The Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has insisted he is not desperate to be Nigeria’s president.

While speaking to graduating students, the former Anambra governor encouraged them to embrace a spirit of service.

Obi stated that effective leadership stems from a commitment to driving positive change rather than personal ambition.

“All of this is to inspire you to ignite the change and provide support,” he said.

“It’s not about saying, ‘I want to be in charge, I want to do this, or I want to do that.’”

Addressing claims of desperation, Obi clarified: “When people say I’m desperate, I say, ‘No, I am not desperate to be Nigeria’s president. I am desperate to see Nigeria work because it can work.”

He urged Nigerian youths to help usher in the “right leadership that the country needs for development.” Citing economist and Nobel laureate James Robinson, Obi noted, “Last year, Robinson said that Nigeria is a country that knows what to do to prosper but refuses to do it.”

The former governor likened the country’s situation to allowing drivers who have already reached their destinations to continue steering the vehicle, warning that such leadership would inevitably lead to losses.

“You cannot let people who have passed their time or reached their destinations drive you. That is what you need to help reignite. Use what you have to help us change society. Don’t become part of the problem,” Obi said.

He further challenged the youth to rise above the failures of past generations, stating: “You are victims of Nigeria’s situation because our generation and the one before us refused to do what was right. Now we are all suffering for it.”