Africa-Press – Nigeria. The Labour Party, LP, presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections, Peter Obi, has replied to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State and other critics who accused him of demarketing Nigeria.
Obi, in his recent engagement at Johns Hopkins University in the United States of America, described how Nigeria fell off economically within 25 years, leading to a massive increase in the poverty rate.
The former Anambra State governor insisted that he is only telling the truth about the country’s situation, comparing Nigeria’s poverty rate with that of China, Indonesia, and Vietnam combined.
The philanthropist reiterated that Nigeria has more poor people than the three countries combined.
According to him, the fate of a nation is closely tied to the quality of its leadership, lamenting that Nigeria has had to deal with poor leadership over the years.
Governor Sanwo-Olu, however, condemned Obi’s comments about the country, describing them as disparaging and unflattering remarks.
The governor said he finds Obi’s behavior troubling, noting that his comments about Nigeria on the global stage fail to present the country in a positive light.
“He made unflattering remarks not just about the incumbent Nigerian government but also about Nigeria. I also find Mr. Obi’s pattern of behavior 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 had said in a statement.
However, speaking on Wednesday while making a speech at Pa Edwin Clark’s memorial lecture in Abuja, Obi insisted that he did not in any way demarket Nigeria but only stated facts.
He expressed wonder if the World Bank and UNICEF, who recently released some negative facts about poverty in Nigeria, were also doing it to demarket Nigeria.
“I spoke a few days ago and people said I am demarketing Nigeria. When is truth being demarketing? The World Bank has just shown that 75% of Nigerians in rural areas are poor; is the World Bank marketing Nigeria? “UNICEF, two days ago, said that Nigeria has over two million malnourished children, the second highest in the world. Are they demarketing Nigeria? Let’s face the reality,” Obi said.
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