By Olusegun Olanrewaju
With a hard knock on the nation’s anti-graft agencies, former President Olusegun Obasanjo celebrated his 85th birthday on Saturday with glamour, and amid glowing tributes from noted leaders.

At a bash for him held at Marriott Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos State, Obasanjo threw a jab at many Nigerian politicians, who according to him, are jostling to hold critical elective positions in 2023.

According to the two-dispensational (military-civilian) Nigerian leader, a good number of those stridently gunning for elective offices next year in the country “are supposed to be serving various jail terms”.

He delivered a damning report that the nation’s anti-corruption agencies in the country had simply not functioned well.

Obasanjo berated Nigerian leaders for not learning from the events of the last almost 24 years, saying God is not to blame if the country fails as a nation.

“It would appear that we are not getting our priorities right, and that can spell doom on our country if we fail to do what we should do for nation-building in terms of fundamentals of equity, justice, common ideals, popular education, shared values, mutual respect and equality of opportunity anchored and propelled by leaders across the board that are persons of integrity, honour, morality, competence, great virtue, courage to do what is right, humility, and ability to put a team together and work with them in selfless devotion and service with the fear of God,” he said.

Obasanjo, in a speech entitled: “Africa Narrative with Nigeria Situation” delivered at an international symposium organised to mark his 85th birthday, held virtually and physically, also harped that federal character, rotation, and such other measures were meant to help “our nation-building process and more sure-footedly, move Nigeria forward, but riding over these measures rudely, shoddily and roughly cannot augur well for our nation-building process and progress.

“From personal experience and clinical observation, there is no substitute for a steady and uncompromised process of nation-building as we have had in some notable examples in the past that have stood us in good stead,” Obasanjo stated.

Recalling an earlier listed six-point assertion, as part of what he called ‘Africa’s narrative framework’, he urged that truth must be known and propagated for the authentic history of the past, to prevent a repeat of mistakes of the past, as well as to ensure that as a people and a race, we make our people appreciate the contribution to human civilisation and development.

He also urged his compatriots to stop living by, and on receiving ideas, ideologies, beliefs, and standards foreign to culture, cherished beliefs, philosophy, worldview, and understanding.

“We must understand the world we live in, and which may not feel it owes us anything except what we can rest from the abundance of God on earth for ourselves, essentially by ourselves to be preserved, and used for and in the best interest of ourselves.

“We must continually make ourselves essential contributors to world civilisation, world ethos, world development and world preservation, sustenance and wholesome world recreation,” Obasanjo added.

Uzodimma congratulates Archbishop Ugochi, Obinna

He added, “We must ensure governance and system of administration that makes use of all available human resources and talents inclusively for rapid development and transformation for the preservation of seeking, utilising, sustaining, preserving and keeping the best to continue to do the best, wholesomely and inclusively.

“To appreciate, cherish and uphold our past and present in the way that will enhance our future and strengthen our participation in the global decision-making process and enhance our share of the world’s division of labour and resources.”

Obasanjo also asserted that every village, town, nation, or region has its socio-cultural peculiarities that are best suited for the emergence of its leader and the colour of its governance.

“Therefore, it is erroneous to put all communities on the planet into a basket, judge and narrate their leadership, governance, and development, strictly from the point of view of people from a particular section of the world”

Going down the memory lane, the former president recalled his role in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), before his well-announced ‘retirement’.

He, however, declared, “But if I retired from partisan politics if politics is the welfare of the people, I must not retire from the welfare and well-being of people whether in my community, in my state, in my own country, anywhere in Africa, or indeed anywhere in the world, and that is why I have the type of responsibility that I have now.”

Describing the race for 2023 elections as ‘a quadrennial madness’ he said as the process “builds a head of steam and the runners and riders crisscross the nation in the quest for nomination as the party flag bearer to the highest office in the land, I read and hear about endorsement and statements in support of candidates that I frankly have not made and forming next political parties that I can never get involved in.

I was told that social media credited to me the names of three people from the south that I am sponsoring for the Presidency in 2023.

Obasanjo adds: “My friend, Professor Ango Abdullahi, who brought this to my knowledge, remarked that he did not believe that I made such a statement because it was out of my character. I have neither named names nor stated my position.

“In situations like the one we are in, I will not rush into naming names without necessary consultations and well-defined principles and criteria. We need to be clear about what Nigeria needs today, and why Nigeria needs it. Only then can we answer the question of how that will inform us of the criteria and characteristics for determining who.

“I believe in principles before personalities, and taking personalities before principles, is putting the cart before the horse. And for me, the major issue is how to progress Nigeria from a country to a nation.

“If in 2015 Nigeria was 25 per cent a country and 50 per cent a nation, today, Nigeria will not be more than 50 per cent a country and 25 per cent a nation.

“The task of reversing the trend is beyond one personality, one political party, or all political parties; it is beyond professional and commercial politicians alone. It demands and requires all hands on deck. I mean Nigerians in all walks of life – politicians, community leaders, traditional leaders, and religious leaders, and diplomatic leaders, leaders in academia, leaders in all aspects of government life, and leaders in other aspects of civil society.”

The elder statesman also sounded a note of warning that Nigeria is tottering, adding “and for as long as we continue to put the cart before the horse, it cannot be well. Or put another way, for as long as we continue to do the same thing over and over again, the result will not be different.”

“We have activities without requite actions and personnel to move us forward. If we continue in the same pattern of recycling, sweet-word campaigning, manoeuvring without the substance of integrity, honesty, patriotism, commitment, outreach, courage, understanding of what makes a nation and what makes for development, we will soon have to say goodbye to Nigeria as a nation.

He added: “I cast a cursory look at some of the people running around and those for whom people are running around. If EFCC and ICPC will have done their jobs properly and been supported adequately by the judiciary, most of them would be in jail. Any person who has no integrity in small things cannot have integrity in big things.

“Fixing Nigeria must begin on the principles of nation-building, not necessarily on emotion, sentiments, euphoria, ignorance, incompetence, ethnicity, nepotism, bigotry, sectionalism, regionalism, religion or class. The issues of security, stability, development, economy, and our relationship within Africa and with the rest of the world can only be taken care of if we get the issue of nation-building right.”

He concluded, “It is time to reach into the ability of Nigeria to always snatch victory from the jaws of defeat as we start this collective search on how we can climb out of this hole in which we find our country, Nigeria.”