Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, yesterday, in a damning verdict, said Nigeria has failed the African continent in particular, and the world in general. Obasanjo stated this in Abuja while giving the keynote address at the public presentation of the book titled: ‘Reclaiming the Jewel of Africa,’ written by former Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, who also served as Minister of Finance, Olusegun Aganga.
President Bola Tinubu, represented by his Special Adviser on Monetary Policy, Olawale Edun, unveiled the book with past and present senior government officials in attendance. In his remarks, which were presented virtually, Obasanjo said more Nigerians are being plunged into poverty due to good policies poorly implemented, bad ones and absence of policies.
Although no name was mentioned, Obasanjo’s comment is coming on the heels of hardship occasioned by fuel subsidy removal by President Tinubu – a decision described in some quarters as a good move taken without proper consultation.
The former President also said the prevailing insecurity and spate of out-of-school children had pushed Nigeria on the precipice, noting that the nation had failed to live up to its expectations since independence in 1960.
Obasanjo said: “Over the last 63 years, we have not lived up to expectations. We have disappointed ourselves; we have disappointed Africa; we have disappointed the black race; and we have disappointed the world.”
He, however, added that “what Segun (Aganga) has tried to identify, itemise and recommend in his book is the way forward. “But the beginning of charting a new course for ourselves is to admit our failure, because we have not always put the round peg in the round hole.
“We are carried along by ego and emotion of self, selfishness and self-centredness, ethnic and religious jingoism, with total lack of understanding of the world we live in and gross misunderstanding of what development entails and how to move fast and continuously on the trajectory of development.”
Obasanjo identified two of the major issues that were interrelated in terms of factors for all-round development. “These are peace and security, which we cannot achieve without justice, equity and inclusive society. And telling ourselves the truth, we have not done well on these scores in the recent past — in the last decade and a half.
“I will also point at the issue of education, where over 20 million children that should be in school are not in school. We do not need an oracle to tell us the consequences of that for tomorrow. We do not need to look far for the remote causes of banditry, Boko Haram, kidnapping and other organised crimes.
“We are living dangerously on a keg of gunpowder, driving more people into poverty through good policies poorly and thoughtlessly implemented or bad policy and no policy at all,” he added.
