Former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, declared on Saturday that Nigeria is becoming increasingly volatile, uncertain, and complex, with rising insecurity making the country a perilous place, plagued by suffering and hunger.
Speaking in Lagos at the Africa Methodist Council Heads of Conference Summit and Women’s Movement Leadership Summit, where he chaired the public lecture, Obasanjo called for a renewed commitment from the country’s leadership to create a better future for all Nigerians.
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Obasanjo stated, “Nigeria as it is now is volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous and dangerous. The leadership must wake up to its responsibilities to address these challenges.”
He stated that there is a need for a new generation of leaders, saying, “We need moral leaders, transformational leaders, and servant leaders who will lead by showing love and driving the re-evaluation and transformation of our world.”
He also shared insights from his personal experiences, noting that the late South African leaders Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu advised him to run for the Nigerian presidency after his release from prison.
Reflecting on his presidency, Obasanjo mentioned, “The years I spent in prison were advantageous to me in serving as president. We can get good out of bad, as also seen with Nelson Mandela.”
Obasanjo criticized the removal of History from Nigeria’s educational curriculum, calling it a “huge disaster” and likening it to losing one’s memory.
He stressed the importance of teaching history to prevent repeating past mistakes, particularly the atrocities of the slave trade.
He lamented the discovery of crude oil as a misfortune for Nigeria, stating, “We were drinking and sleeping oil, and it made us abandon agriculture. Oil is a waste asset; agriculture is renewable. We need to go back to it.”