Peter Obi, a former governor of Anambra State and 2019 vice presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has reiterated that the Nigerian state will not make significant development until it plugs the leakages in public funds and stops the high cost of governance at all levels.
Obi told this to participants of Course 4 of the Strategic Management and Policy Course participants of Course, at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre in Abuja.
He told his audience, comprising retired generals and serving top brass officers from the Army, various security agencies and paramilitary organisations that growth and progress will not happen in Nigeria, as long as the quantum of wastes in public service continues.
He said that Nigerian leaders must strive to create public wealth, rather than focus on accumulating private wealth when in office. “Public wealth enriches everybody, but private wealth impoverishes the people and the nation,” he said.
The former governor said the core of Nigeria’s challenges is the leadership of its political class, stressing that until leaders commit to good governance and responsible management of public resources, the right policies will not be put in place to serve the public good.
Obi while recounting how he managed his resources in the office, said, “Whether we agree or not, failure of leadership is taking a huge toll on us as a nation and it could be worse if we do not put the right and committed people in charge of the affairs of critical sectors. Education, health and provision of basic infrastructure were my main goals and I was able to record success because we planned our programs using a universally certified development formula.”
Obi said it is disheartening that pensioners are owed their entitlements and going about wasting money on useless social projects stressing.
