Obi Tell Tinubu To Resign Like Starmer Over Governance Failure

Peter Obi, the 2027 presidential candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress, called on President Bola Tinubu to resign on Monday, June 22, 2026, citing the resignation of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer as a model of political accountability that Nigerian leaders should emulate following what Obi described as monumental failure in governance.

Obi posted the statement on his X account hours after Starmer announced outside 10 Downing Street his planned resignation in July, bringing his premiership of less than two years to an end amid public anger over a sluggish economy, a worsening cost-of-living crisis, and broken campaign promises. Obi drew a parallel between Starmer’s situation and Tinubu’s, noting that both came to power on significant electoral promises they had since failed to honour.

Obi References Tinubu’s Own 2014 Demand

In a pointed historical comparison, Obi reminded Tinubu that during the 2014 Chibok school kidnapping crisis, the then-opposition leader had publicly demanded that President Goodluck Jonathan resign over the government’s failure to protect Nigerian schoolchildren. Obi said the same logic of accountability must apply to Tinubu given the ongoing Oyo school abduction crisis, worsening insecurity, and persistent economic hardship.

Obi wrote that electricity supply remained unreliable, insecurity had intensified, and economic hardship had deepened rather than eased. He said similar regressions had occurred in security, infrastructure, transportation, and anti-corruption efforts. He concluded that calling for the president’s resignation was a push for a political culture rooted in accountability.

Presidency Fires Back Hard

Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga dismissed Obi’s call as childish and hollow, saying Nigeria does not run a parliamentary system like the UK and that the comparison exposed a fundamental misunderstanding of constitutional architecture. The Presidency said Nigeria’s GDP had grown every quarter since May 2023, the NGX All-Share Index had risen from 50,000 to over 250,000, and the country’s foreign reserves had exceeded 50 billion dollars. Consequently, the Obi-Tinubu exchange set the tone for a sharp political week defined by insecurity, governance accountability, and 2027 positioning.