Former Anambra State Governor and Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has alleged that many Nigerians who owned thriving businesses before President Bola Tinubu assumed office have lost their livelihoods due to the country’s worsening economic conditions.
Obi made the remarks during an interview with media personality Chude Jideonwo, published on Wednesday, while responding to questions about whether the momentum behind his 2023 presidential campaign had declined.
According to the former governor, the support base that backed his presidential ambition has grown rather than diminished, as more Nigerians have become dissatisfied with the performance of the current administration.
He said many Nigerians who voted for Tinubu based on his political experience and previous achievements had changed their views after witnessing the realities of his administration.
“Those who jumped into, in quotes, some experiential thing, ‘Oh, this man did this, this man did this’, I was going to create the future. I’ve seen that the whole thing was a mess,” Obi said.
He argued that the level of hardship across the country made it impossible for anyone to claim that Nigeria was making progress.
“Nobody, nobody can tell you things are moving well. What are they going to do now?” he asked.
Obi further claimed that several businesses that were operating successfully before Tinubu took office had collapsed, leaving their owners struggling to survive.
“Those who had business when he came into power have collapsed. They are now the people who are selling kuli-kuli?” he said.
According to him, even those who previously defended the government were now judging its performance based on their personal experiences.
He also dismissed suggestions that public enthusiasm for his movement had waned.
“My fellowship has increased because those who jumped into, in quotes, some experiential thing… I was going to create the future,” he said.
The former presidential candidate criticised the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope agenda, arguing that living conditions had worsened since Tinubu assumed office.
“You’re talking of the Renewed Hope. It had become hopelessness when President Tinubu came into power,” Obi said.
He claimed that poverty, hunger and insecurity had deepened under the current administration.
“Eighty-seven million Nigerians were living in poverty. Today, it’s one-fourth,” he said.
Obi also alleged that Nigeria’s position on global hunger rankings had deteriorated.
“We were number five below where we are today in hunger list. We’ve increased,” he said.
He maintained that the country’s challenges were evident for all Nigerians to see.
“Everything has gotten worse. Like I said before, we’re no longer talking of ghosts walking around. You can see where we’ve gotten,” Obi added.
Listing insecurity and economic hardship among the nation’s biggest concerns, Obi argued that the government had failed to deliver on its promises.
“Which hope are they going to renew again? You can’t renew failure, and that’s it,” he said.
Speaking on his relationship with former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, Obi dismissed concerns over the former governor’s political structure, describing him as a leader committed to improving the lives of the poor.
“Kwankwaso is one politician that I can say it anywhere who cares for the interest of the poor. He believes in pulling people out of poverty. He believes in training a child of nobody to become something, and that for me aligns with my position,” he said.
Obi also stressed that education and human capital development remain the key drivers of national development.
“Truly, the biggest driver of development is education, human capital. It is not physical infrastructure, it’s human infrastructure,” he said.
He cited countries such as China and Malaysia as examples of nations that transformed their economies by investing heavily in education and human capital.
“That’s what the Asian Tigers did. That’s what the Chinese did. That’s what Malaysia, that’s what everybody did,” Obi said.
He added that addressing the out-of-school children crisis, improving healthcare and building a productive economy would remain among his priorities if given the opportunity to lead the country.
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