Obi’s Media Office tackles Presidency On Resignation: Says Seat Of Power Chasing Shadows

Recall that Obi, the Presidential Candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, had, on the heels of the resignation of the British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer on Monday, June 22, called on President Tinubu to tow same line and save Nigerians pains, having, according to Obi, performed woefully.

In a swift response, however, the Presidency, in release signed by Presidential Spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, dismissed Obi’s call as childish and undemocratic.

It pointed out that Britain and Nigeria do not operate the same system of Government explaining, as if anybody was forgetting, that Britain practices the Parliamentary system of Government, and Nigeria, Presidential.

But a statement signed by Idris Zekeri Jnr, Spokesperson for Obi’s Media dismissed the Presidency’s response as chasing shadows and accused it of attempting “to personalise the discussion by attacking Obi’s record as governor of Anambra State, which he leaves to history and objective records to judge.

The full text of Obi’s Media Office reads:

“The innocuous call by the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to resign from office, having failed to improve the living conditions of Nigerians in recent years, has generated a lengthy reaction from his media aides but has failed to address the issue.

“Obi’s call was based on the very obvious failure of governance, which is apparent with Nigerians living below the poverty line rising from 87 million when the President came to power to 140 million.

“Rather than address the issue of leadership and accountability, the presidency embarked on shadow chasing, talking about the weekend’s charade election and the types of government, whether presidential or parliamentary. Meanwhile, they forgot that Nigeria was not running a parliamentary system when the President mobilised Nigerians to demand the resignation of the then-President Goodluck Jonathan.

“Our principal’s call was for President Bola Tinubu to learn a lesson from the action of the British Prime Minister, who chose to resign after acknowledging that his government had failed to sufficiently improve the living conditions of its citizens.

“Obi’s intervention was neither personal nor partisan. It was a reflection on leadership and accountability. Unfortunately, rather than engage with the substance of the argument, the presidency chose to respond with insults, distortions, and self-congratulatory rhetoric.