I will transform the north, it’s Nigeria’s greatest asset – Obi

Peter Obi, 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), says he plans to prioritise the development of northern Nigeria, describing the region as the country’s greatest asset.

Speaking during an interview on Prime Time, an Arise Television programme, on Monday, Obi said the north holds vast economic potential, particularly in agriculture, which he believes can outperform oil revenue if properly harnessed.

“Our greatest asset is in the north. The vast uncultivated land in the north is our future. We can make more money as a country from agriculture than we make from oil, and we must begin to do that immediately,” he said.

Obi said he is open to working with key northern political figures, including Nasir el-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna, and Rabiu Kwankwaso, former governor of Kano.

“I will work with them, but I can tell you that nobody can build what I intend to build in the north,” he added.

On security, the former governor of Anambra said addressing insecurity in the region requires tackling poverty and governance deficits.

“If we want to secure the north today, we need to start investing in critical areas of agriculture, pull people out of poverty, and invest in education and health. That is what we must do,” he said.

He added that leadership must be decisive in addressing insecurity, noting that the current situation is a result of years of governance failure.

“Insecurity we see today is caused by erosion of governance, erosion of values, and abandoning the youths. It is the cumulative effect of leadership failure over the years,” he said.

Obi said Nigeria must adopt a firmer stance in tackling security challenges.

“We have reached a stage where we have to be very decisive. It is no longer an issue of negotiation,” he said.

“No nation will lose about 10 of its senior officers and not declare war. I will declare war.”

The former governor also said he has been studying development models in other countries to better understand how to unlock the north’s potential.

“I have taken time to visit different countries to see first-hand what they are doing, and I see that future in the north,” he said.