Lagos, July 30, 2025 – Peter Obi, the Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 elections, has condemned extravagant lifestyle of Nigerian leaders as portrayed in a report shared by the US embassy in Nigeria.
The report, a recent investigative report detailing billions of naira being spent on building or renovating government houses in spite of widespread economic hardship.
The report, titled “Nigeria’s ruling class splashes billions on government houses”, was published by The Africa Report and released on Tuesday, 29 July, 2025.
The report expressed growing concern over fiscal irresponsibility among Nigerian state governors.
Obi reacted to the report in a statement posted on X,, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday and titled “Leadership Failure: Nigeria’s Greatest Burden”.
He said the report reaffirmed the long-standing concerns of the public about governance in the country.
The statement reads in parts: “The cumulative effect of poor leadership remains our greatest obstacle to development.
“This calls for urgent disruption of the current retrogressive system and the enthronement of leaders with competence, character, capacity, and compassion.
“Our declining governance has drawn global attention.
“This is a clear confirmation of what many of us have long said.
“You cannot ask the people to keep fasting while you feast every day.
“As Chinua Achebe rightly said: ‘The trouble with Nigeria is simply and squarely a failure of leadership.’
“I speak out to help build a new Nigeria, free of criminality and corruption.
“But instead of addressing the message, those who have hijacked our country deploy media thugs to insult and distract.
“Now that the American government has made similar observations, perhaps they too will become targets.
“Our declining governance has drawn global attention.
“This is a clear confirmation of what many of us have long said.
“We have voted based on tribe and religion for too long, it is time to vote for competence.
“Let us move from waste, looting, and reckless borrowing to production. Let us build a Nigeria that works.”
