Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has berated President Bola Tinubu over his planned 12-day foreign trip to Japan and Brazil, describing it as insensitive given Nigeria’s deepening economic woes, insecurity, and other urgent challenges.
In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, Obi accused the President of showing indifference to the nation’s suffering through frequent overseas engagements, urging him to cut down on unnecessary travel and focus on domestic crises.
Tinubu is scheduled to depart Abuja on Thursday, with a stopover in Dubai before heading to Yokohama, Japan, for the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9) from August 20 to 22. The trip will also include a visit to Brazil.
Obi questioned the need for the Japan and Brazil visits, pointing out that Tinubu had only recently met with Brazil’s president. He suggested that, instead, the President should be touring crisis-hit Nigerian states to personally assess and address the people’s struggles.
The former Anambra State governor also recalled that during another recent international engagement, Tinubu spent a week in St. Lucia before attending the BRICS Summit, where Nigeria participated merely as an observer.
“What our nation needs now is the security of lives and property, economic stability, and ensuring that our people have food on their tables,” Obi said. “Nigerians know our huge problems cannot be solved overnight, but they want to see 100% effort and tireless commitment.”
He stressed that the President must remember he is “not a tourist, but the Chief Executive of a troubled nation,” and should adopt a strict work and travel schedule that reflects the urgency of Nigeria’s crises.
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