Former governor of Anambra State and presidential candidate for the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi, has vowed to improve Nigeria’s energy production or resign after serving out his first term.
During his speech before a crowded audience at the upscale Beverly Hilton Los Angeles, where his US speaking tour was inaugurated, Obi made the commitment.
Obi, who arrived by plane from Toronto, Canada, listed Egypt as one of the nations that had increased its power supply by twofold in recent years. He lamented that while South Africa, which generates 50,000 megawatts of electricity, recently declared a state of emergency in the sector due to its inadequate supply, Nigeria, which only generates 4,000 megawatts of electricity for over 200 million people, has not.
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“I will increase power generation in four years. This is not a guarantee. I am saying if I don’t do it, I will leave the office,” Obi said.
In Nigeria, he lamented the lack of accountability, pointing out that officials broke their promises upon taking office by claiming they were unaware of what they meant. He declared, “In Nigeria, people don’t do what is expected; people do what is inspected!”
He urged the fervent Nigerians living in America to hold him responsible for keeping his promises when he assumes office.
No one was looking for perfection, but Obi said leaders should at least demonstrate direction and effort. His speech was cut short by cheers and “Obi” shouts.
Narrating an interaction he had with a member of a rival party on the flight to Toronto the previous day, Obi asked him if he knew the pilot. When the man said, “no,” he further asked, “but you trust him that he is taking you to Toronto as he announced?”
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The pilots of the state would enter the cockpit and start to make excuses that they weren’t aware the aircraft needed fuel and that the destination was Lagos, he claimed, which was a problem with government in Nigeria.
Concluding, the guest speaker declared: “Election of 2023 must not be based on religion, tribe, connection or entitlement but character, competence, capacity and commitment.”
In response to inquiries about how he intended to boost electricity production, Obi said that after learning that one of the firms in charge of Egypt’s power transformation was present in Nigeria, he made the decision to look into why they hadn’t achieved similar success there.
He claimed that for the time being, his results will remain secret, but there was no magic involved in getting there.
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