Peter Obi hits on FG- Leaders should show compassion

Peter Obi, the Labour Party (LP) candidate in the previous general election, expressed his shock and dismay at the reports that N15 billion was allocated for building a new home for the Vice President, given the many problems facing the nation.

He said that the N2.5 billion and N3 billion in the Supplementary Budget for fixing up the Vice President’s homes in Abuja and Lagos show that he already has a place to live.

Obi objected to spending a total of N20.5 billion, when added up, for the housing of the Vice President at a time when more people are becoming poor and hungry.

In a statement on his X handle on Monday, the former governor of Anambra State said that the country needs leaders who care and are ready to give up something for the common good and growth.

He wrote, “As I am still looking at the 2024 fiscal budget that was given to the National Assembly last week, I have to ask: What is really wrong with us as a country?

“I ask this question because I find it hard to make sense of some of the things that are happening in our nation in these tough times. The recent news about a budget of N15 billion for building a new home for the Vice President is both shocking and disheartening, given the many serious challenges facing our nation. Not long ago, in the Supplementary Budget, N2.5 billion was put aside for fixing up the Vice President’s home in Abuja, which means that he already has a home.

“Also, during the budget presentation, I heard that N3 billion was put aside for fixing up the Vice President’s home in Lagos. If we add up all these amounts, we would have spent N20.5 billion for the housing of the Vice President at this critical time when we are not only the world’s capital of poverty but more people are becoming poor, with many Nigerians not knowing where their next food will come from. Our health facilities have broken down, and unemployment is very high.

“I believe that 99.9% of Nigerians can only wish to live in the current home of the Vice President. Many people working in universities are not being paid. Just to give an example, the salary of a professor in a Nigerian university is about N400,000, which without taking out tax is about N5 million a year. What we have spent for the housing of the Vice President, who is already living in luxury, is, therefore, the yearly salary of about 3000 professors! This is the money needed to develop the human capital that we need.

“The budget of N5 billion for student loans, which has not been given out, is only a small part of the cost of the Vice President’s new home. We are planning to use four times the amount for educating all Nigerian poor students to house the Vice President, and we are being told there is nothing wrong with us. I am sure the main teaching hospitals in Nsukka, Lagos, Ibadan, and Zaria did not get this much money for development in the budget this year. We have had leaders who were good examples in the past.

“Most Nigerians may not know that the famous 1004 flats in Lagos were land given for building a presidential mansion for the then Head of State, General Murtala Mohammed.

“He strongly said no to the offer and told them to use the land to build blocks of flats for civil servants. That is the kind of leadership that gives up something for others. Our leaders must, therefore, stop the wastefulness and lack of care for the suffering of the people.

“We need leaders who care and are ready to give up something for the common good and growth. Such caring and careful leaders are important in our journey to the New Nigeria.