During a high-profile event in Abuja, Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, voiced his disapproval of the Federal Government’s method of conferring national honours on politicians. At “The Chronicles of a Legend” book launch celebrating entrepreneur Gabriel Igbinedion, Obi urged for a reformation of the honouring system.
He stated, “The Grand Commander of the Federal Republic, GCFR, and Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger, GCON, should be for entrepreneurs and productive people, not politicians.”
“We have to change the way we honour people,” Obi added.
The seasoned politician highlighted Igbinedion’s pivotal role in aviation, education, and preserving cultural heritage, pointing out such figures merit wider appreciation. “We live in a country where we celebrate people who are supposed not to be celebrated. If we did, the celebration we are giving him today would have been more.”
Obi also commented on Igbinedion’s employment impact, remarking, “If we had been a country that was productive, over 20 million Nigerians would have been employed because Igbinedion employed over 17,000 Nigerians.”
These remarks follow ongoing public reactions to the government’s gifting of national awards and incentives to the Super Falcons for their African Cup of Nations triumph and renewed debate about the true recipients of state honours.
President Bola Tinubu, just last month, also conferred national awards to a range of Nigerians for their contributions, sparking a wave of public discourse.