Peter Obi Five Critical Questions: NDC Candidate Begins 2027 Campaign In Onitsha
Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, formally commenced his 2027 presidential campaign on Friday, August 21, 2026, at a press conference held at his Onitsha, Anambra State residence, unveiling five critical questions he said should guide Nigerians’ choice at the polls.
“Are Nigerians better off than they were four years ago? Can they afford food, education, and healthcare? Can businesses produce, expand, and create jobs? Can young people find productive work? Can farmers work safely and get their produce to market? These are the measures that matter,” Obi said. The launch came two days after the Independent National Electoral Commission opened the official campaign season for the 2027 general election.
Addressing newsmen at his home to mark the start of the campaign, Obi said he entered the race with the firm conviction that “Nigeria can work, and Nigeria must work,” describing the election as a critical moment for voters to weigh the records, ideas and proposals of all candidates against what he called grave economic and security challenges. He identified poverty, food insecurity, internal displacement, unemployment, poor infrastructure, unreliable electricity, insecurity and the high cost of doing business as the most pressing problems confronting the country, while insisting Nigeria still possessed the people, resources, talent and market capacity needed to build a strong economy.
On the economy, Obi pledged that his administration would shift Nigeria away from a heavily consumption-driven model towards one built on production, investment, enterprise and human-capital development, stating, “Nigeria cannot import its way to prosperity. We will produce more of what we consume, process more of what we produce, and compete more effectively in global markets.” He also outlined a regional development approach, arguing that different parts of the country should focus on their comparative advantages, from agriculture and livestock in the North-West to reconstruction and enterprise growth in the North-East.
Obi promised that he and his running mate, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, would defeat insecurity, pull people out of poverty, drastically reduce hunger and the number of out-of-school children, as well as improve education and healthcare and build growth that serves everyone, especially the most vulnerable. He further stressed that all candidates in the race must be willing to present themselves to the electorate and defend their positions publicly. “No candidate should hide behind the high walls of power, send proxies or surrogates to the hustings, and expect Nigerians to entrust them with the leadership of the country,” he said, adding that he and Kwankwaso would personally take their campaign message across the country rather than delegate the process to representatives.
Obi urged voters to assess the records and proposals of all candidates, ask difficult questions and demand evidence behind campaign promises, while calling for an issue-based 2027 campaign that avoids ethnicity, religion, propaganda, elitism and cronyism. “Our campaign will focus on the urgent concerns of Nigerians and not on ethnicity or religion,” he said, describing his ultimate objective as uniting the country, defeating insecurity, reducing poverty and hunger, tackling out-of-school children, improving education and healthcare, and building an economy that works for all Nigerians.
Obi’s campaign launch adds to the broader field of candidates now formally in motion for 2027, with Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde separately urging Nigerians to judge presidential candidates on their records rather than rhetoric, arguing that campaigns should be about more than slogans and promises. As Nigeria’s major political camps roll out their campaign messaging, attention now turns to how rival candidates, including President Bola Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar, respond to Obi’s challenge to publicly defend their own records ahead of the vote.
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