Obasanjo advises Buhari to quit public service
…prescribes coalition as growth path for Nigeria
Former President of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has urged President Muhammadu Buhari, to consider taking a rest from active public service for a well-deserved rest.
According to Obasanjo, President Buhari needs a dignified and honourable dismount from the horse. He needs to have time to reflect, refurbish physically and recoup and after appropriate rest, once again, join the stock of Nigerian leaders whose experience, influence, wisdom and outreach can be deployed on the side line for the good of the country.
In a 13 paged word document issued to the press, Tuesday Afternoon, Obasanjo who advised President Buhari not to over-push his luck nor over-tax the patience and tolerance of Nigerians, decried the state of political and economic affairs in the country stating that “The situation that made Nigerians vote massively to get my brother Jonathan off the horse is playing itself out again”
Obasanjo said I thought President Buhari would fight corruption and insurgency and he must be given some credit for his achievement so far in these two areas although it is not yet uhuru!”
He berated the issue of the herdsmen/crop farmers describing the situation as being wittingly or unwittingly allowed to turn sour and messy.
“It is no credit to the Federal Government that the herdsmen rampage continues with careless abandon and without finding an effective solution to it.”
Obasanjo further admonished some state Governors “It is a sad symptom of insensitivity and callousness that some Governors, a day after 73 victims were being buried in a mass grave in Benue State without condolence, were jubilantly endorsing President Buhari for a second term! The timing was most unfortunate. The issue of herdsmen/crop farmers dichotomy should not be left on the political platform of blame game; the Federal Government must take the lead in bringing about a solution that protects life and properties of herdsmen and crop farmers alike and for them to live amicably in the same community.”
Obasanjo who spoke from experience noted that “Without impaired health and strain of age, running the affairs of Nigeria is a 25/7 affair, not 24/7. He thus advised President Buhari saying: “I only appeal to brother Buhari to consider a deserved rest at this point in time and at this age. I continue to wish him robust health to enjoy his retirement from active public service. President Buhari does not necessarily need to heed my advice. But whether or not he heeds it, Nigeria needs to move on and move forward.”
The statement titled ‘THE WAY OUT: A CLARION CALL FOR COALITION FOR NIGERIA MOVEMENT’ prescribed a Coalition for Nigeria, CN.
Obasanjo said “Such a Movement at this juncture needs not be a political party but one to which all well-meaning Nigerians can belong.
“That Movement must be a coalition for democracy, good governance, social and economic well-being and progress. Coalition to salvage and redeem our country. You can count me with such a Movement. Last time, we asked, prayed and worked for change and God granted our request. This time, we must ask, pray and work for change with unity, security and progress. And God will again grant us. Of course, nothing should stop such a Movement from satisfying conditions for fielding candidates for elections. But if at any stage the Movement wishes to metamorphose into candidate-sponsoring Movement for elections, I will bow out of the Movement because I will continue to maintain my non-partisan position. Coalition for Nigeria must have its headquarters in Abuja.
This Coalition for Nigeria will be a Movement that will drive Nigeria up and forward. It must have a pride of place for all Nigerians, particularly for our youth and our women. It is a coalition of hope for all Nigerians for speedy, quality and equal development, security, unity, prosperity and progress. It is a coalition to banish poverty, insecurity and despair. Our country must not be oblivious to concomitant danger around, outside and ahead. Coalition for Nigeria must be a Movement to break new ground in building a united country, a socially-cohesive and moderately prosperous society with equity, equality of opportunity, justice and a dynamic and progressive economy that is self-reliant and takes active part in global division of labour and international decision-making.
The Movement must work out the path of development and the trajectory of development in speed, quality and equality in the short- medium- and long-term for Nigeria on the basis of sustainability, stability, predictability, credibility, security, cooperation and prosperity with diminishing inequality. What is called for is love, commitment and interest in our country, not in self, friends and kinship alone but particularly love, compassion and interest in the poor, underprivileged and downtrodden. It is our human duty and responsibility so to do. Failure to do this will amount to a sin against God and a crime against humanity.
Some may ask, what does Obasanjo want again? Obasanjo has wanted nothing other than the best for Nigeria and Nigerians and he will continue to want nothing less. And if we have the best, we will be contented whether where we live is described as palaces or huts by others and we will always give thanks to God.
I, therefore, will gladly join such a Movement when one is established as Coalition for Nigeria, CN, taking Nigeria to the height God has created it to be. From now on, the Nigeria eagle must continue to soar and fly high. CN, as a Movement, will be new, green, transparent and must remain clean and always active, selflessly so. Members must be ready to make sacrifice for the nation and pay the price of being pioneers and good Nigerians for our country to play the God-assigned role for itself, for its neighbours, for its sub-region of West Africa, for its continent and for humanity in general. For me, the strength and sustainable success of CN will derive largely from the strong commitment of a population that is constantly mobilized to the rallying platform of the fact that going forward together is our best option for building a nation that will occupy its deserved place in the global community.”
His prescription for coalition came on the heels of revealing areas of weakness of President Buhari’s administration which he says hinges on “nepotic deployment bordering on clannishness and inability to bring discipline to bear on errant members of his nepotic court.”
Obasanjo noted such behaviour has grave consequences on the performance of government to the detriment of the nation. “What does one make of a case like that of Maina: collusion, condonation, ineptitude, incompetence, dereliction of responsibility or kinship and friendship on the part of those who should have taken visible and deterrent disciplinary action? How many similar cases are buried, ignored or covered up and not yet in the glare of the media and the public? Obasanjo asked
Obasanjo also noted that Buhari’s poor understanding of the dynamics of internal politics, has led to wittingly or unwittingly making the nation more divided and inequality has widened and become more pronounced. “It also has effect on general national security.”
The third area where President Buhari has come out more glaringly than most of us thought we knew about him, Obasanjo said, was in passing the buck. “For instance, blaming the Governor of the Central Bank for devaluation of the naira by 70% or so and blaming past governments for it, is to say the least, not accepting one’s own responsibility. Let nobody deceive us, economy feeds on politics and because our politics is depressing, our economy is even more depressing today. If things were good, President Buhari would not need to come in. He was voted to fix things that were bad and not engage in the blame game.
Our Constitution is very clear, one of the cardinal responsibilities of the President is the management of the economy of which the value of the naira forms an integral part. Kinship and friendship that place responsibility for governance in the hands of the unelected can only be deleterious to good government and to the nation.”
Adesola Afolabi
