The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, Peter Obi, has criticised Nigeria’s economic situation, saying economic growth is meaningless if citizens continue to become poorer.
Obi made the remark in a post on X on Saturday, marking the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. He argued that rising poverty levels showed that the country was moving backwards despite its abundant human and natural resources.
He cited figures indicating that Nigeria’s poverty rate rose from 40.1 per cent in 2019 to 56.2 per cent in 2023, with the rate projected to reach 63 per cent in 2026.
According to him, millions of Nigerians are struggling to afford food and access healthcare despite government claims of economic growth.
“What meaning does economic growth have when citizens are getting poorer, hungrier, and more insecure?” he asked.
Obi said progress should be measured by improvements in citizens’ living conditions rather than economic growth figures alone.
He also suggested that Nigeria should have declared Saturday a public holiday to encourage national reflection on the country’s growing poverty crisis.
“Perhaps today should have been declared a public holiday, not for celebration, but for national reflection on how a country so richly endowed with human and natural resources has allowed poverty to overcome it,” he said.
The former Anambra State governor maintained that poverty was not Nigeria’s destiny, arguing that competent leadership and prudent management of public resources could help reverse the trend.
He called for increased investment in education and healthcare, as well as support for agriculture and small businesses, as measures to address poverty in the country.