Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 general election, has declared that Nigeria is not a democratic country, accusing the government of failing to uphold the principles of democracy.
Speaking on Tuesday during an appearance on Arise TV’s Prime Time, Obi stated that Nigeria lacks the key indicators of a functioning democracy, asserting that the government is neither of the people, by the people, nor for the people.
“I have said it, and I maintain that there is no democracy in Nigeria today,” Obi said. “Nigeria today is not a democratic country.
Let’s stop telling ourselves lies. If you look at all the tenets and yardsticks measuring democracy, it doesn’t exist here.”
Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, argued that elections in Nigeria do not reflect the will of the people, citing recent developments in Edo State as an example.
“It is not by the people because the people didn’t vote. It wasn’t their votes. I’m not just talking about the presidency; it’s across the line. Look at what happened in Edo. Can you call that democracy?” he questioned.
Obi also criticized the government’s misplacement of priorities, pointing out the lack of basic social services, especially for displaced persons in internally displaced persons (IDP) camps.
“I have just told you that I went to an IDP camp where we have thousands of people. No primary health care.
“They were begging me to have one nurse, which I said I must make sure they have. They don’t even have a primary school, which again I have told them I will make sure it happens,” he lamented.
He condemned the government for spending public funds on non-essential projects while failing to address pressing social issues.
“So, what are you doing for a country that just spent N21 billion to renovate the house for the vice-president who isn’t living there? And you cannot even have a primary school for kids who are going to be leaders of Nigeria tomorrow,” Obi queried.
In March, Obi had criticized President Bola Tinubu’s decision to declare a state of emergency in Rivers State and suspend Governor Siminalayi Fubara, describing it as a setback for democracy.
He warned that Nigeria’s democratic progress, which began in 1999, was regressing under the current administration, stating that the government is systematically dismantling democratic structures.
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