Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, has accused the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, of repeatedly attacking his integrity and personal reputation, while challenging the former Anambra State governor to a public debate on governance and infrastructure.
Umahi made the remarks on Wednesday during the flag-off ceremony for the construction of the Akwanga–Jos Superhighway, where he criticised Obi’s assessment of the country’s road infrastructure.
The minister alleged that Obi lacked a proper understanding of governance, accusing him of reducing serious public administration issues to political theatrics.
According to Umahi, the former governor recently visited a deteriorated section of a federal road, took photographs of the damaged area and shared them on social media to score political points rather than engage constructively with the issues.
He argued that such actions do not reflect the responsibilities of a former governor who should appreciate the complexities of managing public infrastructure.
Umahi Throws Down Debate Challenge
Expressing disappointment over Obi’s criticism, Umahi insisted he was prepared to publicly defend the policies and projects of the Federal Ministry of Works.
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He challenged the NDC presidential candidate to a debate, saying he was ready to explain the technical details behind road construction costs, particularly the pricing of concrete road projects.
“I feel so sad when my brother, the former Governor of Anambra State, who should know what administration is and what governance is. I saw his social media when he got to a point where the road is bad, and he snapped it. When did governance reduce to comedy?” Umahi said.
The minister further alleged that Obi’s comments were aimed at discrediting his integrity rather than objectively evaluating the government’s infrastructure projects.
“He was attacking my integrity and personality. I’m always ready for a debate. I’m always ready to disaggregate the unit cost of concrete and debate with him,” he added.
Umahi maintained that public discourse on infrastructure should focus on facts, technical realities and governance rather than social media optics.