Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State has accused former Anambra State Governor and 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, of contributing to the rise of poverty in Nigeria, challenging his moral authority to criticise the country’s economic situation on the global stage.
Sanwo-Olu’s criticism comes in reaction to Obi’s recent comments during a lecture at Johns Hopkins University in the United States, where Obi painted a grim picture of Nigeria’s economic decline over the past 25 years.
Obi compared Nigeria’s poverty trajectory with that of China, Indonesia, and Vietnam, arguing that Nigeria, which had fewer people living in poverty in 1990, now has more poor citizens than the three countries combined.
“In the area of poverty, Nigeria with about 50 million poor people, had the least number of people in poverty in 1990 than any of the three countries. While China had about 750 million people living in poverty, Indonesia and Vietnam had 85 million and 60 million poor people, respectively. China alone had about 15 times the number of poor people than Nigeria. Today, however, Nigeria has more poor people than these 3 countries combined,” Obi said during his presentation.
However, Sanwo-Olu, in a statement titled “Factually Addressing Mr. Peter Obi’s Criticism of Nigeria at Johns Hopkins University,” described Obi’s remarks as disparaging and unpatriotic. He said prominent Nigerians have a duty to project their country positively on international platforms.
“He made unflattering remarks not just about the incumbent Nigerian government but also about Nigeria. I also find Mr Obi’s pattern of behaviour disturbing. When prominent Nigerians go overseas, they ought to project Nigeria positively. They do not have to do that for the government. But we all owe a duty to market Nigeria on the global stage rather than demarket her. That is what true patriotism is about,” Sanwo-Olu said.
The Lagos governor questioned Obi’s credibility on poverty issues, pointing to the former Anambra governor’s track record.
According to Sanwo-Olu, Obi did not build a single school or a stand-alone hospital during his eight-year tenure, nor did he significantly improve access to credit or education — key tools for combating poverty.
“I find it somewhat ironic that a man like Mr Obi, who did not build a single school or a stand-alone hospital throughout his eight-year tenure as governor of Anambra or sustainably provide credit facilities, would criticise the government of Nigeria, which is actively doing that,” Sanwo-Olu said.
Highlighting specific figures, Sanwo-Olu claimed that poverty worsened under Obi’s administration. He noted that when Obi assumed office in June 2007, Anambra’s poverty rate stood at 41.4 per cent but rose sharply to 53.7 per cent within two years. In contrast, he credited Obi’s successor, Willie Obiano, with reducing poverty significantly during his time in office.
“Under Peter Obi, a two-term Anambra Governor, poverty in Anambra increased. It did not reduce. Before Peter Obi became Anambra Governor, the poverty rate in Anambra was 41.4 per cent. But after only two years in office, the poverty rate in Anambra jumped to 53.7 per cent,” he said. “Five years after Peter Obi left office, his successor, Willie Obiano, reduced the poverty rate from almost 60 per cent to 14.8 per cent.”
Sanwo-Olu argued that based on Obi’s record, the former governor is not morally positioned to lecture Nigeria on economic decline or poverty alleviation.
“Mr. Obi contributed to the increase in poverty in Nigeria. Governor Tinubu, as he then was, was responsible for lifting millions out of poverty.
“Being that that is the case, who should criticise who?” he concluded.
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