By Valentine Amanze
The former Governor of Anambra State and the Vice Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described as sad, the continued reverse movement of Nigeria from better to worse rather than the other way round.
Obi spoke at the inauguration of Prof. Chike Obi Lecture Series by the Alumni of University of Nigeria, Onitsha branch, yesterday.
Lamenting that Nigeria has failed to achieve its potentials within the dreams of its nationalists, including Prof. Chike Obi, the former governor said that the forthcoming general election was yet another opportunity for Nigerians to vote for those with proven records in resource and human management.
Reflecting on what he called the “misplacement of values”, Obi said that it was sad that Nigeria had over the years bred people without respect for education and professionalism.
He recalled how, when he travelled to Kenya, people he met were excited that he was coming from the county of the likes of Prof. Wole Soyinka and Prof. Chinua Achebe.
“Today, due to the ascendancy of thuggery, our people have little regard for scholarship. Today, touts in the parks earn more than professors and yet nobody is raising alarm. I have had extensive discussion with the PDP Presidential candidate, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku, and I am happy he is concerned about the phenomenon, which was one of the reasons he founded a university and has commmitted a lot of resources to education even as a private citizen”, Obi said.
Bemoaning the degeneration of Nigeria, Obi said that now was the time for Nigerians to ask a lot of questions as stakeholders in the business of development of the country.
His words: “How many of us are aware that in 2007, Nigeria was not owing a kobo? But today we are owing over $80 billion? How many of us are aware that Nigeria has the highest number of out-of-school children? How many of us know that Nigeria today has the highest number of poor people in the world?”
Obi said that such questions were asked by the likes of Chike Obi at their younger ages and called on the youth of Nigeria to ask the same and insist on being answered.
