The presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has said that leaders who ask followers to sacrifice for a better Nigeria must also lead by example.
Doing so constitutes living by example, he said.
Obi spoke on Thursday at St Faith Cathedral, Church of Nigeria Anglican Communion, Awka, during the burial Mass of the late Dean Emeritus of the Church of Nigeria, the Most Reverend Maxwell Anikwenwa, who died at 83.
Obi, who was reacting to a question on the viral video of the long convoy of President Bola Tinubu in Lagos on Wednesday, said there was a need to cut down on the cost of governance, and that has always been his position about governance.
He said: “I have not seen the video you talked about, but let me tell you what I have always said: that present Nigeria requires that all those who serve and lead must do so by example.
“The behaviour, character, and public conduct of those who serve must be in consonance with what society requires today. You cannot continue to preach to the people to sacrifice without sacrificing.
“The sacrifice must start with the leaders, visibly, measurably at all times, because the people are suffering and we must all be at the forefront of the suffering.”
Obi, while speaking on the life of the late Archbishop Anikwenwa, said: “He is not just a pastor of God, but a great Nigerian who contributed to this country beyond his pastoral work in building a better Nigeria.
“He is involved in advocating for a better Nigeria, good governance, and others. He was a great Nigerian and a great Igbo man, and I am not surprised about the number of people at [this] burial ceremony today.”
Earlier, several prominent Nigerians, including; Anambra State governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, his deputy, Dr Onyekachi Ibezim, Senator Victor Umeh, and Archbishop Province of the Niger and Bishop of Awka Diocese, Most Reverend Dr Chibuzo Ibezim, paid tribute to Anikwenwa.
Archbishop Metropolitan and Primate of All Nigeria, Most Reverend Dr Henry Ndukuba, described Anikwenwa as a soldier of Christ, saying that he is a rich reservoir of knowledge and church history.
“He was a man who did all to please God, a soldier of Christ indeed. His death is not just a loss to the diocese but to the church and the country at large, as he holds a special award of the country.
“He was a disciplinarian and a great timekeeper, and he was always mindful of it. I call on his wife and children to be comforted by the fact that Baba lived a great life.”