Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has expressed concern over what he described as the repeated cancellation of university lecture invitations across Nigeria.
Obi said the trend raises serious questions about freedom of speech and intellectual engagement in Nigerian institutions. He made the statement on Saturday through his official X account.
According to him, he was expected to deliver a keynote lecture at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, before heading to Ibadan for an opposition summit. However, he was later informed that the university event had been cancelled.
The former Anambra State governor said the latest incident was not the first, revealing that similar cancellations had happened more than ten times in recent years.
Obi also mentioned that an annual lecture planned in honour of late Professor Frank Ndili at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, was reportedly cancelled on the same day it was scheduled to hold.
He compared the situation with his recent speaking engagements abroad, where he said he had delivered lectures at top institutions including Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and Imperial College London.
Obi stressed that universities should remain centres of learning, open discussion, and the free exchange of ideas. He warned that shrinking intellectual spaces could slow national progress.
He urged Nigerian institutions to uphold academic values and create an environment where knowledge can be shared without fear or interference.
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