Peter Obi Tells UK-Based Nigerians To Stop Sending Money Home

The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has advised Nigerians residing in the United Kingdom to cease sending financial remittances to relatives and acquaintances begging for money at home, urging them instead to demand that their family members vote for productive, accountable leadership.

Obi made the remarks while speaking during an interactive town hall meeting with diaspora supporters in Manchester, United Kingdom, on Sunday.

Addressing the gathered audience, the former Anambra State governor argued that Nigeria’s prevailing economic hardship stems directly from bad governance and that continuous financial bailouts from abroad merely cushion the effects of poor leadership without tackling its root causes.

You have people at home in Nigeria today who are begging you for money. Tell them no! Obi declared, emphasizing that diaspora remittances have unwittingly shielded corrupt political figures from public accountability.

Defending his governance track record, Obi insisted that his stewardship in Anambra State distinguished him from other former governors, asserting that none could match his record of managing and conserving public resources.

I’m not saying I’m a saint, but I saved money. I’ve not seen one governor who has saved 10 per cent of what I saved. No governor has done it. Let’s start with this one that is less corrupt. That’s how other countries change, he stated.

The NDC presidential contender maintained that meaningful national transformation requires active citizen engagement and a shared commitment to rejecting institutional corruption.

He added that funds diverted by public officials could have been channeled into critical public infrastructure, such as modern healthcare facilities and educational systems across the country.

Urging Nigerians both at home and in the diaspora to treat the upcoming 2027 general elections as a critical turning point, Obi called on citizens to mobilize heavily to elect leaders capable of driving sustainable economic growth and national development.