Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has taken a swipe at President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over Nigeria’s worsening electricity crisis, reminding Nigerians of a campaign promise the President made ahead of the 2023 general election.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Obi recalled Tinubu’s 2022 pledge that his re-election should be rejected if he failed to stabilise power supply within four years.
“If I do not provide steady electricity in my first four years, do not vote for me for a second term,” Tinubu had said during his campaign.
Obi noted that the promise now stands in sharp contrast to current realities, pointing out that the national grid has already collapsed twice in January 2026, even before the month ends. He added that the grid reportedly failed about twelve times in 2025, a situation he described as deeply troubling.
“Yet, in January 2026 alone, the national grid has already collapsed twice, and the month is not even over. Last year, it collapsed about twelve times. This reality sharply contradicts the promise and should worry every patriotic Nigerian,” Obi wrote.
The former Anambra State governor also criticised President Tinubu’s frequent foreign trips, drawing a comparison between Nigeria and Turkey, where the President is currently on a state visit.
According to Obi, Turkey, with a population of about 87 million people, generates and distributes over 120,000 megawatts of electricity, while Nigeria continues to struggle with less than five percent of that capacity, despite having a much larger population.
“The contrast is both striking and painful,” he stated.
Obi urged the President to focus on addressing Nigeria’s domestic challenges rather than embarking on continuous foreign travels.
“Our appeal is simple: stay at home and confront the nation’s problems,” he said, warning that unchecked governance failures could soon make such trips appear insensitive.
He also criticised what he described as Nigeria’s obsession with electoral politics at the expense of governance, stressing the need for unity in demanding accountability.
“We should be joining hands to demand accountability and responsible leadership, and to save Nigerians from the indignity and suffering caused by persistent bad governance,” Obi added.