The 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, has reiterated that addressing poverty and underdevelopment is the most effective way to combat crime and insecurity in Nigeria.
In a statement posted on X, Obi expressed satisfaction that the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, shares his view that pulling citizens out of poverty is central to reducing criminal activity.
“I have always maintained that the more people we pull out of poverty, the more we reduce criminality. You cannot separate security from human development; they are inextricably linked,” Obi stated.
He described the prevailing insecurity across the country as the product of years of governance failure.
“The criminality witnessed in Nigeria today is not a coincidence or an accident. It is the cumulative outcome of decades of misplaced priorities, the direct consequence of poor governance, mismanagement of public resources, monumental corruption, and systemic neglect,” he said.
Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, argued that true development lies not in flashy infrastructure or billion-naira projects but in strategic investment in human capital.
“Development is not about awarding billion-naira contracts for white elephant projects or building structures without soul or purpose. Real development means investing in the critical areas of human development that directly impact human capital — education, healthcare, and poverty eradication,” he noted.
He warned that a nation where nearly 100 million people live in extreme poverty, and over 140 million face multidimensional poverty, cannot escape the consequences of insecurity.
The Labour Party standard bearer commended General Musa for acknowledging that Nigeria’s security crisis cannot be resolved by military force alone.
“This is not coming from a politician but from the nation’s top military commander. Even the boots on the ground know the battle cannot be won by force alone. We must win it through human dignity, opportunity, and justice,” Obi emphasized.
Quoting late political leader, Mallam Aminu Kano, Obi recalled the warning that Nigeria’s biggest problem was the abandonment of the masses and the criminalisation of their hunger — a sentiment that still resonates today.
“A child out of school today becomes vulnerable to manipulation and extremism tomorrow. A family that goes to bed hungry becomes a breeding ground for resentment. A community without access to clean water, primary healthcare, or opportunity becomes a powder keg waiting to explode,” he warned.
Obi said Nigeria must break the cycle of poor leadership and failed policies by prioritising investment in people-centric sectors.
“We must prioritise productive investments in education, health, and agriculture. These are not just economic priorities; they are national security imperatives.
“We cannot continue with business as usual. Every naira we invest in people today is one less bullet we need to fire tomorrow. That is the real meaning of security. That is how we build the new Nigeria that is possible,” Obi concluded.
