The presidency has come down hard on former Anambra State governor and presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) Peter Obi for asking President Bola Tinubu to follow the example of UK Prime Minister Keir Starmed and resign from his position.
The Presidency, said Obi betrayed a poor understanding of comparative systems of government by asking the President to follow the example of Starmer, who announced his resignation yesterday.
Starmer gave notice of his resignation following intense pressure from Labour Party (LP) members of parliament after his party loss in council elections.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said in a statement on Monday that Obi is living in a “self-constructed echo chamber” where he continually tells himself falsehoods about the state of the nation.
The NDC candidate in advising President Tinubu to resign, said his administration had failed to deliver on key campaign promises.
He was reacting to the decision of the British Prime Minister to quit following public dissatisfaction over economic challenges and unfulfilled electoral promises.
In a statement on his X handle titled: “Owning up to leadership failures and political responsibility,” Obi said the United Kingdom scenario underscored the importance of accountability in public office.
Reacting, Onanuga described Obi’s statement as “childish and hollow,” adding that it reflected a distorted understanding of Nigeria’s political and economic realities.
He said Obi’s comparison of Nigeria’s situation with the voluntary resignation of the British Prime Minister was fundamentally flawed because the two countries operate different systems of government.
Onanuga added: “His view is also simplistic, as is often the case anytime he opens his mouth.
“Obi forgets our country does not run a parliamentary system of government like the UK. We run a presidential system, with the President elected to a fixed four-year term.”
The presidential aide said Saturday’s electoral victories recorded by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State and senatorial elections in Nasarawa, Enugu, Ondo and Rivers states reflected growing public support for President Tinubu and his administration.
“This should be more concerning for Peter Obi and his new Special Purpose Vehicle, NDC, as we move towards the January 2027 election.
“Obi should wait until the presidential election to know what the people think of Tinubu’s government. Moving to use X to harangue the President out of office is off the mark and anti-democratic.”
Defending the administration’s handling of security, Onanuga said President Tinubu, who inherited deeply rooted challenges, had recorded measurable successes through intensified military operations, deployment of advanced technology and enhanced intelligence gathering.
He said hundreds of kidnapped victims had been rescued, terrorist kingpins neutralised and more than 15,000 terrorists taken off the streets and forests across the country.
Onanuga added: “These actions demonstrate commitment, not failure. It is laughable that Obi, who, as governor, was a colossal failure, unable to secure lives and property in his small state of Anambra, as documented by his successor, Willie Obiano, is now the one calling for President Tinubu’s resignation over security breaches in some parts of the country.”
The Special Adviser accused Obi of deliberately ignoring positive economic indicators and international commendations for the administration’s reforms.
He said: “Obi’s depiction of decline and his verdict that ‘We are in the worst possible condition’ ignore verifiable data and global plaudits for President Tinubu’s economic and social policies.”
Onanuga said that since May 2023, the economy had recorded positive GDP growth every quarter, trade surpluses, rising foreign reserves, increased oil production and significantly improved government revenues.
Acknowledging the high cost of living, Onanuga attributed part of the challenge to global economic disruptions and geopolitical tensions, particularly in the Middle East, which he said had affected global supply chains and commodity prices.
He maintained that President Tinubu is focused on reforms rather than political rhetoric.
Dismissing Obi as a liar, Onanuga said: “With his puerile tweet on X, we are now convinced that Peter Obi lives in his self-constructed echo chamber, where he reels off lie after lie to himself and believes his self-created reality about the situation in Nigeria.
“We sympathise with him. That reality he fantasises about is mostly a figment of his imagination.”
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