News

Peter Obi Condemns Tinubu’s Saint Lucia Trip

Published

2 months ago

June 28, 2025

Labour Party leader and former presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has criticised President Bola Tinubu’s planned trip to Saint Lucia, describing it as poorly timed and lacking in sensitivity, especially amid Nigeria’s deepening economic and security challenges.

Tinubu is expected to leave Nigeria on Saturday for Saint Lucia and is also scheduled to attend the upcoming BRICS summit in Brazil.

In a post shared on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, Obi expressed dismay over the president’s travel, questioning the state of governance in the country.

Obi argued that Tinubu’s trip highlights a pattern of misplaced priorities by the administration, particularly at a time when citizens are grappling with widespread hunger and insecurity.

“What I have seen and witnessed in the last two years has left me in shock about poor governance delivery and apparent channelling of energy into politics and satisfaction of the elites, while the masses in our midst are languishing in want,” Obi stated.

He lamented the toll of rising insecurity across Nigeria, pointing out the country’s deteriorating safety situation.

“In the past two years, Nigeria has lost more people to all sorts of criminality than a country that is officially at war.

“Without any twilight, Nigeria ranks among the most insecure places in the world. Nigerians are hungrier, and most people do not know where their next meal will come from,” he wrote.

Obi said he was stunned when he learned of the President’s travel plans, especially following what he described as a recent holiday in Lagos.

“With such a gory picture of one’s country, you can imagine my bewilderment when I saw a news release from the Presidency announcing that President Bola Tinubu is departing Nigeria today for a visit to Saint Lucia in the Caribbean,” he said.

Quoting Saint Lucia’s Prime Minister, Philip J. Pierre, Obi noted that the visit comprises both official and personal segments.

“According to the Prime Minister’s announcement, ‘two of these days, June 30 and July 1, will be dedicated to an official visit, with the remainder of the trip set aside as a personal vacation,” he said.

Obi noted that he initially found the report hard to believe.

“I told the person who drew my attention to the Caribbean story that it cannot be true and that the President is just coming back from a holiday in Lagos.

“I didn’t want to believe that anybody in the position of authority, more so the President… would contemplate a leisure trip at this time,” Obi said.

He condemned Tinubu’s failure to visit disaster-stricken areas like Minna in Niger State, where over 200 people reportedly died and hundreds remain missing due to flooding.

“This is a President going for leisure when he couldn’t visit Minna, Niger State where over two hundred lives were lost and over 700 persons still missing in a flood natural disaster,” he said.

Obi also took issue with Tinubu’s recent trip to Benue State, claiming it was politically motivated rather than compassionate.

“The other state in crisis where over two hundred lives were murdered, the President yielded to public pressure and visited Makurdi… for what turned out to be a political jamboree than condolence as public holiday was declared and children made to line up to receive the President who couldn’t even reach the village, the scene of the brutal attack,” he said.

Drawing comparisons between Nigeria and Saint Lucia, Obi questioned the logic of prioritising a visit to the Caribbean nation over addressing pressing domestic issues.

“Makurdi is 937.4 Km², which is over 59% bigger than St Lucia, which is 617 km², and Minna is 6789 square kilometres, which is ten times bigger than St Lucia. St Lucia, with a population of 180,000, is less than half of Makurdi’s 489,839 and Minna, with 532,000 is almost three times the population of St Lucia,” the former Anambra governor said.

He concluded his post by stressing the urgent need for leadership that is grounded in empathy and focused on addressing the suffering of ordinary Nigerians.

He said, “I don’t think the situation in this country today calls for leisure for anybody in a position of authority, more so the President, on whose desk the buck stops.

“This regime has repeatedly shown its insensitivity and lack of passion for the populace…”

Obi added, “This very obvious indifference of the federal government to the suffering of the Nigerian poor should urgently be reversed.

“One had expected the President to be asking God for extra hours in a day for the challenges, but what we see is a concentration of efforts in the 2027 election and on satisfying the wealthy while the mass poor continues to multiply in number.”

News

Five Years After, Edo Govt Reconnects To BEDC As Ossiomo Shut Down

Published

1 hour ago

September 8, 2025

Editor

Five years after disconnecting from the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) Edo State Government has reconnected to the power distribution company for supply of electricity.

The Godwin Obaseki-led administration in 2020 broke BEDC monopoly in the state by supporting the construction of Ossiomo Power, an electricity generation and distribution firm.

The switch over to BEDC by the state government was due to the shut down of Ossiomo Power Plant since September 1st over ownership tussle between Ossiomo Power and its Chinese partners, Jiangsu Communication Clean Energy Technology (CCETC).

Ossiomo Power generates 95MW of electricity which it supplied to government buildings, Edo Government House, Edo NUJ secretariat, private organisations, streetlights amongst others.

Director General of the Edo State Electrification Agency, Saturday Omozokpea Egbadon, who confirmed the switch over to the BEDC, said electricity has been restored to some streetlights and government buildings.

News

NSCDC Vows To Bring Killers Of Edo personnel To Justice

Published

1 hour ago

September 8, 2025

Editor

The Edo State Command of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has vowed to fish out the killers of eight of its personnel in Okpella, Etsako East Local Government Area of the state.

The personnel were killed last week Friday at around 10:00PM at BUA cement factory site
in an ambush by suspected kidnappers.

One out of five Chinese expatriates the personnel were providing cover for was taken away by the gunmen.

Reacting to the incident, the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Efosa Ogbebor said investigation into the matter was still ongoing, adding and that the Corps National Headquarters was also handling the burial of the victims and welfare of their family members.

He said: “The National headquarters has taken over the issue, investigation is still ongoing and our men are still out there combing the forests because those men must be brought to book. The Corps is not taking it lightly in any way, those people who did that must and will be brought to book, there is no hiding place for them. We are doing the combing in collaboration with other security agencies.

“For the victims, communication has been established with families by the Corps Headquarters and the welfare of the families they left behind is being handled by the national headquarters.”

Speaking on the kidnapped expatriate, the imagemaker said he was not aware of any contact yet but vowed that he would be rescued.

News

Police Have Right To Check Phones If…, Says Force Deputy PRO

Published

1 hour ago

September 8, 2025

Editor

Force Deputy Public Relations Office of the Nigeria Police, CSP Victor Isuku, has said that operatives could go through an individual’s phone especially when such a person is suspected to be involved in cyber crime.

He also police have the rights to breakdown doors or enter through the ceiling to arrest an uncooperative suspect in a case.

Isuku disclosed this when he had an interactive session with the public at the premiere of the movie, “Greatest Oath (The Rescue)” by Ocean Portal in conjunction with the Nigeria Police Force.

The Deputy Force PRO,
while noting that checkpoints are put up to check reported car theft and not to witch-hunt the public, noted that the public should not only give information that can lead to arrest of criminals but should ensure they do not interfere with the arrest of a suspect.

Isuku, who said the act could lead to the arrest of such an individual, urged the public not to resort to self help by throwing tantrums when they feel their rights have been infringed upon by an officer.

He urged the public to report the matter to the police authorities which will investigate the matter and mete out punishment to erring officers.

He added that bail is free urging the public to read the content in a bail form before appending their signature, noting that the Inspector General frowns at unethical practices by his officers.

Isuku said, “There are situations where a policeman can search your phone. If you are suspected to have committed a cyber crime, your phone will be checked. The police will not just stop you on the road and begin to search you, it is unethical. The IG frowns at such unethical practice.

“The Police can break the door of an uncooperative suspect, enter his apartment through the roof or get into his premises by scaling the fence. Don’t hinder the police from arresting a suspect as you will also be arrested.”

He identified funding as a major problem affecting all institutions in the country, noting that the public can help provide basic logistics equipment to the police inside of giving them money under any guise.

Ocean Portal boss, Dickson Oviase, said that the production was inspired by the EndSARS protest which led to the destruction of life and properties in many states of the federation.

He said despite the hostilities, the police still carried out their duties, disclaiming insinuation that they were on strike during the protest.

He added, “The movie is inspired and birthed from the out cry of #EndSARS saga. The Police could not function in many states. The consciousness of the necessity of the presence of The Nigerian Police pervaded everywhere.

“For once, the vacuum of the absence of Police in our society stared Us on the Face. Truth be told, there’s a need to show love to the Police and Vice-Versa as it will be chaotic if the police embark on an indefinite strike. Let’s come together and enhance community policing. God bless Nigeria.”