Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, has criticised President Bola Tinubu over his frequent foreign trips, describing them as insensitive at a time of worsening hardship in the country.

 

His remarks come amid Tinubu’s latest 10-day vacation to Europe, which was announced by presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga as a “working holiday.”

 

In a post on his X handle, Obi said it was troubling that the President seemed more comfortable abroad than at home.

 

“From all indications, our President is not finding his home in Nigeria conducive for a long stay, and it should be concerning to us,” he wrote.

 

Obi noted that Tinubu left the country barely six days after returning from a 15-day trip, adding that this latest trip marked about his 10th visit to France in just two years in office.

 

He argued that while the President was enjoying extended stays abroad, Nigerians were grappling with hunger, insecurity, and poverty.

 

“At least 79% of Nigerians have been reported to be facing food insecurity, that is over 180 million people facing hunger,” Obi said. “Nigeria, just last month, was declared the worst country to give birth, and just weeks ago, the worst place to live, with the world’s worst life expectancy.”

 

He faulted Tinubu for failing to visit communities recently struck by tragedies, including Katsina State, where bandits killed dozens, and Niger State, where at least 60 people, mostly women and children, died in a boat mishap.

 

“What would it have taken the president to take a less than 30-minute trip to Niger State from Abuja in his jet? Mr. President could have at least visited the grieving families in Niger before jetting off again. Where is the compassion for Nigerian lives?” Obi queried.

 

The former Anambra governor insisted that leadership required sacrifice and presence.

 

Obi maintained that no holiday was more important than the lives of Nigerians, urging Tinubu to remain in the country to address insecurity, food scarcity, and other urgent national crises.