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The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, Peter Obi, has challenged President Bola Tinubu to disclose the number of Nigerians lifted out of poverty since his administration assumed office in May 2023.
Mr Obi also asked the president to account for the impact of government spending on education, healthcare, electricity and national security, insisting that Nigerians deserve measurable evidence of improvements in their living conditions.
The former Anambra State governor made the demands in an open letter titled, “Good Day, Mr President: Nigerians Deserve Accountability,” posted on his X handle on Saturday.
His intervention followed Mr Tinubu’s recent visit to Akwa Ibom State, where the president spent a night outside Lagos and Abuja.
While congratulating Mr Tinubu on the visit, Mr Obi urged him to extend similar engagements to the remaining 33 states of the federation and explain how his administration had managed public resources.
He specifically demanded an account of the N15.8 trillion reportedly saved from the removal of petrol subsidy, more than $100 billion in borrowings, increased tax revenues and additional government earnings which the administration said had surpassed its target.
“I sincerely hope this visit will inspire you to travel to the remaining 33 states of the federation, spend time with the people and, more importantly, explain what your administration has done with the N15.8 trillion saved from the removal of fuel subsidy, the over $100 billion you have borrowed, the increased revenues accruing to the government from taxing Nigerians, and the additional government revenues which your administration celebrated last year as having surpassed its target,” he said.
Mr Obi argued that the availability of increased government revenues and borrowed funds should be matched by tangible improvements in the welfare of Nigerians.
He consequently asked the president to provide figures showing how many citizens had been pulled out of poverty since he assumed office.
“Nigerians deserve to know how many that were pulled out of poverty within this period, how many out-of-school children were returned to school, and how many functional primary healthcare centres you have built,” he said.
The NDC candidate also questioned the administration’s performance in the power sector, recalling Mr Tinubu’s campaign promise that Nigerians should not vote for him if he failed to fix electricity supply.
He said the government should explain the extent to which electricity supply had improved under its watch.
On security, Mr Obi asked the president to account for the measures taken to protect citizens, arguing that Nigeria continued to rank among countries severely affected by terrorism.
“Mr President, Nigerians deserve answers. They deserve to know what has been done with the resources entrusted to your government,” he added.
He said accountability, transparency and measurable improvements in citizens’ lives should form the basis for assessing the management of public resources.
