Peter Obi, the candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 presidential election, has condemned in totality the recent “private visit” embarked by President Bola Tinubu to Paris, France.
While complaining about the conditions of airplanes in the country, Obi, in a statement published on his verified X handle on Thursday, took a swipe at the president for embarking on “private visits” with ‘public funds.’
Obi lamented that Tinubu is a ‘public national asset’; therefore, none of his travels should be private.
Chronicle NG reports that Tinubu on Wednesday departed Abuja for a private visit to Paris, France.
Obi, who noted “that for the past three months both the escalator and elevator at the domestic wing of Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport, Abuja, have remained dysfunctional,” urged Tinubu to attend to pressing national issues rather than frolicking while the country burns.
Obi’s statement reads, “Just yesterday, I saw a heart-wrenching sight of a physically challenged traveler in a wheelchair being carried up the stairs by four men at the Nnamdi Azikiwe airport, Abuja, because neither the elevator nor the escalator had been functional for the past 3 months.
“The situation becomes more disturbing when you imagine that such is happening in our nation’s capital, where our dignitaries and foreign investors travel constantly.
‘This was the same airport and the same day that our dear President flew out on a private visit.
“I have been wondering what is private for a sitting president who is not on vacation to embark on a publicly funded ‘private’ visit.
“May I humbly remind the President that he is now a public national asset?
“Therefore, all his movements now should be public knowledge and matters of public interest.
“Even when he needs a private visit like a holiday, family gathering, etc., he should state so, which is graciously allowed, but private visits, like the one he has embarked on now, should be done at his expense and not at public cost.
“That is part of the cost-cutting measures desperately needed by the nation now. We now require savings of sorts to deal with every little issue that requires attention, like the maintenance of small public assets.
“Otherwise, how do we explain, as a country, that for the past three months, both the escalator and elevator at the domestic wing of Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport, Abuja, have remained dysfunctional?
“I often wonder how we, the leaders, feel about traveling in sophisticated manners while the majority of our infrastructure being used by the majority, including our foreign investors, is left dilapidated.
“The situation we find ourselves in calls for such drastic cuts in the cost of governance and attendant savings to be appropriately used for every minor public good. That is the spirit of the new Nigeria we are clamoring for.
“I must, however, acknowledge some efforts by the President to cut costs, like his recent 60% cost on travel, but that is still insignificant given the quantum of problems waiting to be tackled, like the elevator issue in our prime airport.”
