By Mary Onyia
The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, has called for Nigerian presidents to seriously consider spending their vacations in the country, saying such periods should be used to understand the challenges faced by citizens. Obi made the call during an interview with Arise Television on Thursday.
Obi said he would mandate domestic vacations for the President if elected, arguing that the country’s leader should use the opportunity to visit states facing insecurity and other developmental challenges. “Nigeria’s President must spend his vacation in Nigeria. We cannot continue with this nonsense,” he said, adding that the President could visit “Zamfara, Borno, Anambra, or anywhere.”
He dismissed security concerns that could make some locations unsuitable for presidential holidays, insisting that the President should stay connected to the realities of the country he governs. “It doesn’t matter. Because that’s the country he lives in,” Obi said, arguing that foreign trips should be reserved for official engagements rather than holidays.
The NDC candidate also criticized what he described as brief presidential visits to crisis-hit states, saying such trips should involve sustained engagement with affected communities and stakeholders. “He should go to Benue and say, ‘I’m here for the next three days; I want to see these stakeholders in the state,’” he said.
Obi further argued that the President should spend enough time in troubled areas to understand their problems firsthand, rather than relying solely on reports from officials. He said a physically present presidency would strengthen accountability and deepen the leader’s understanding of the conditions facing Nigerians across the country.