Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has criticised President Bola Tinubu’s recent visit to Benue State, describing it as lacking empathy and failing to reflect the gravity of the tragic loss of lives in the state.
In a post shared on his official X handle on Thursday, Obi expressed disappointment over what he described as the President’s tone-deaf conduct during the visit, which he said resembled a political rally rather than a somber condolence mission.
“We had appealed for the President to demonstrate leadership by visiting Benue and Niger states in a spirit of national mourning—showing solidarity with grieving families who have lost over 200 loved ones in Benue to brutal killings, and hundreds more in Niger to flooding,” Obi stated.
Instead, he said, the President’s demeanor and the overall atmosphere in Benue were out of place for such a tragic moment.
“The President did not arrive in mourning attire, but in celebratory agbada, as though it was a festive occasion,” Obi noted.
He also condemned the decision by the Benue State Government to declare a public holiday for the visit, accusing officials of turning a moment of national grief into a spectacle.
“Children who should be mourning their murdered classmates and parents were instead made to line up in the rain, singing and dancing for the President,” he lamented.
“In what kind of country does this happen?”
Obi decried what he called the carnival-like nature of recent condolence visits in Nigeria.
“Condolence visits have now become carnivals. A moment that should be observed with silence and reflection is now crowded with banners, loud music, and choreographed displays,” he said.
Drawing comparisons with global leaders, Obi cited South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as examples of how national tragedies are handled with dignity.
“When President Ramaphosa visited Mthatha after devastating floods, there were no drums or staged crowds—just presence, silence, and decisive action.
“When Prime Minister Modi visited the site of a train crash, no one lined the streets to welcome him. He came quietly, mourned the dead, and acted. That’s what real leadership looks like in moments of pain.”
Obi warned that trivializing national tragedies was eroding the country’s moral fabric.
“These were human lives—children, mothers, and fathers. Their blood cries out for justice. Turning such sorrow into a campaign stop or fanfare dishonours their memory. We are losing our soul as a nation,” he concluded.
President Tinubu had visited Benue on Wednesday following the attack that claimed over 100 lives. During a town hall meeting, he ordered security agencies to apprehend those responsible for the killings.
“Let’s get our ears to the ground and go after those criminals,” Tinubu told the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa.
He also visited survivors at the Benue State University Teaching Hospital and was accompanied by Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, and Benue State Governor, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia.
