Economy

Peter Obi carpets Tinubu over economic hardship facing Nigerians, says he deserves Guinness World Record title

Published

11 months ago

January 27, 2024

The presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi, has carpeted President Bola Tinubu over the current hardship facing Nigerians, saying he deserved a Guinness World Record title.

He said Tinubu should be in the Guinness Book of World Records for “causing Nigerians the most hardship” since the history of the country.

Obi, in an interview with Vanguard, noted that Nigerians have continued to experience untold hardships since President Tinubu took over power on May 29, 2023.

Reacting to Tinubu’s recent claim that he deserved a Guinness World Record title for his unmatched political and economic strides, Obi said: “He may actually be correct when he claims that his name deserves to be in the Guinness World Records. Don’t forget that people’s names don’t always make it into the Guinness World Records for only altruistic reasons.

“So, it depends on which angle he is coming from. If the idea is to put his name in the Guinness Book of Records for causing Nigerians the most hardship – untold hardship, of course he is spot on and I will totally agree with him because his reforms are not achieving what they are meant to achieve.

“Well, for me, the biggest lesson (from the 2023 general elections) is the fact that Nigerians are actually committed to good governance. They are not as complacent as people thought they were because they, especially the youths, were actually committed to doing the right thing. That is why they came out in their numbers to participate in the elections.

“The second lesson is the realisation that the leaders, most people in the elite class are not actually interested in good governance because you can classify the electoral umpire as part of the elite class, the government, all of us are not prepared to do the right thing because if the elites are prepared to do the right thing, the result or the outcome of the election would have been different.

“But for me the elections have come and gone and I don’t want to talk about the issue of the 2023 elections again. It has come and gone and I am done with it. What I am talking about now are issues of governance because the average Nigerian today is talking about the Nigeria of today, and the Nigeria of tomorrow. That is what is important.”

Speaking on the economic situation of the country, the Labour Party presidential candidate said:

“The truth is that we have many more Nigerians thrown into poverty, millions of Nigerians don’t know where the next meal will come from. Nobody is sure what the price of a cup of rice, garri or a loaf of bread will be tomorrow. So, it is Nigerians that you should ask the question.

“It is not a question for me to answer. It is not something I alone will tell you. Ask Nigerians, the masses out there on the streets of Nigeria and you will get a feel of what they are going through. But I know that the situation is critical.”