Peter Obi, the 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, has cleared the air over rumors of a personal feud with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Obi emphasized that his fight is not against any individual but against the deeper issues plaguing Nigeria—hunger, poverty, poor education, and lack of health services.
Speaking at a public event on Monday after returning from Rome, Obi responded to public reactions over a photo showing him sharing pleasantries with President Tinubu.
“I and the president are not fighting. I’m not fighting anybody. My fight is against bad governance, against hunger, against poverty, against out-of-school children, against people not having health services,” Obi said.
He expressed serious concern about Nigeria’s healthcare system, pointing out the country’s low health insurance coverage.
According to him, less than 10 percent of Nigerians have health insurance, while it should ideally cover everyone.
“This country has less than 10 per cent health insurance. It should be 100 per cent,” he stated.
Obi also highlighted the government’s responsibility to ensure free basic education for all children in Nigeria.
He stressed that teachers should be paid by the government, in line with the Universal Basic Education policy.
“These teachers teaching here should be paid by government because it’s universal basic education. The law says our children should go to school free. So what my Lord is doing is helping government. Government should help him,” he said.
Recalling his time as governor of Anambra State, Obi said he has always focused on improving people’s welfare.
“That’s what I did in Anambra State. I’m in coalition against hunger, in coalition against poverty, in coalition for good health. For me, it’s not about position. It’s about doing the right thing.”
When asked if his recent meeting with President Tinubu was political, Obi replied:
“Whatever you make of it, I can tell you, I, Peter, have told you where I stand. I just came back this morning. I didn’t go talk about politics. I’m talking about the education of these children.”
Obi ended by criticizing Nigeria’s tendency to focus on politics instead of addressing urgent national problems.
“In this country, we talk about politics and abandon what we should be talking about. What we should be talking about is how we’re going to educate these children,” he said.
