The Presidency has criticized Labour’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, for his recent comments on Nigeria’s economic performance, describing his understanding of the economy as superficial and limited to trade.
Obi had earlier on Thursday shared his thoughts on X, in reaction to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) report that listed Africa’s fastest growing economies without including Nigeria.
“I have read with great interest the recent IMF report listing Africa’s fastest growing economies, and I cannot help but reflect on Nigeria’s absence from that list,” Obi wrote.
He lamented that Nigeria, despite being rich in natural resources, has failed to match the progress of smaller African nations that are investing in human capital, healthcare and education.
“These nations are not richer than us in natural resources, but they have become richer in discipline, leadership and commitment to bettering their people and human capital,” he said, adding that Nigeria must “go back to basics: production over consumption, human capital over patronage and governance over politics.”
Obi emphasized the need for leadership driven by service and not personal gain, declaring that “with the right leadership and collective will, Nigeria can once again become the pride of Africa.”
However, his post sparked reactions, particularly from an X user, @chibuzor_mikel, who described Obi’s position is “very ignorant and very misleading.”
“Dear @PeterObi, you are back with your very ignorant and highly misleading stance to entertain your base,” the user wrote.
He argued that it is unrealistic for large economies like Nigeria to consistently appear on the list of fastest growing economies, noting that even developed countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan and Germany are often absent from those rankings.
He went further to provide data on the GDP expansion of several African countries, stating that although smaller economies might have higher growth percentages, Nigeria’s actual GDP expansion in dollar terms remains one of the largest on the continent.
“Note that none of Africa’s 5 largest economies (South Africa, Egypt, Algeria, Nigeria and Morocco) are among the 10 fastest growing economies. Does that mean that even your favorite Egypt is not doing any good in its economy?
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“Also, among all the countries in Africa, in terms of real GDP expansion in dollar terms, none of them, except Egypt, did better than Nigeria. Let me give you this data to go check:
“Nigeria’s GDP is projected to increase by 4% in 2025, equivalent to $11.4 billion.
The user also defended President Bola Tinubu’s economic management, stating that President Bola Tinubu has done a very remarkable job.
“President Bola Tinubu has done a very remarkable job in stabilizing our economic ship and sailing it into calm waters. The fact that no substantive talking point can be pointed out to address the President or propose a clear alternative to the policies the President is pursuing shows that he is simply grasping at straws.”
Citing the response in support of Chibuzor’s position, the Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to President Tinubu, Bayo Onanuga, fixed that the former governor of Anambra State only understands commercial economics and not basic economics.
He wrote: “Peter Obi has an introductory background in economics, as he only understands the economics of trade.”
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