By Our Political Correspondent I Thursday, October 02, 2025
ABUJA—The Labour Party Presidential Candidate in the 2023 election, Mr. Peter Obi, yesterday delivered a scathing indictment of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), stating that its “incompetent, divisive, and corrupt leadership” has greatly diminished Nigeria.
In a statement released on the occasion of the nation’s 65th Independence Anniversary on October 1, 2025, Obi insisted that despite the current bleak picture, “a great Nigeria is still possible.”
The former Anambra State Governor lamented that the founding fathers’ vision of a prosperous nation had been derailed by “tragic failures of leadership.”
He recalled that Nigeria, once predicted by Time Magazine as a true African superpower, has now fallen significantly from its previous standing.
Mr. Obi highlighted the stark contrast between Nigeria’s economic status in 2014 and its current reality.
He noted that by 2007, following the Obasanjo administration’s debt forgiveness, the country’s total debt was approximately N2.5 trillion, only 10 per cent of the GDP.
”Today, the picture is bleak. Our total debt stands at about N175 trillion, nearly 50 per cent of GDP, without any improvement in productive sectors,” Obi stated.
He noted that this reckless borrowing was being used for “wasteful consumption” rather than investment in productive infrastructure.
Furthermore, he pointed out that Nigeria, once Africa’s largest economy in 2014, has now fallen to the fourth largest, trailing South Africa, Egypt, and Algeria.
The presidential candidate reserved his strongest criticism for the current administration’s spending priorities, accusing it of indulging in extravagance while imposing heavy taxes on struggling citizens.
Obi claimed that billions were being spent on “new presidential jets, yachts, and luxury cars that cost more than the entire 2024 budget for primary healthcare.”
He cited several examples of what he termed misplaced priorities, including the N25 billion renovation cost for the Vice President’s residence, which he noted was “more than the combined capital budgets of six major federal university teaching hospitals.”
He also questioned the allocation of over N10 billion for car parks and canteens for the National Assembly, surpassing the capital budget for the Ministry of Science and Technology.
Obi painted a desperate picture of the nation’s welfare, noting that in just one year, the current administration had pushed over 15 million Nigerians into acute poverty.
”Today, more than 150 million Nigerians lack access to basic healthcare, education, water, and sanitation,” he stated, warning that this number grows daily under a government that prioritises “brutal revenue-driven policies while ignoring the welfare of its people.”
He also expressed grave concern over rising insecurity, asserting that incompetence in security management has turned Nigeria into one of the most terrorised and unsafe nations globally.
He noted that kidnapping has become rampant, with citizens living in fear of travelling by road.
Obi concluded by stressing that cronyism, corruption, and a disregard for the rule of law were actively scaring away investors, allowing other African nations to overtake Nigeria as preferred investment destinations.
He ended his statement with a message of hope, reaffirming his belief in the nation’s ability to recover its lost glory.
