The presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general elections, Mr. Peter Obi, has criticised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for embarking on a vacation in the Caribbean at a time when Nigeria is grappling with escalating insecurity, hunger, and widespread hardship.
In a strongly worded post via his verified X handle on Saturday, Obi described the president’s decision to travel to Saint Lucia for official engagements and leisure as insensitive and ill-timed, especially as the country reels from a series of deadly attacks, displacement, and economic hardship.
Titled “No, Mr President, This Is Not the Time for Holidaying”, Obi’s post condemned what he described as the government’s misplaced priorities and lack of empathy for suffering citizens.
“In the past two years, Nigeria has lost more people to all sorts of criminality than a country officially at war,” Obi said.
“Without any twilight, Nigeria ranks among the most insecure places in the world. Nigerians are hungrier, and most people do not know where their next meal will come from.”
The former Anambra State governor said he was alarmed by a statement from the Presidency announcing Tinubu’s trip to Saint Lucia, confirming an earlier disclosure by the country’s Prime Minister, Philip J. Pierre.
According to Pierre, Tinubu was expected to spend June 30 and July 1 on official engagements, with the remaining part of his trip reserved for private leisure.
Obi said he initially dismissed the reports as false, believing it was unimaginable that a President would consider a holiday amid the current crisis.
He noted that Tinubu had not visited Minna, Niger State, where over 200 lives were reportedly lost and hundreds still missing following a devastating flood.
“This is a President going for leisure when he couldn’t visit Minna, Niger State, where over two hundred lives were lost. I wonder what kind of incident will have to occur before the President shows physical sympathy to distressed citizens,” Obi queried.
He also recalled Tinubu’s controversial visit to Makurdi, Benue State, where over 200 persons were killed in violent attacks.
According to Obi, the visit was turned into a political event rather than a condolence mission, as schoolchildren were made to line the streets while the President failed to visit the actual scene of the killings.
Drawing comparisons, Obi pointed out that Saint Lucia, the President’s vacation destination, is smaller and less populated than Nigerian cities like Makurdi and Minna.
“Makurdi is 937.4 square kilometres, over 59% bigger than Saint Lucia’s 617km², while Minna’s 6,789km² is more than 10 times Saint Lucia’s size,” he said.
Obi insisted that the severity of Nigeria’s problems demands constant attention and tireless work from those in power — not leisure trips.
“One had expected the President to be asking God for extra hours in a day to solve the nation’s problems.
“But what we are seeing is the government’s obsession with the 2027 elections and a disturbing focus on pleasing the wealthy, while the poor continue to suffer.”
Obi concluded by saying that the current administration has shown “repeated insensitivity” and has failed to prioritise the needs of ordinary Nigerians.
The Presidency has yet to issue a formal response to Obi’s comments as of press time.
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