ARODIOGBU BLAST PETER OBI OVER CALL TO DIASPORA TO HALT REMITTANCES, WARNS OF ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES
ARODIOGBU BLAST PETER OBI OVER CALL TO DIASPORA TO HALT REMITTANCES, WARNS OF ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES
The National Vice Chairman (South East) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the APC PCC South East Zonal Cordinator, Dr. Ijeomah Arodiogbu MBBS, Phd, has unleashed a blistering condemnation of Mr. Peter Obi over the former Anambra State governor’s call urging Nigerians in the diaspora to stop sending money home to relatives, describing the remarks as outright economic sabotage against the Nigerian people and a direct attack on the livelihoods of millions of families.
Reacting to Obi’s comments made during a town hall meeting with supporters in Manchester, United Kingdom where the NDC presidential candidate told diaspora Nigerians to say “no” to those begging for money and instead push for political change, Arodiogbu said the statement was not only insensitive and reckless but a dangerous assault on one of Nigeria’s most critical economic lifelines.
_“What Peter Obi has done is nothing short of economic sabotage,” Arodiogbu declared. “Diaspora remittances are the oxygen of many Nigerian households. They pay school fees, settle hospital bills, put food on tables, pay rents, and keep small businesses alive. For any politician, especially one who claims to love the people, to stand in a foreign land and tell our brothers and sisters abroad to stop supporting their families is the height of irresponsibility and anti-people politics.”_
Arodiogbu emphasised the sheer scale and importance of these inflows with hard data. According to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), personal transfers from Nigerians in the diaspora rose to $5.82 billion in the second quarter of 2026 alone, a 9.81 percent increase from the $5.30 billion recorded in the first quarter.
Monthly formal remittance inflows through International Money Transfer Operators have surged dramatically under the Tinubu administration’s reforms, rising from around $200 million monthly in earlier periods to approximately $950 million by mid-2026, with the CBN targeting a sustained $1 billion every month by the end of 2026.
NiDCOM and other official sources have repeatedly highlighted that Nigerians abroad remit close to $1 billion monthly at present, while annual inflows have stabilised in the region of $20–22 billion in recent years. Over a five-year period, cumulative remittances have exceeded $90 billion. With an estimated 17 million Nigerians in the diaspora, these funds remain one of the most reliable sources of foreign exchange, often outperforming oil receipts during periods of market stress, and contribute significantly to Nigeria’s current account surplus.
_“These are not abstract figures,” Arodiogbu stressed. “Behind every dollar is a family in the South East, in Lagos, in Kano, in Rivers, families that depend on these transfers for survival. Advising people to cut off this support in the name of political messaging is reckless. It is dangerous. It is economic sabotage.”_
The APC South East leader further noted that the Tinubu administration and the CBN under Governor Olayemi Cardoso have deliberately reformed the remittance space, removing bottlenecks, improving formal channels, and creating dedicated non-resident accounts, precisely to encourage more inflows through official routes and strengthen the naira. The result has been a clear upward trajectory in formal remittances and growing confidence among the diaspora.
_“While the Tinubu administration is working to stabilise the economy, attract investment, grow reserves, and create an environment where Nigerians can thrive without depending solely on relatives abroad, Peter Obi is telling people to starve their own families for political capital,” Arodiogbu said. “That is not leadership. That is sabotage.”_
Arodiogbu accused Obi of double standards, pointing out that the former governor has often celebrated the contributions of the diaspora when it suited his narrative but is now prepared to undermine the same people when it serves his 2027 ambitions.
_“You cannot claim to be the champion of the masses and then ask the diaspora to abandon the same masses,” he stated. “Nigerians in the diaspora sacrifice daily. Many work two or three jobs just to send money home. To tell them ‘say no’ to their parents, siblings, and children who are struggling is wicked. It is anti-people. It is economic sabotage of the worst kind.”_
He called on Nigerians at home and abroad to reject Obi’s dangerous rhetoric and instead support policies that strengthen the productive base of the economy so that dependency on remittances reduces naturally through growth, jobs, and opportunity not by forcing families to cut off support.
_“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the APC are focused on building a productive economy. That is the real and sustainable solution. What Peter Obi is preaching is chaos and deeper hardship for the very people he pretends to care about,” Arodiogbu concluded._
_Report by TC Nwachukwu, SPAD Media, Political and Strategic Engagement to APC NVC SE_
