The presidency on Monday lashed out at former President Olusegun Obasanjo for describing Nigeria as a “failing state” under the President Bola Tinubu administration.
Recall that Obasanjo had in a keynote lecture entitled ‘Leadership failure and the state of corruption in Nigeria,’ delivered at the Chinua Achebe Leadership Forum at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States, stated that Nigeria was sinking deeper into insecurity, division, and underdevelopment which he attributed to weak leadership, widespread corruption, and a lack of accountability.
“The more the immorality and corruption of a nation, the more the nation sinks into chaos, insecurity, conflict, and disunity.
“The failing state status of Nigeria is confirmed and glaringly indicated for all to see,” he said.
Taking to his X handle, the spokesman for Tinubu on public communication and orientation, Mr Sunday Dare, told the former president to apologise to Nigerians, saying Obasanjo’s regime was the most corrupt government in the history of Nigeria.
He said Obasanjo has no moral right to condemn any government, noting that he should apologize to Nigerians for not laying the foundational infrastructure Nigeria needed to advance.
He said Obasanjo’s statement lacked sincerity, adding that democracy suffered mortal wounds under his watch.
“Former President Obasanjo is a man with a tremendous capacity for mischief and Nigerians know it.
“His journey along the path of hallucinations has never been in doubt. So is his descent into muddling facts, forgetting that he ran a presidency on record as the most corrupt.
“His recent diatribe at Yale University lacks sincerity.
“It is actually laughable that Obasanjo’s pretentiousness about fighting corruption is not cutting any ice in the eyes of the general public.
“We all know what happened under his watch and how, up till the present moment, there has been no explanation as to how he wasted a whopping $16 billion in generating megawatts of darkness across the nation. But that is not even the issue,” he wrote.
Dare added that “democracy suffered mortal wounds Obasanjo’s watch “only capped by his murderous rage for an ill-fated third term.”
“Successive administrations struggled to clean up the mess Obasanjo left behind, which President Tinubu is now making progress with.
“Obasanjo has lost any moral right to condemn any government. He should apologise to Nigerians for not laying the foundational infrastructure Nigeria needed to advance.
“A Yoruba proverb is “A o ki n wo ariwo oja, eniti a anba na oja ni a n wo”. This means that you shouldn’t pay heed to the market’s noise. Rather, keep an eye on the person you are negotiating with. This is instructive.
“In this market called Nigeria, the man with the renewed hope agenda is the one that matters and, indeed, Nigerians. Everything else is ariwo oja.
“This administration will stay focused in bringing relief to Nigerians. Obasanjo’s remarks reflect the infantilist nature of market noise.
“President Tinubu will stay the course in seeing through the reforms he has instituted for a better Nigeria.
“The point here is that Obasanjo should take time off this habit of pulling down leaders, especially his successors and try to interrogate himself on how he has contributed to the parlous state of the Nigerian nation which President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is now spiritedly battling to put back on the track of development.
“We thank former President Obasanjo for agreeing that ‘Yes, there is hope’. That’s the Renewed Hope Agenda President Tinubu is about and it’s on track.
“We are happy to have that conversation with the former president,” Dare added.
