The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has vowed that he would not spend his holidays abroad if elected president in 2027, saying Nigeria’s challenges require leaders to remain present and engaged at home.
Obi made the declaration during an exclusive interview on Arise News on Thursday, September 10, 2026, where he outlined some of his priorities ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
The former Anambra State governor also unveiled plans to strengthen electoral transparency, tackle insecurity and redirect government surveillance resources towards criminals rather than political opponents.
On the conduct of elections, Obi said his campaign would deploy systems capable of independently transmitting results from polling units to a dedicated situation room.
“We must make sure that every polling unit, the votes are counted, the votes are recorded properly, the votes are transmitted properly. And we will have even a dual transmission, so that as it’s going to the proper designated INEC portal, it’s also being transmitted where the people can see it,” he declared.
He explained that the proposed system would allow his team to receive results directly from polling units, making it more difficult for figures announced at the end of the process to differ from those recorded at the grassroots.
“All we are saying is that this time around, we will make sure that in every polling unit, we must have a system that transmits to our situation room the correct results.”
Obi added that other organisations were likely to adopt similar measures, stressing that the process should prevent anyone from announcing figures that did not originate from polling units.
“And I’m sure there’s so many other agencies that intend to do the same thing. So we’re not going to have a situation where somebody just pronounces something that didn’t emanate from the polling unit.”
Turning to the worsening security situation, particularly kidnapping and ransom-taking, Obi questioned why sophisticated surveillance technology was not being deployed more aggressively against criminals.
“In today’s world, you can know where people are,” he said.
He argued that resources used to monitor political opponents should instead be redirected towards tracking criminals and kidnappers.
“Today, the government knows where I am. All those equipments they’re using to focus on opponents. Should we focus on criminals?”
Obi said an administration led by him would have no interest in monitoring political opponents, insisting that the priority would be tackling the problems threatening Nigerians.
“I’m not going to follow any opponents. I don’t care where they are. I don’t care what they do. It’s not my business. I’m going to focus it where it is.”
Reacting to the persistence of kidnappings across the country, he described the situation as evidence that something was fundamentally wrong with the nation’s security system.
“I don’t know who, but there’s something wrong. Not in today’s world. Because we’re serious. It’s happening to everybody. It’s happening every day. So, there’s something wrong.”
Obi also returned to an issue he has repeatedly raised — the frequent foreign trips by Nigerian leaders.
He said that if elected president, he would remain in Nigeria during his holidays, using the opportunity to promote domestic tourism while remaining close to the challenges confronting citizens.
His position is that places such as Kano, Katsina, Sokoto, Cross River, Bauchi, Ebonyi, Zamfara, Kebbi, Yobe and Plateau can provide attractive tourism destinations while creating jobs in hospitality, transportation and other sectors.
Obi also clarified his recent “ready to die” remark concerning the defence of votes, explaining that the statement was symbolic and intended to encourage Nigerians to protect the integrity of their votes.
“What I did in Port Harcourt was more of listening to the people. It wasn’t me talking; they were asking questions and one of them said, ‘We are prepared to die this time to defend our votes,’ and to encourage them, I said I’m prepared to die with them. It’s symbolic and what we are saying is that we are prepared to ensure that our votes count and they must count.”
His comments come amid increased political activity ahead of the 2027 election, including the recent disruption of his movement in Benue State.
Obi and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, are campaigning on electoral credibility, security reform, reduced cost of governance and accountable leadership, with the NDC candidate insisting that Nigeria’s problems must remain the priority of whoever occupies the presidency.
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