By Kolawole Ojebisi
The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has asked the Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections, Peter Obi, to stop parading himself as a know-all armed with the panacea for the myriads of challenges confronting the country.
The ruling party warned Obi not to incite Nigerians against the Tinubu’s administration , particularly with his advice that the president should set an example by utilising Nigeria’s healthcare facilities for his medical needs, like most Nigerians, instead of travelling abroad.
The former governor of Anambra State, stated that such a move would encourage Nigerians to trust the nation’s health institutions and curtail the country’s long-standing issue of medical tourism.
Recall that Obi, who spoke at a press conference on Thursday, had also claimed that Tinubu had failed to address the worsening economic and security challenges in his first 18 months in charge.
“It is time for you to visit our national hospitals. For instance, consider conducting your next medical examination at one of our National Hospitals or regional FMCs in Sokoto, Birnin Kebbi, Calabar, Umuahia, or Akure, among others,” Obi said.
However, reacting in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, the APC accused Obi of hypocrisy, saying his New Year’s message is ‘misleading and appears intended to score cheap political points.’
Morka stated that the claim portrayed the former governor as a leading ‘doomsayer’ at a time when all indicators show the country is rebounding in significant measure across all sectors.
He said, “In reality, 18 months later, the economy under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration has shown a steady record of progress. Despite these and other initial beneficial outcomes of ongoing reforms, the administration is doubling its effort to ensure their fullest benefits for the transformation of our country.
“It is a thing of irony that Obi, who now arrogates to himself to be omniscient and philosopher’s stone, when it comes to our nation’s challenges, left no record of significant achievement, let alone transformation of any kind, in his eight-year tenure as Governor of Anambra State.
“Like his co-travellers in the PDP, Obi’s obsessive pessimism and endless but futile effort to incite public outrage against the administration is borne out of the realization that Tinubu is unwittingly cementing their political irrelevance by his visionary and full-throttle reform.
“Under the banner of the Renewed Hope Agenda, President Tinubu is dutifully turning our nation’s fortunes around. We urge Nigerians to remain confident of better days ahead.”