Former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, on Tuesday critically looked at the current political situation in the country, and gave some verdicts, which included that President Muhammadu Buhari should drop the rein of governance of the country.
He said Buhari as well as his political party, the All Progressives Congress, APC, had done all they could to improve the lives of the people to no avail.
He said to expect anything better than they had done would therefore be a waste of time.
According to Obasanjo, it was high time Buhari retired and joined people like him to continue to offer the kind of inspiration needed for others to move the country forward.
Obasanjo gave many reasons for his position and they border on Buhari’s poor understanding of the economy, foreign policies and most importantly, the country’s internal politics.
He also accused the president of being nepotic and rather insensitive to the plight of the people, especially in the area of clashes between the herdsmen and farmers.
Specifically, he said Buhari should not allow political jobbers to force him to push himself further in governance, considering his state of health.
His words: “But whatever may be the state of President Buhari’s health today, he should neither over-push his luck nor over-tax the patience and tolerance of Nigerians for him, no matter what his self-serving, so-called advisers, who would claim that they love him more than God loves him and that without him, there would be no Nigeria say.
“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 sideline for the good of the country.
“His place in history is already assured. Without impaired health and strain of age, running the affairs of Nigeria is a 25/7 affair, not 24/7.
“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.”
Other declarations by Obasanjo in the Special Statement included that poverty, hunger and insecurity had taken residence in the country and something urgently needed to be done.
Obasanjo explained that in 2015, he decided to dump his party, PDP, to vote for the APC in view of the need for a country which would be rescued from poverty and other problems.
According to him, it had become obvious that the country was yet to be extricated from the grip of the problems he had thought would be over.
He said it was in this vein that he was also dissuading Buhari from continuing in office.
Obasanjo said it was obvious that an army of attackers might be raised against him over his declaration, but he would not be bothered.
Said the former president: “The situation that made Nigerians to vote massively to get my brother Jonathan off the horse is playing itself out again. First, I thought I knew the point where President Buhari is weak and I spoke and wrote about it even before Nigerians voted for him and I also did vote for him because at that time it was a matter of “any option but Jonathan” (aobj). But my letter to President Jonathan titled: “Before It Is Too Late” was meant for him to act before it was too late. He ignored it and it was too late for him and those who goaded him into ignoring the voice of caution.
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“I know that praise-singers and hired attackers may be raised up against me for verbal or even physical attack but if I can withstand undeserved imprisonment and was ready to shed my blood by standing for Nigeria, I will consider no sacrifice too great to make for the good of Nigeria at any time. No human leader is expected to be personally strong or self-sufficient in all aspects of governance.”
Obasanjo also berated the two major political parties in the country, the Peoples Democratic Party and the All Progressives Congress, saying they could not take the country to anywhere good.
Rather, he said a new body, Coalition for Nigeria Movement, should emerge to bring about the required change that Nigerians truly deserved and had yearned for.
He said he would be eager to join such a group believing that it would move the country forward.
“We need a Coalition for Nigeria, CN. 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,” he said.
