Social commentator, Mahdi Shehu has urged Nigerians living in the diaspora to dismiss a statement by Senate President Godswill Akpabio about the improving conditions of the country, stressing that the reports are deceptive and untrue.

He gave the caution in a post on his official X handle on Wednesday, October 29 as he accused Akpabio of misleading Nigerians by creating a false picture of progress and stability.

He urged them to ignore Akpabio and not be deceived by what he called political propaganda.

“139 million Nigerians are facing visible hunger, 60 million jobless and unemployed youth, and over 30 million children are suffering from severe malnutrition,” Shehu wrote.

“Nigeria’s debt stock is now at N170 trillion and still counting. Come back home at your own risk.”

Quoting several Bible verses, Shehu linked his message to moral and spiritual warnings against deceitful leadership.

He referenced Psalm 10:7, which says, ‘His mouth is full of lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue,’ and Ephesians 5:6, which warns, ‘Let no one deceive you with empty words.’

According to him, Nigerian leaders have turned deception into a permanent culture, trading in lies while the majority of citizens suffer from poverty, unemployment, and poor governance.

“Our leaders have made lying a trade and deception a permanent culture,” he said.

He stressed that Nigerians abroad should not be carried away by political speeches that do not reflect reality at home.