“I’M NOT DEMARKETING NIGERIA” – PETER OBI RESPONDS TO SANWO-OLU
By Opeyemi Olugbemi
Labour Party presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, Mr. Peter Obi, has responded to criticisms from Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and others who accused him of “demarketing” Nigeria on the global stage.
Obi, while addressing the audience during a memorial lecture in honour of elder statesman Pa Edwin Clark in Abuja on Wednesday, clarified that his remarks about Nigeria’s economic decline were rooted in verifiable facts, not an attempt to tarnish the country’s image.
The former Anambra State governor recently spoke at Johns Hopkins University in the United States, where he highlighted Nigeria’s economic regression over the past 25 years and compared its poverty levels to those of China, Indonesia, and Vietnam combined. According to Obi, Nigeria currently has more poor people than all three nations put together, a situation he attributed to decades of poor leadership.
Governor Sanwo-Olu had earlier condemned Obi’s remarks, describing them as “unflattering” and “disparaging.” In a statement, the Lagos governor said, “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. That is what true patriotism is about.”
In response, Obi challenged the idea that stating uncomfortable truths equates to demarketing the country. “I spoke a few days ago and people said I am demarketing Nigeria. When did truth become demarketing?” Obi asked. “The World Bank recently reported that 75% of Nigerians in rural areas are poor. Is the World Bank marketing or demarketing Nigeria? UNICEF also reported that Nigeria has over two million malnourished children—the second highest globally. Are they also demarketing Nigeria?”
Obi also criticized the perceived silence of civil society groups and public figures who once protested under former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, pointing out that current economic conditions are far worse.
“Jonathan increased fuel from N87 to N120 and people protested. Today it is over N600 and no one is protesting,” Obi said. “When the dollar was N180, people protested. Now it’s N1,500 and there’s silence. Where are the voices that once rose in protest? Have they died?”
He concluded by questioning whether the sacrifices of Nigeria’s founding heroes are being honored, stating, “If we continue like this, then their labour is indeed in vain.”
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