Politics
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.
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 ”
News
BREAKING: Rivers State Assembly Commences Impeachment Proceedings Against Governor Fubara and Deputy
The Rivers State House of Assembly has initiated impeachment proceedings against Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy, Professor Ngozi Nma Odu, citing allegations of gross misconduct.
During Thursday’s plenary session, presided over by Speaker Martins Amaewhule, Majority Leader Hon. Major Jack presented a notice invoking Section 188 of the 1999 Constitution. He outlined seven points of alleged gross misconduct against Governor Fubara, including:
– Demolition of the Assembly Complex
– Extra-budgetary spending
– Withholding funds allocated to the Assembly Service Commission
– Refusal to comply with Supreme Court rulings on financial autonomy for the legislature
The notice was reportedly signed by 26 lawmakers.
Speaker Amaewhule announced that the formal impeachment notice would be served on Governor Fubara within the next seven days, in accordance with constitutional procedures.
In the same session, Deputy Majority Leader Hon. Linda Stewart tabled a separate notice against Deputy Governor Odu, accusing her of:
1. Reckless and unconstitutional spending of public funds
2. Obstructing the House of Assembly from performing its constitutional duties
3. Conniving to allow unauthorized persons to occupy offices without proper screening by the legitimate Assembly
4. Seeking budgetary approval from an unauthorized group instead of the recognized Rivers State House of Assembly
5. Seizure of salaries and allowances due to the Assembly and its Service Commission.
This development marks a fresh escalation in the protracted political crisis in Rivers State, amid ongoing tensions over legislative autonomy, budget processes, and governance.
The Assembly’s actions come against the backdrop of previous impeachment attempts and disputes involving the executive and legislature.
No immediate response has been issued from the governor’s office.
Politics
APC Coalition Pressures Tinubu to sack Wike from cabinet
Central to their grievances were allegations that Wike, who is not formally registered as a member of the APC, had launched sustained attacks on the party’s national leadership.
• Photo: Nyesom Wike, FCT Minister
A coalition of leaders within the All Progressives Congress (APC) are calling for swift removal of Nyesom Wike as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and from President Tinubu’s cabinet.
The coalition comprises the APC Leaders Forum (ALF) and the Tinubu/Shettima Solidarity Movement (TSSM), made the call a strongly worded open letter to Mr President, calling for Wike’s immediate removal urging the President to demonstrate that no individual is above the party or the country, even as they reaffirmed their support for Tinubu’s leadership and re-election bid.
In the open letter dated 7 January 2026, and addressed to President Bola Tinubu through the APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, the groups are citing insubordination, anti-party activities, and threats to national unity.
They are accusing Wike of actions they described as incompatible with his continued stay in the cabinet of an APC-led government.
The letter, jointly signed by leaders of the two groups, was made public on Wednesday as members staged a peaceful rally at the APC National Secretariat in Abuja.
The groups said the rally was part of a broader mobilisation to “defend party integrity, democratic values and the Renewed Hope Agenda” of the Tinubu administration.
The signatories—Dr. Emeka Okoro, Dr. Adekunle Balogun, Ibrahim Yusuf, and Abdulkareem Isiaka—who described themselves as loyal supporters of President Tinubu, said their decision to speak out was driven by what they termed “egregious misconduct” by the former Rivers State governor, warning that silence could endanger party unity and national stability.
Central to their grievances were allegations that Wike, who is not formally registered as a member of the APC, had launched sustained attacks on the party’s national leadership.
They cited remarks allegedly made by Wike during a visit to Oyigbo Local Government Area of Rivers State on 5 January 2026, where he reportedly accused the APC National Secretary, Senator Ajibola Basiru, of interfering in Rivers politics for personal gain.
The coalition also accused Wike of working against the APC-led government in Rivers State, alleging that he had persistently attacked Governor Siminalayi Fubara, whom they described as the party’s duly elected governor in the state. They claimed Wike had publicly ridiculed Fubara’s leadership, questioned the legitimacy of his emergence, and openly suggested that his election should be reversed in 2027.
“As a serving minister in an APC-led government, Wike’s actions amount to anti-party activities that weaken our hold on Rivers State—a key battleground for the APC’s future electoral success. How can we trust a man who actively works against our own governor while enjoying the privileges of your administration?”
Politics
FCT Area Council election: INEC excludes LP candidates, give reasons
In a statement on Wednesday, the Commission’s Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Mrs. Victoria Eta-Messi, said the Labour Party’s challenge stemmed from “prolonged internal leadership disputes since 2024,” which, it noted, were settled by the Supreme Court in April 2025″
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed February 21, 2026, for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council elections, but excluded the Labour Party candidates from the upcoming election, citing the Supreme Court rulings.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Commission’s Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Mrs. Victoria Eta-Messi, said the Labour Party’s challenge stemmed from “prolonged internal leadership disputes since 2024,” which, it noted, were settled by the Supreme Court in April 2025″.
According to the commission, the Supreme Court in Appeal No. SC/CV/56/2025 (Usman v. Labour Party) “unequivocally held that the tenure of the Barr. Julius Abure-led National Executive Committee had expired.”
INEC added that despite the judgment, “the Abure-led faction purportedly conducted primaries for the August 16, 2025, bye-election nationwide and the FCT Area Council Election.”
The commission further recalled that the Abure-led faction had earlier challenged its exclusion from the August 2025 bye-election at the Federal High Court, Abuja, but the suit was dismissed.
It said judgment delivered on August 15, 2025, “enforced the Supreme Court’s position that Barr. Julius Abure was no longer recognised as the National Chairman of the Labour Party and thus upheld the decision of INEC to exclude the Labour Party from the bye-election.”
INEC disclosed that the party subsequently filed several suits in different courts, all seeking orders to compel the commission to issue access codes for the FCT Area Council election.
These include cases at the Nasarawa State High Court, the Federal High Court in Abuja, and two divisions of the FCT High Court.
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