On Monday, June 16, 2025, Peter Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) and former governor of Anambra State, issued a stern warning that Nigeria will continue to suffer from failed leadership as long as citizens vote along tribal and religious lines instead of focusing on competence and capacity.
In a post on his official X handle, Obi emphasized that no amount of magic can improve leadership where the key qualities of competence, capacity, character, and compassion are absent.
“Leadership of a nation is such that it’s either succeeding or failing, none can be hidden. There are critical areas of leadership that must exist for a nation to move forward, and these are summed up in four Cs: Competence, Capacity, Character and Compassion. Where these four are non-existent, there is no magic you can do,” Obi wrote.
He urged Nigerians to move beyond tribal and religious loyalties and vote for leaders with these essential qualities, stressing the painful consequences of leadership lacking them.
Obi elaborated on what each quality means for Nigeria’s future:
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Competence: Nigeria needs leaders who understand the country’s issues and have the knowledge, experience, and clear ideas to solve them.
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Capacity: Leadership is not ceremonial; it requires strength, stamina, and mental energy to confront complex challenges.
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Character: Leadership must be rooted in integrity, without which public trust collapses and corruption thrives.
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Compassion: Without compassion, human lives become mere statistics and suffering is ignored.
He concluded that Nigeria urgently needs leaders who embody these principles to break free from cycles of failed governance.
