The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has called on the Federal Government to focus on rehabilitating existing infrastructure instead of launching new projects that could eventually be abandoned.
Obi made the appeal in a post shared on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday while reacting to President Bola Tinubu’s recent advice to governors against spending public funds on unnecessary flyovers.
While commending the President’s position, Obi argued that the same principle should also apply to the Federal Government.
“There are several unrealistic and white-elephant projects being pursued by the current administration, even as much of our critical infrastructure remains in a state of disrepair,” Obi said.
He stressed that Nigeria’s current economic realities require leaders to focus on completing and restoring existing infrastructure before initiating costly new projects.
“Given our present fiscal realities, priority should be given to rehabilitating and completing existing infrastructure rather than embarking on expensive new projects with limited immediate impact,” he added.
Obi noted that many major highways linking commercial centres and food-producing communities have deteriorated, describing them as death traps that deserve urgent attention.
Drawing from his experience as the former governor of Anambra State, Obi said his administration always prioritised completing inherited projects before initiating new ones.
“I prioritised completing viable projects initiated by my predecessors before embarking on new ones. Government is a continuum, and development should never be measured by who starts a project, but by whether it is completed and serves the people,” he stated.
According to Obi, true leadership is about making responsible decisions and ensuring limited public resources are invested in projects that deliver the greatest benefit to Nigerians.
