Here’s the rephrased version, keeping the quoted words unchanged:
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**Headline:**
**“Democracy is dying in Nigeria — Peter Obi”**
**Story:**
Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 election, says democracy is dying in Nigeria because it no longer serves the people or holds leaders accountable.
Obi made the remark on Wednesday at the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation Annual Democracy Dialogue in Accra, Ghana, themed ‘What Makes Democracy Die?’
He stressed that democracy “dies when it ceases to be accountable to the people and when it no longer prioritises their needs”.
The former Anambra governor pointed to Nigeria as a “typical example of where democracy is dying”, arguing that it has been reduced to a process of “elite state capture” for personal and family gain.
On X, Obi wrote: “Today, 17th September, I participated in an international Conference in Accra, Ghana, organised by the 2025 Goodluck Jonathan Foundation Annual Democracy Dialogue with the theme ‘What Makes Democracy Die?’
“Democracy is fundamentally about accountability, prioritising service to the people, ensuring security, providing education and healthcare, and lifting people out of poverty.
“Democracy dies when it ceases to be accountable to the people and when it no longer prioritises their needs.
“Nigeria is a typical example of where democracy is dying because it no longer serves the needs of the people and is no longer accountable to them.
“In Nigeria, democracy has become a process of elite state capture, granting access to public resources for personal and family interests.”
He maintained that reversing this decline requires Nigerians to take elections more seriously and choose leaders with competence, capacity, character, compassion, and a commitment to service.
Reacting to President Bola Tinubu’s decision to lift the six-month emergency rule in Rivers State, Obi said the move was a mistake.
“The restoration of democracy in Rivers State after six months of needless disruption remains a sour side of our democracy today,” he said.
“It was a constitutional breach that will hurt our democracy for a long time. I just hope that some lessons were learned by all the gladiators in the Rivers State impasse.
“Great minds remind us that ‘the only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing’. A true leader is the one who admits his/her mistakes, is smart enough to learn from them, and is strong enough to correct them.”