Former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has stepped in to support the Dentistry Department of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), which is facing an accreditation crisis, with a ₦15 million donation. Obi announced the contribution in a post on X on Friday, stating that he had earlier received a letter from the university’s Dental Students Association requesting urgent financial assistance of about ₦40 million to upgrade their laboratory and increase the department’s graduation and induction quota.
He explained that out of respect for the national mourning following the passing of a former president, he delayed any public statements. “Now that the mourning has officially ended, I felt it was important to act without delay,” he said. Obi personally visited the institution to show his support and remarked, “We cannot, in good conscience, continue to allow our young people to suffer due to leadership failure.”
Describing his ₦15 million donation as a modest effort to help ensure the continuity of dental education at UNN, he reaffirmed his commitment to the development of education and healthcare in Nigeria. He also criticized what he called a national tragedy of misplaced priorities, citing the continued neglect of key sectors. “I continue to question the kind of country we are building, where our leaders and public servants spend millions on luxury cars and ignore critical areas of development, health, education, and pulling people out of poverty,” Obi said.
He argued that the failure to prioritize education, healthcare, and poverty alleviation, while spending billions on non-essential infrastructure such as conference centres and bus parks, is a betrayal of Nigerian youth and a threat to the nation’s future.
Source: https://ikengaonline.com/
