Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate now running under the National Democratic Party, has endorsed the position of Pastor Enoch Adeboye that President Bola Tinubu has done his best in office but added that the president should retire from power.
Obi made the remarks during an interview with media personality Chude Jideonwo, published on YouTube on Thursday. The conversation ranged across his 2027 presidential ambitions and why he believes Nigeria needs fresh leadership.
Peter Obi on Tinubu’s Capacity and Presidential Leadership
When asked about Adeboye’s recent public defense of Tinubu on the issue of insecurity, Obi said the cleric was not wrong in what he said but drew a sharp distinction between effort and outcome.
“Somebody asked me yesterday; they said that Pastor Adeboye said Tinubu has tried his best and he’s not happy. And I said, no, Pastor Adeboye remains a very revered, respected religious father, whose genuineness and goodness I believe in. And what he said was correct. He said he has tried his best. He’s trying his best. That’s it. It’s the correct answer,” Obi said.
He then shifted the argument to a question of capacity.
“The question to ask is, ‘Is his best good enough?’ Where we find ourselves today, that leads to the issue of capacity,” he said.
Obi listed five qualities he believes define effective leadership: competence, capacity, compassion, commitment, and character, and said Nigeria’s security situation is evidence that those qualities are currently absent at the top.
“President Tinubu is tired. He needs to go home and rest,” Obi said.
Adeboye’s Washington Remarks on Insecurity and the 90-Day Ultimatum
Adeboye made his original comments at the US-Nigeria Faith Heroes Award Gala, organized by the Save Nigeria Group in Washington, D.C., on June 23. The event brought together faith and civil society leaders from both countries.
Speaking at the gala, the RCCG general overseer defended Tinubu against critics who accused the president of failing to address rising insecurity. Adeboye argued that a commander-in-chief fulfills his duty by giving orders to the military, not by taking up arms himself.
“I don’t support those who are accusing the president of not doing enough. When the commander-in-chief has given instructions to his subordinates, he has done his bit. You don’t expect him to go and put on khaki and fight,” Adeboye said.
Despite that defense, Adeboye did not spare the government from criticism. He expressed deep concern that terrorism and kidnapping, once concentrated in northern Nigeria, had by Thursday extended southward across the country.
The cleric said he advised the president directly to issue a 90-day ultimatum to military commanders: end the insecurity crisis or resign. He also urged the government to pursue and prosecute the financiers of terrorism, whom he described as individuals known to the security establishment.
Why Obi Says Voters Should Back Him Over Other Opposition Candidates
During the same interview, Obi addressed the question of why voters should choose him over rival opposition figures in the lead-up to the 2027 general election. His answer was brief and pointed.
“It’s for you to look at my past and look at what I’m saying now,” he said, directing attention to his record as governor of Anambra State and his proposals for national governance.
Obi did not make specific policy announcements during the interview. He did not name any rival opposition candidates. His comments were focused on distinguishing between what a leader attempts and what a leader achieves.
The NDP presidential candidate has been building political momentum ahead of 2027, positioning himself as the candidate of results-driven governance against a backdrop of rising costs of living, persistent insecurity, and widespread public frustration.
Details of any formal NDP campaign schedule were not immediately available. The presidency had not issued a response to Obi’s remarks as of Thursday.
