The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has questioned President Bola Tinubu’s decision to take a three-week vacation in Europe. 

However, Obi has faulted the vacation, saying the Nigerian leader should be more interested in addressing challenges plaguing the country.

“Nigeria is in deep crisis. Nigerians can barely afford food and transportation. Insecurity is ravaging communities, and thousands of children are unable to access education because of insecurity,” he said in a statement on his X handle late Monday, citing the spending of public funds for such a trip.

“This is the calamity befalling our country today. A government that can spend tens of billions on presidential travel while critical sectors remain starved of funds, and Nigerians are asked to endure worsening hardship, must not be allowed to continue.

Obi also expressed concerns that Tinubu did not find it fit to vacation in any part of the country, saying he looks “forward to a Nigeria where our President can vacation in Kano, Katsina, Sokoto, Cross River State, Bauchi, Ebonyi, and many other destinations across our country.”

“The President of Nigeria should be the chief marketer of Nigeria as a tourism destination, as other comparable countries do.”

“Tourism creates jobs,” he said. “It supports hospitality, transportation, agriculture, entertainment, crafts, and small businesses. It brings investment and foreign exchange and allows communities to benefit directly from their natural and cultural assets. We cannot continue to export our wealth and import our pleasures while our own enormous potential remains neglected.”

The former Anambra governor said the country deserves a “leadership that puts Nigeria first; leadership that cares and plans for a better Nigeria.”