Obi Slams Tinubu Over US Warning to Investors

Peter Obi, the Nigeria Democratic Congress 2027 presidential candidate,  has said a United States warning to prospective investors about risks in Nigeria confirms that President Bola Tinubu’s government is “incompetent, ineffective and corrupt.”

Obi, in a post on X on Wednesday, said the warning in the 2026 Nigeria Investment Climate Statement contradicted the government’s celebration of macroeconomic stability.

“The warning from the United States Government to prospective investors on inherent risks in Nigeria, further affirms the general and correct assessment that President Bola Tinubu-led government is incompetent, ineffective and corrupt,” Obi said.

Obi said the State Department report flagged corruption, insecurity, inconsistent regulatory enforcement, weaknesses in the judicial system, cargo delays and power sector challenges as factors undermining investor confidence.

He quoted the report as stating, “U.S. businesses are advised that standard business trips can escalate into detention if the firm is under regulatory suspicion or faces charges by Nigerian authorities.”

The report also said, according to Obi, “Nigeria has previously employed coercive exit bans and arbitrary detention as leverage in commercial or regulatory disputes, and to extract data or financial concessions from multinational firms.”

On ports, he quoted the report as saying, “Port inefficiency remains a significant ‘hidden tax’ on investment. While the Lekki Deep Seaport, which opened in 2023, significantly eased pressure in 2025 — handling $9.6 billion in trade and operating at 50 percent capacity — traditional ports in Apapa and Tin Can still suffer from cargo dwell times exceeding 20 days due to manual examinations.”

Obi said such a report would have triggered immediate action from a competent government, especially given Nigeria’s need for foreign direct investment.

“Unfortunately, our incompetent APC-led government cannot give what they don’t have as they are the real perpetrators of the issues raised by the U.S. Government,” he said.

He noted that of $10.37 billion in total capital importation in the first quarter of 2026, only $135.08 million, about 1.3 percent, was foreign direct investment, while about $9.86 billion, or 95.1 percent, went into foreign portfolio investment.

“It is paradoxical that while the Tinubu administration is celebrating macroeconomic stability, it is unwittingly scaring away foreign investors. What a shame,” Obi said.

“A New and Productive Nigeria is POssible and Nigeria will be OK.”

What the US report says

The 2026 Investment Climate Statement, published by the US Department of State on October 11, identified insecurity, corruption, port inefficiencies and regulatory uncertainty as major obstacles to investment in Nigeria.

It described the country’s investment landscape as shaped by “painful but necessary” structural reforms introduced by the Tinubu administration, noting that the removal of fuel subsidies and liberalisation of the foreign exchange market initially triggered volatility, though early 2026 indicators suggested “fragile stabilisation”.

“The security environment is a primary variable which gives pause to potential investors,” the report said, adding that while attacks on Niger Delta oil infrastructure have decreased, oil theft and illegal bunkering persist.

The report also cited the nearly eight-month detention of US citizen and Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan in 2024 as a “cautionary note for foreign executives regarding the risks of aggressive regulatory friction”.

On port inefficiency, it noted that traditional ports in Apapa and Tin Can Island continue to experience cargo dwell times exceeding 20 days due to manual examinations.