Peter Obi, the presidential nominee for the Labour Party in the 2023 election, has expressed regret over GlaxoSmithKline’s (GSK) intended departure from Nigeria.
GSK has been doing business in Nigeria for roughly 51 years after being incorporated there in June 1971 and launching operations in 1972.
The business recently declared in a statement that it would stop making vaccines and prescription drugs in Nigeria. The corporation also disclosed that it would begin distributing its pharmaceutical products in the nation directly through third parties.
Obi tweeted his concern about the situation on Friday night, noting that GSK had left because it no longer saw a favorable business environment there.
The LP flagbearer also bemoaned the detrimental effects GSK’s exit would have on the nation’s economy and argued that the company’s decision to leave was due to the country’s poor economic management.
“As a result, millions are losing their jobs, and even though we are already known as the world’s poverty capital, our poverty index is getting worse.
“The multinational corporations that are leaving our country have not only created jobs, he continued, but also a tremendous amount of training that has greatly aided in the development of our human capital over time.
“They are currently departing our shores one by one. GSK, which has a manufacturing facility in Agbara, Ogun State on more than 25 hectares of land, directly employed over 400 highly technical workers, including pharmacists, microbiologists, biochemists, chemists, dentists, and doctors, in addition to employing over 1000 other staff.
”It indirectly gave thousands of Nigerians throughout the country opportunities for employment and business. As they leave all of these behind, more people find themselves out of work.
“I have consistently argued that in order to turn around our country, we must shift the economy from one of consumption to one of production, which includes promoting and assisting both domestic and foreign investments like GSK.
“Our dream of greatness depends on the development of an environment that attracts and maintains multinational corporations to invest in our nation. The focus on production in the new Nigeria that we are trying to build will entice investors to remain and grow here.
