The office said Obi recognised the sacrifices Nigerians in the diaspora make to support their families, including paying school fees, covering medical expenses, among others.
The Peter Obi Media Office has dismissed claims that the former Labour Party presidential candidate urged Nigerians living abroad to abandon their families in Nigeria, describing the interpretation of his remarks as misleading.
In a statement issued on Monday and signed by its spokesman, Idris Zekeri Jnr, the media office accused those circulating the video of removing the broader context of Obi’s remarks to Nigerians in Europe and editing it to advance their agenda.
“Peter Obi’s remarks were never intended to encourage Nigerians abroad to abandon their parents, siblings, or other loved ones in Nigeria. Nothing could be further from the truth,” the statement said.
The office said Obi recognised the sacrifices Nigerians in the diaspora make to support their families, including paying school fees, covering medical expenses, providing food and assisting relatives experiencing financial difficulties.
It explained that the central message of Obi’s remarks was the need to rebuild Nigeria’s economy and public services so citizens could meet their basic needs without relying on relatives abroad.
“The central point of his message is that Nigeria must function effectively once again,” the statement said.
According to the media office, Nigeria’s abundant human and natural resources should enable citizens to access decent jobs, affordable healthcare, quality education for their children and a dignified standard of living.
“A nation with such abundant human and natural resources should not force millions of its citizens to rely on relatives overseas for necessities,” it added.
The statement maintained that Obi’s vision was to build a country where Nigerians could live decently and diaspora remittances would contribute to national development rather than serve as a lifeline for families struggling to survive.
“Peter Obi’s vision is to create a Nigeria that works for all—a country in which remittances from the diaspora support national development instead of being essential to families’ survival,” it said.
The media office stressed that Obi was not asking Nigerians living abroad to withdraw financial assistance from their relatives but advocating a system that would reduce families’ dependence on such support.
“He is not asking Nigerians abroad to stop supporting their families. Rather, he is advocating for a Nigeria in which their families will no longer need to depend on them in order to survive,” the statement added.
It described the distinction as one between addressing the immediate effects of poverty and tackling its root causes.
“This is the distinction between alleviating poverty’s symptoms and confronting its underlying causes,” the statement said.
