I Don’t Know My Exact Age — Obasanjo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has admitted that he does not know his exact age, saying he estimates his age by comparing himself with his surviving schoolmates.

Speaking on Sunday during the Toyin Falola Interviews series titled: “A Conversation with His Excellency, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo,” the former Nigerian leader revealed that six of his secondary school classmates are still alive, none of whom is under 90 years old.

“I don’t know my exact age but I could judge from those who were in school with me. So I leave it to you to guess what my age could be,” Obasanjo said.

On the purpose of the Presidential Library which he established to uphold institutional memory and historical records, Obasanjo explained, “We have digitalised over 3 million materials. We still have about the same, 3 million, to digitalise.”

“The idea is that when these materials are digitalised, people can have access to them. As document preservation, we preserve the past, take note of the present and we want all these to inspire the future.”

He noted that the library contains his primary and secondary school records, letters he wrote while in prison, including correspondence with his wife and a letter to the late General Sani Abacha after the death of his son, manuscripts of books he authored, and even records of crops he planted while incarcerated.

“Why the Presidential Library? I believe one of the things we don’t do too well in our society is that we don’t keep records too well; institutional memory is not what we do very well,” Obasanjo added.