My Wife Wasn’t Happy I Shut Down First Lady Office – Peter Obi

Former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi has spoken on his decision to shut down the Office of the First Lady when he served as governor of the state.

Naija News reports that the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate said he did it because he believed the position had no constitutional backing and should not be funded with public money.

The former Labour Party presidential candidate in an interview with broadcast journalist Rufai Oseni, said the role was not part of what people voted for during elections, and that government spending should be focused on offices that are clearly created by law.

According to him, the Office of the First Lady was removed to avoid what he described as unnecessary public expenses.

Obi also spoke about how he handled the issue within his family.

He said he explained his decision to his wife and told her that although she may not have been pleased with it, the position was tied to public office and not personal privilege.

The politician added that he reminded her that only he was elected by the people to run the state, while the First Lady role was not part of the mandate.

He said: “I always tell my wife whenever she said people are not happy, I say ‘You are not happy equally because I shut down office of first lady.’ I said, ‘It should not exist because nobody voted for you, you are just my wife and I love you. So you stay at home with me, it is me who they voted for to deal with this matter.”