Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has faulted the call by First Lady Oluremi Tinubu urging her birthday well-wishers to donate toward the completion of the National Library in Abuja.
Obi, in a post on his X account, said although the gesture appeared noble, but was a sad reflection of misplaced priorities in governance.
“I join millions of Nigerians in wishing Her Excellency, Mrs Oluremi Tinubu, a happy birthday. May God Almighty, who has been with her all these years, grant her many more healthy, fruitful, and happy years,” Obi wrote.
“However, I was struck by irony reading her request: that instead of cakes or newspaper adverts, well-wishers should donate toward completing the National Library in Abuja.”
He argued that the Federal Government should not rely on charity to complete the nation’s intellectual hub while public funds are spent on luxuries.
“It is shocking that, in our present circumstances, while billions are easily found for jets, yachts, unused mansions, endless trips abroad, and other frivolities, the nation must rely on birthday donations to complete its own National Library,” he stated.
Obi said such actions exposed the neglect of education and the failure of leadership to treat knowledge as a national priority.
He added, “What kind of leaders waste trillions on luxury and vanity, while the National Library — our intellectual furnace — remains abandoned in the capital? Serious nations treat libraries as sacred; but here we reduce them to afterthoughts, begging bowls, or birthday tokens.”
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