TICAD9 booth mirrors Nigerians’ misery, Tinubu’s empty hope, progress: Peter Obi

“The empty booths at TICAD are not just about a diplomatic embarrassment, they are a clear symbol of the hollow promises and empty governance,” said Mr Obi.

Ahmed Oluwasanjo • August 21, 2025

Sleeping President Bola Tinubu (Credit: Bola Tinubu)

Peter Obi has reacted to the trending debate on Nigeria’s deserted booth at the ongoing Tokyo International Conference. He said the situation reflected President Bola Tinubu’s “empty promises and governance” back home.

“The empty Nigerian booths in the ongoing Ninth Tokyo International Conference, TICAD9, in Japan do not just define the empty promises of this government for the past two years, they also reflect the consistent emptiness Nigerians have been fed at home by this government,” Mr Obi said in a statement on Wednesday.

He added, “The empty booths at TICAD are not just about a diplomatic embarrassment, they are a clear symbol of the hollow promises and empty governance that our citizens have endured.”

The former Anambra governor further noted that just as those booths stood empty in Japan, “so too have the lives of millions of Nigerians been left empty, with empty hope, empty relief and empty of the progress they were promised”.

“The truth is unavoidable; the empty booths abroad are a physical reminder of the empty promises at home,” said the politician. “We must do better as a nation. Even the defence being put forward by the government, that they only wanted to have more ‘strategic engagements’, is the same tired excuse we have heard over and over again.”

Mr Obi’s statement comes shortly after a Nigerian at the conference, Idris Ayodeji Bello, posted photos of a deserted Nigerian booth on social media on Wednesday.

“I hate to show negative things about Nigeria, but it is sad that Nigeria is the only unmanned booth at TICAD9 in Japan. Upon all the folks who probably got estacode for coming to Japan,” Mr Bello lamented,” Mr Bello posted on social media, sparking reactions from Nigerians back home.

Reacting to Mr Bello’s post on X, the ministry said, “Contrary to a tweet made by a participant at TICAD, the Nigerian Booth at #TICAD9 has not yet been opened. The booth will be officially inaugurated on Thursday, 21st August 2025, after which it will become fully operational and serve the delegates of TICAD.”

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