Peter Obi Tinubu resignation call insecurity as former LP candidate urges President Tinubu to step down over rising insecurity and school abductions
Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, on Monday, July 6, 2026, in Abuja, Nigeria, called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to resign or abandon his 2027 re-election bid, citing worsening insecurity and prolonged school kidnappings across the country.
Also read: Court Adjourns APC Delta South Ticket Case as INEC Fails to Appear Again
Peter Obi made the statement following a visit to Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, where discussions reportedly centred on the continued captivity of schoolchildren abducted more than 50 days ago.
The former Anambra State governor said the situation reflects what he described as a deep failure of leadership and governance.
In his remarks, Peter Obi expressed concern that President Tinubu had allegedly not made direct contact with Governor Seyi Makinde regarding the abduction case.
He contrasted this with previous administrations, noting that former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, and Goodluck Jonathan were known to maintain active communication with state governors during national security emergencies.
“The ultimate cost of uncompassionate leadership, as evident in the country today, is turning citizens’ frustration into deep, volatile resentment,” Obi said, stressing that the absence of decisive action had worsened public anxiety.
He further stated that the prolonged failure to secure the release of abducted schoolchildren in Oyo State more than 50 days after the incident reflects what he termed a troubling gap in leadership response.
According to him, families and communities affected by the incident have been left feeling abandoned.
Obi also referenced the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls’ abduction, noting that then-candidate Bola Tinubu had criticised the handling of that crisis by the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
He argued that similar patterns of insecurity have persisted under the current government without sufficient presidential engagement.
“It is even more traumatising when the leader presiding over that collapse demonstrates clear incapacity and a lack of compassion,” Obi said, adding that the scale of insecurity requires urgent and visible leadership intervention.
He insisted that the continued wave of kidnappings and violent incidents across Nigeria underscores what he described as a lack of capacity at the highest level of government.
Obi maintained that, in the national interest, President Tinubu should either step aside or withdraw from contesting the 2027 presidential election.
Also read: Court Adjourns APC Delta South Ticket Case as INEC Fails to Appear Again
The comments add fresh political tension ahead of the next electoral cycle, as security concerns continue to dominate national discourse and opposition leaders intensify criticism of the administration’s response to ongoing crises.
