Insecurity: I live in fear everyday – Peter Obi

Peter Obi, the former governor of Anambra State, says the security situation in the country has caused him to live in fear daily.

The vice presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last general election stated this on Saturday at the 8th Veritas University convocation in Abuja.

Insecurity has worsened across the country and it has forced Nigerians including the National Assembly to demand the sack of the service chiefs.

The body language of President Muhammadu Buhari is suggesting nothing will be done about the demand.

“We have to be innovative in politics. We have to get the right people who are prepared to save this country. We are in a bad situation. I am in a bad situation. Anybody who tells you that we are doing well is lying. I live in fear every day,” the former governor said at the event.

“The insecurity is totally unacceptable. One of the greatest cures for insecurity is to get people employed. Let us shut down the cost of governance,” he added.

Mr Obi also kicked against the use of large convoys by political office holders, describing it as madness and disturbance of public peace.

“You see big people going round with 15 or 20 vehicles and causing confusion all over the place and disturbing public peace and everybody with his own big title,” he said.

“If I was coming here with 20 policemen, to Nigerians, that shows I am ‘Your Excellency’. That is irresponsibility; it doesn’t happen anywhere in the world.

“There is no place in the world that I have seen where one man moves around with 22 vehicles. It is madness. I used it as a governor. You will not believe it. I used it as a governor until I asked to find out one day how many of the cars people were occupying, and about 13 of the cars were empty.

“So the cars were creating a  nuisance for the public and making things difficult for the travelling people and in Nigeria, that shows you are powerful. You are in power.

“That’s why I said if we are going on this path, there will be a collapse. This will lead us to nowhere.

“Today, Nigeria is the biggest economy in Africa, followed by South Africa and Egypt. If you combine these countries, their Gross Domestic Product is not up to Apple, an international technology company. So Apple is actually worth more than these three African giants. That is what knowledge can do,” Mr Obi added.