Delight Chinedum

Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi has said that only “competent, capable and compassionate political leadership, with integrity can drive sustainable growth and development.”

He argued that a nation’s destiny is inseparable from the integrity and vision of its leaders.

Obi spoke on Thursday at Johns Hopkins University on “Politics and Change in Nigeria,” at the invitation of Professor Peter Lewis, author of “Growing Apart: Comparing Indonesia and Nigeria.”

Drawing on 35 years of comparative data, Mr. Obi noted that in 1990 all four nations – Nigeria, China, Vietnam and Indonesia – fell into the “medium” category of the United Nations’ Human Development Index (HDI).

Today, China, Vietnam and Indonesia have each advanced to the “high” HDI bracket, while Nigeria has slipped into the “low” category.

He also highlighted stark contrasts in per-capita wealth.

“In 1990, Nigeria’s GDP per capita stood at $556, outpacing China’s $317 and Vietnam’s mere $99,” Mr. Obi observed. “By 2025, however, Nigeria’s per-capita income is just one-fifth of Indonesia’s $5,000 and Vietnam’s $4,400 and less than one-tenth of China’s $13,000.”

On poverty, Obi pointed out that Nigeria had the fewest people classified as poor, about 50 million, among the four countries in 1990, compared with China’s 750 million, Indonesia’s 85 million and Vietnam’s 60 million.

“Today,” he warned, “Nigeria has more poor people than China, Indonesia and Vietnam combined.”

“Why have these nations succeeded where we have faltered?” he asked his audience.

His answer was unequivocal: “They have invested decisively in education, healthcare and poverty reduction under leaders of unwavering character and capacity.”

Concluding, Obi declared that for Nigeria to solve its many problems, that its next generation of leaders must make the welfare and upliftment of all its citizens a priority.