Yemi Obafemi
Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi has called on President Bola Tinubu to resign or, at the very least, abandon any plan to seek re-election, accusing his administration of failing to respond adequately to the country’s worsening insecurity.
Obi made the call in a statement on Sunday, alleging that President Tinubu had not spoken with Seyi Makinde more than 50 days after the abduction of schoolchildren in Oyo State.
“Today, under President Tinubu, there have been more than 13 school kidnappings, yet the President has found it difficult to call the affected state’s chief executive after more than 50 days (over seven weeks). This is outrageous,” Obi said.
He added, “Amid such an apparent display of incompetence, the President should either resign or, at the very least, abstain from seeking re-election for the sake of our dear country. This call is patriotic, not political.”
The former Anambra State governor said he travelled to Ibadan on Friday, July 3, alongside Pat Utomi to express solidarity with Governor Makinde following the abduction, which he described as a national tragedy.
According to Obi, he was surprised to learn during a two-hour meeting with the governor that President Tinubu had not contacted him since the incident occurred.
“To my utmost shock, I discovered that, contrary to my assumption that they had been in regular communication over the matter, Governor Seyi Makinde had not received a single call from President Bola Tinubu,” he said.
Obi contrasted the situation with previous administrations, recalling that former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and Goodluck Jonathan maintained regular contact with state governors during major security crises.
He also referenced the kidnapping of the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping, noting that although former President Jonathan faced widespread criticism for taking more than two weeks to contact the then governor of Borno State, the current administration had experienced multiple school kidnappings without similar presidential engagement.
Obi said he had publicly addressed the Oyo schoolchildren’s abduction twice, including appealing directly to the kidnappers to release the victims. He added that he had also called Governor Makinde on two occasions to express solidarity.
Describing the country’s security situation as evidence of failed governance, Obi said the continued captivity of schoolchildren and other Nigerians reflected a lack of capacity, compassion and sensitivity on the part of the Federal Government.
“It is now an indisputable fact that governance has completely collapsed under this administration. The situation reflects a total lack of capacity and compassion, compounded by glaring insensitivity,” he said.
