. They said that we shouldn’t enter the venue in Ijebu-Ode.”

His media aide, Steve Oliyide, confirmed the incident and described the meeting as a gathering of loyalists of Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun.

According to Oliyide, the meeting notice was issued at midnight and invited all National Assembly members, including Daniel.”

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Chief Bode George Writes President Tinubu “Protect the democratic space, not shrink it”

Let me state this plainly: Democracy cannot survive where opposition is weakened, ridiculed, or systematically neutralized.

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Chief Olabode Ibiyinka George, has written an open letter to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, counseling him to “Protect Nigeria’s democratic space, not shrink it.”

In the open letter, Chief George tells President Tinubu:

” Mr. President,This is not a routine correspondence; it is a deeply held conviction from my heart.

I write as a man who has given over half a century to the service of Nigeria, a country whose stability, unity, and democratic future are now under visible strain.

I speak out of conviction, experience, and a duty to truth.

My reflections arise not from anger or partisanship, but from a place of sincere patriotism, responsibility, and an abiding faith in Almighty God.

Nigeria is drifting dangerously. What is unfolding within our political space today raises grave concern.

The increasing suppression direct or indirect of opposition voices, the apparent drive toward political dominance without restraint, and the erosion of democratic balance are not merely troubling; they are signals of a system under stress and heading towards potential rupture.

Let me state this plainly: Democracy cannot survive where opposition is weakened, ridiculed, or systematically neutralized.

A country governed without credible dissent is not stable, it is volatile. And volatility, once ignited, respects no office, no title, and no authority.

Mr. President, history is littered with leaders who mistook control for strength.

They surrounded themselves with applause, silenced criticism, and dismissed warnings until reality corrected them, often irreversibly. I request you fervently not to walk that path.

The assumption that power can be consolidated without consequence is a grave miscalculation.

The belief that influence, patronage, or financial leverage can substitute for justice and fairness is equally flawed.

As one of the global economic thinkers Professor Ross Gittins rightly observed societies do not find stability in material appeasement alone.

As material incentives and political patronage do not create lasting satisfaction or loyalty.

Money does not define leadership and cannot buy legitimacy. It cannot command respect, and certainly cannot secure legacy.

What sustains leadership is trust and trust is built on fairness, equity, transparency and justice.

Today, that trust is under pressure. Nigerians are not merely concerned they are watching.

They are burdened by economic hardship, rising costs, and a growing sense of uncertainty. In such a climate, any perception rightly or wrongly of political suppression becomes combustible.

Let me be unequivocal:a nation under economic strain cannot afford political provocation.

This is how instability begins not suddenly, but gradually through decisions that appear strategic in the moment but prove destructive in consequence.

Mr. President, you stand at a decisive crossroad. You can choose to correct course, strengthen democratic institutions, and restore national confidence.

Or you can allow the current trajectory to continue one that risks deepening division and inviting consequences that no administration can fully control.There is also a matter of counsel.

As we approach critical judicial decisions, particularly from the Supreme Court, every action taken by leadership must reinforce not weaken the integrity of our institutions. Anything less sends a dangerous message both within and beyond our borders.

Those who tell you that all is well, those who dismiss legitimate concerns, who encourage aggressive political consolidation, who interpret caution as weakness are not safeguarding your leadership; they are endangering it.

Leadership demands the courage to hear the truth, not just loyalty. Let me remind you: Power is temporary. History is permanent. No leader escapes the judgment of history.

The question is not whether your tenure will end; it will end. The question is how it will be remembered.

Nigeria, once the undisputed Giant of Africa, now faces the risk of diminished relevance.

Nations once considered smaller or less stable are advancing in governance, electoral credibility, and institutional discipline while we struggle with avoidable internal tensions.

This is not acceptable. As we approach critical judicial decisions, particularly from the Supreme Court, every action taken by leadership must reinforce not weaken the integrity of our institutions. Anything less sends a dangerous message both within and beyond our borders.

Mr. President, I say this with all sincerity and urgency. If the current course is not urgently reviewed and corrected, the consequences may be far-reaching.

Nations do not collapse overnight they unravel through a series of ignored warnings.This is one of those warnings, if ignored could be severe.

You have been entrusted by God and by circumstance with leadership at a critical moment in Nigeria’s history.

Use it wisely. Correct course where necessary. Restore confidence where it has been lost. Protect the democratic space, not shrink it. That trust must not be squandered.

Act with courage.

Act with restraint. Act with justice.

Distance yourself from sycophants. Embrace truth and act with courage. Remove those who mislead you.Listen to voices of reason. Protect the democratic space.

Save Nigeria from avoidable crisis.

Protect its democracy. Preserve its unity. Secure its future.

Finally, Mr. President, I must emphasise that the integrity of our electoral process must remain sacrosanct.

There must be no manipulation whatsoever by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in any form or manner.

The will of the Nigerian people must be respected and allowed to prevail freely, transparently, and without interference.

Anything short of this undermines democracy and risks eroding the very foundation of our nation’s unity and legitimacy.

May God grant you the wisdom to discern truth, the humility to act on it, and the strength to lead rightly,” he signed off.

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