There 2023 Labour Party Presidential candidate Peter Obi in a statement surmised his thoughts on president Bola Tinubu’s half way visits to Yelwata, the attack community in Benue State that lost 200 lives to Fulani Herdsmen.

President Tinubu has aborted his condolence visit to the community on Wednesday due to the heavy rain flood along Lafia-Makurdi highway and had instead stopped at the capital for stakeholders meeting.

However, Obi condemned the act, saying the president didn’t show enough empathy for the victims, the families affected and the community.

 He questioned why the president refused to make use of helicopter if the roads were truly impassable.

According to the presidential candidate who in the past days has criticized president Tinubu for his initial silence over the massacre and not visiting the scene of the disaster immediately after it happened queried the reasons for bad roads among others.

In his words: “One of the consistent principles of leadership is the willingness to make ultimate sacrifices and take risks. A true leader does not make excuses or complain; he shows up, sacrifices, and provides solutions, especially in difficult times.

“While I do not advocate for our President to expose himself to monumental risks, I cannot accept the excuse that bad roads prevented him from reaching Yelwata in Benue State—especially after he had already made it to the state. This visit happened days after the massacre, with enough time to plan appropriately.

“But let’s ask the fundamental question: Who is responsible for fixing the roads if not state and the federal governments? If the Commander-in-Chief cannot reach a part of his own country due to bad roads, what hope is there for the ordinary Nigerian who plies those same routes every day?

“Leadership is not about comfort; it is about sacrifice. It is about standing with your people, especially in moments of pain and tragedy. You cannot abandon your citizens in their hour of need. You don’t offer excuses when action is required.

“Even if we accept that the roads were truly impassable—which they are not, as presidential aides and staff managed to navigate them—what happened to the use of helicopters? Are we saying a nation that boasts of a presidential air fleet could not airlift the President to Yelwata to condole with grieving citizens?

“The people of Benue did not need protocol or explanations. They needed empathy. They needed presence. The roads may be bad, but what is worse is the institutional neglect that brought us to this point.

 “A New Nigeria cannot—and will not—be built on excuses. It will be built on the sacrifices, courage, and responsibility of true leaders.” Obi added