Presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi, has said Nigeria cannot achieve meaningful national transformation without decisive and sustained investment in education.

Speaking at the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS) International Conference in Umuahia, he noted that no nation has ever grown beyond the quality of education it offers its children.

Obi lamented that Nigeria’s longstanding neglect of education and healthcare continues to fuel economic stagnation, insecurity, and social decline.

He commended private school proprietors for their resilience, noting that they now shoulder responsibilities that should ordinarily be handled by the government.

According to him, private schools account for more than 60 percent of the country’s basic education sector—an indication of both their impact and the gaps created by chronic underfunding of public education.

He urged authorities at all levels to prioritise teacher training, update curricula, deploy technology in classrooms, and implement policies that make quality education accessible and affordable to all families.

Obi was honoured with the NAPPS National Role Model Award, which he described as a recognition intended to inspire millions of Nigerian students striving for a better future.

He recalled that during his tenure as Governor of Anambra State, his administration supported public and private schools with buses, computers, generators, and other essential learning equipment.

Reiterating that education must become Nigeria’s top priority, Obi stressed that transformation will not come through rhetoric but through consistent budgetary commitment, strategic planning, and effective implementation.

“Education,” he said, “remains the most reliable path to national transformation.”

Meanwhile, Obi has condemned the latest attacks in Kebbi and Zamfara states, describing the repeated violence across parts of the country as “devastating and unacceptable losses.”

Obi, in a statement shared Tuesday on X, said his “heart is heavy in faraway Monaco as I receive the heartbreaking news.”

Obi noted that entire communities are now living in fear while schools, meant to be safe spaces, have become vulnerable targets for terrorists.

Obi added these tragedies underscore a worsening security situation that Nigeria must not accept as normal, noting that, “this is not the Nigeria we should accept.”

He then called on all levels of government to urgently intensify security efforts, overhaul the nation’s security architecture, and ensure the safe rescue of the abducted schoolgirls and other victims.

Obi added that Nigerian children must never be left at the mercy of terrorists.