Presidential candidate of the Labour Party at the 2023 elections, Peter Obi, says international communities will not respect Nigeria because of the “characters” leading the country. 

Mr Obi spoke about how Nigerians are disrespected in other countries in a Twitter space anchored by Parallel Fact on Saturday.

“They cannot respect us where we are today; they cannot respect us because of the characters in charge of our country,” said Mr Obi, a former governor of Anambra. “All of us politicians have failed the country.”

Highlighting how independent journalist, David Hundeyin, was recently denied entry into Zimbabwe, Mr Obi said he had a similar experience where he was disrespected in another country for being a Nigerian.

Mr Obi emphasised that for Nigerians to earn respect abroad, political leaders must be committed to good governance and respecting citizens.

“All I’m saying is that this passport will be great; it requires us to do the right thing. To earn respect, you have to put your house in order. If today, David is disrespected because he came from a system that does not even respect David,” Mr Obi said.

“I’ve had the same disrespect. I can tell you. I’ve travelled to a country; somebody says I cannot trust you because you are a Nigerian.”

Although Mr Obi did not categorically name any politician, his stance on the character of leaders comes as controversy lingers over President Bola Tinubu’s involvement in a drug trafficking-related case in the U.S. in the 90s.

Opposition candidates Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party and Mr Obi included Mr Tinubu’s involvement in the drug trafficking racket in their respective petitions before the presidential election tribunal.

Mr Tinubu once forfeited $460,000 linked to a drug trafficking case to the U.S. authorities in 1993.

In 2022, the Northern District Court of Illinois released documents detailing Mr Tinubu’s 1993 legal battles with United States authorities over drug-related and money laundering charges.