Former Pesident Olusegun Obasanjo, yesterday declared that a purposeful leadership with a solid team remains the only panacea that could drive positive political and economic development in Nigeria.
Obasanjo also charged members of the African political class to rethink what they generally referred to as democracy and fashion out one that would conform to the Western Liberal Democracy model that has “loyal opposition.”
Obasanjo stated this when he hosted six lawmakers of the House of Representatives led by Hon. Ugochinyere Ikenga who paid a courtesy visit to him at his Pent House residence in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
Describing the demands of #EndBadGovernance protest as “very legitimate,” Obasanjo insisted that Nigeria cannot progress without changes in the way governance is administered.
He emphasized that the plethora of challenges currently facing Nigeria would be overcome if the citizenry would critically re-examine themselves and consistently do the right thing.
Obasanjo, however, described the demands of the #EndBadGovernance protesters as very legitimate, saying that the government should listen to the heart-cry of the masses and stop carrying on as if all is well.
The former president said that it will be wrong for those in government to continue to enjoy while it will be telling the suffering masses to be patient.
Obasanjo said that the three arms of the government, as well as the civil service and the private sector must change their ways “otherwise we all sink in the same boat called Nigeria”.
“Like I have warned earlier, we should know that we are all sitting on a keg of gunpowder if we fail to begin to do the right thing… For instance, what the youth are demanding are very legitimate and should be listened to or why should they be denied what rightfully belongs to them?
“They are frustrated, hungry, angry, unemployed; they deserve to be given listening ears,” he said.
The former president also warned that the huge corruption in the oil sector will never make our refinery work, adding that the Shell Company he contacted to take over running the refineries when the government turned the offer down citing unimaginable corruption.
Earlier, Ikenga had told Obasanjo that the lawmakers were in Abeokuta on a solidarity visit, as well as to learn from his wealth of experience on development and good governance.
The lawmakers, including Hon Abdulmalik Danga (representing Adavi/Okehi), Dr Usman Midala (Askira-Uba/Hawul), Hon Peter Aniekwe (Anambra East/West), and Kama Nkemkanma (Ohaozara/Onicha/Ivo) federal constituencies, commended Obasanjo for the various reforms carried out during his administration between 1999 and 2007, blaming successive governments for failing to build on these reforms for the benefit of Nigerians.
“If there had been consolidation of electricity reforms, foreign policies, civil service reforms and digital reforms by successive governments, we would not be facing the economic challenges we are in today.
“At that time, many did not see Nigeria’s future, but we can now see the impact of your efforts in telecommunications, civil service reforms and the establishment of anti-corruption agencies,” the leader of the delegate added.
Ikenga informed Obasanjo that the lawmakers were co-sponsors of bills seeking a single six-year term for the president and governors, power rotation between the northern and southern parts of the country, and a single day for presidential, governorship, national assembly, and state assembly elections, to eliminate bandwagon effects.
But in his response, Obasanjo said the lawmakers’ calls for a single-term presidency of six years, nationwide elections on one day and power rotation between the North and South were not sufficient to put the nation on the right track.
“What I know about Nigeria is that we need to get it right in terms of leadership and the team. The point is that, within two and a half years, we can overcome these challenges.
“In another 10 years, we need to consolidate what we have achieved and in 25 years, we will be there. Our problem is that we take two steps forward and probably two steps backward, and that won’t get us anywhere.
“For me, it’s not just about the system; we need to rethink what we call democracy. We need to reconsider the Western Liberal Democracy model where we talk about loyal opposition.
“In the African system, we typically work through consensus. We need to join hands to make things work. If we get it right, whether we have a single six-year term presidency or two four-year terms, we need to work on our mentality.
“We have to decarbonise our brains. Our main problem is ourselves. Until we address our own issues, the length of office terms won’t matter.
“If the same people with the same mentality are in power, nothing will change. Our starting point is ourselves.”
The former President further stated that Nigerians should elect leaders with proven pedigree and character capable of addressing the nation’s myriad challenges.
He insisted that Nigeria will only progress when upright individuals and good role models are in positions of power.
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