I’ll Be In Charge, Tackle Corruption If Elected President — Obi

Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has pledged to tackle corruption if elected president in the 2027 general election.

Obi made the commitment in an interview with the BBC African Service, where he said former President Muhammadu Buhari was unable to fulfil his anti-corruption promises because, in his view, he was not fully in charge of his administration.

“He was not in charge. The difference is this: I will be in charge,” Obi said.

The former Anambra State governor said his approach to fighting corruption would begin with himself and his family, arguing that leaders must first ensure they are not involved in corrupt practices.

“If you are not stealing, if you are not involved, your wife and family are not involved; you reduce it by 50 per cent,” he said.

In the 2027 election, Obi urged opposition parties to focus on mobilising more voters rather than negotiating for one candidate to withdraw in favour of another.

He said the opposition should focus on expanding voter participation rather than deciding which candidate should step down.

Obi also said his position on petrol subsidy had not changed, arguing that corruption associated with the policy, rather than the subsidy itself, was the major problem.

“I have not changed on fuel subsidy. What has changed is that whenever I talk about methodology, people say, ‘Oh, he has changed.’ From day one, when I talked about subsidy, I talked about corruption. Corruption is the problem of subsidy,” he said.

Asked whether he would restore the subsidy if elected, Obi answered in the affirmative, but said he would first eliminate what he described as corruption associated with the scheme.

“Yes, but not with the corruption associated with it. That’s why I said I will remove the corruption and retain the subsidy,” he said.