Peter Obi has slammed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over the manner in which he conducted his visit to Jos following recent killings in Plateau State. In a post on X on Friday, the Labour Party's 2023 presidential candidate said addressing grieving citizens from the airport tarmac falls short of true leadership. He referenced Tinubu's June 2025 stop in Benue State, where the President remained at the Government House without visiting attack sites, drawing a parallel to the Jos trip. "True leadership requires presence, empathy, compassion, and a willingness to meet people where their pain truly lies," Obi wrote. He described speaking to victims from an airport as "profoundly inadequate" and said such actions deepen the feeling of abandonment among Nigerians affected by recurring violence. Obi stressed that only urgent, practical steps can rebuild trust in the government's ability to protect lives. He called for leadership that is not just visible in statements but tangible on the ground, standing with victims and listening to survivors. "If we truly desire a better Nigeria, we must demand leadership that is present, responsive, and responsible at all times," he said.
Peter Obi is not the first opposition figure to question Tinubu's on-the-ground presence after violent attacks, but his reference to both Jos and Benue visits exposes a pattern the presidency cannot dismiss as logistical convenience. When a head of state consistently avoids visiting attack sites, it signals detachment, not strategy. For Nigerians in Plateau and beyond who have buried loved ones without seeing any top official walk their streets, this isn't about optics—it's about whether the government sees them as worthy of shared grief. No statement from an aircraft stairway can mask that deficit.
