•Obasanjo
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo today, expressed the confidence that a better and enviable Nigeria will emerge in his lifetime.
Obasanjo, who described himself as an incurable optimist about the country attaining her full greatness in his time given the enormous human and material endowments, charged citizens, especially the nation’s youth population to play their parts diligently and patriotically to position Nigeria at an enviable height in the comity of nations.
The elder statesman also called on the citizens who are yet to reach the age 80 to brace up for the task of nation building, stressing that “if we do it well, we will have an enviable Nigeria in our lifetime,” reports The Nation.
The octogenarian spoke on Saturday at his sprawling Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL) in Abeokuta, stated these yesterday in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital in response to the outpouring of encomium by dignitaries that graced his 88th Birthday celebration.
Some of the dignitaries included Governor Dapo Abiodun who was represented by his deputy, Noimot Salako – Oyedele, billionaire philanthropist, Sir Kensington Adebutu, the Alake and Paramount ruler of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, Olowu of Owu Kingdom, Oba Saka Matemilola, former governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, former governor of Imo State, Emeka Ihedioha, former governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, former governor of Osun State, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, ex – Secretary of National University Commission (NUC), Peter Okebukola, captains of industries and some expatriates.
Part of the landmark activities marking the 88th birthday celebration was the unveiling of Obasanjo’s two books: “Lest we forget: Slavery, Slave Trade, Emancipation and Reparation” and “Nigeria: Past and the Future”, authored by himself, which he presented to the public.
Also featuring at the birthday event was the public lecture titled: “Echoes Of The Past, Vision Of The Future: Reflection On Slavery And Colonization And Nigeria’s Journey Towards A Promising Future,” which was delivered the Director General of Nigeria Institute for International Affairs, Lagos, Professor Eghosa Osaghae, who reflected on where Nigeria is as a country and where it should be after colonisation as a nation.
Obasanjo said that despite the current challenges which the country grapples with currently, it definitely will emerge better and stronger which all the citizens will be proud of.
He said, “For me, I am an incurable optimistic about Nigeria. Yes, the situation is bad, no doubt, but I believe in my lifetime, we will have the Nigeria that we will all be proud of.
“For me, I am incurably optimistic about Nigeria. Yes, the situation is bad, no doubt, but I believe that in my lifetime, we will have a Nigeria that we will all be proud of.
“I want to thank all those who have given the goodwill messages; I appreciate you all. May all of you who have reached the age of 80, attain 90 and 100. And I will celebrate that 90 and 100 with all of you.
“Those of you who have not attained the age of 80 and have not been called Octogenarians yet, you will by the Grace of God attain 80, but let us bear in mind that as Nigerians, there is an obligation for us and if we do it well, we will have an enviable Nigeria in our lifetime.”
Responding to the birthday lecture, especially where Prof. Osaghae called for a decolonisation of the minds and demanded a new and united set of leaders to usher in good governance, Obasanjo said the essence of the guest lecturer’s message is for all Nigerians to see “where we have all gone wrong without any exception.”
“I want to say one or two comments about the two books. Lest we forget, the lecturer brought up vividly why we should not forget slavery and the Slave Trade, whether is Trans-Atlantic, or Trans-Sahara, they had the same effects on us.
“And he made the points strongly that if we forget, not only will we continue to suffer from the effects of what he called not an episode, but epoch, but not only that, we will be re-enslaved again in one form or the other.
“We haven’t come out of the ones we suffered, spanning about 2 Centuries that we have suffered. It is for us to see where we have all gone wrong without any exception as a group and then, is there a way out? And if there is, what is the way out? And if we know the way out, how do we get there and what should we do?”
