Former President Olusegun Obasanjo perpetually reaffirms his penchant for denigrating imaginary foes, especially oppositional stalwarts, whenever he mounts the podium or indulges in media interactive sessions.
Multifarious reportage quoted him recently as saying “that his generation led the way with purposeful, progressive, visionary leadership marked by accountability and probity while the younger generation of leaders failed to continue with the good legacy his generation left.” This is sheer leadership delusion. What examples and legacies did Obasanjo leave? Those who had been at the helm of affairs of this country were mostly members of his generation. What referential values can be attributed to all of them? Can Nigeria ever have a Nelson Mandela, a hero with an inspirational aura?
As I pointed out in the first part of this article a fortnight ago, ageless Obasanjo used the occasion to demonize the birds of a feather with him while deceptively portraying himself as the only saint among the rank of erstwhile public office holders. In his keynote address entitled “Leadership in Africa’s Quest for Sustainable Development”, Obasanjo, in an obtuse self-glorification, futilely drew a phantom nexus between leadership and age and finally lampooned the under-50s for leadership failure. In his sociological novelty, he exculpated his peers from any leadership faux pas!
Obasanjo’s submissions at the forum smacked of illogicality and preposterousness because leadership failure in Nigeria and indeed in Africa has nothing to do with age or generational incompetency. Both the young and old had abused office and are still on it such that in the past three years no African leader has won the Mo Ibrahim Africa Leadership Prize! Lack of integrity has no relationship whatsoever with age. The Obasanjo eight-year (1999-2007) presidency institutionalized corruption and ineptitude, which have crystallized into a national ethic.
This platform is not a solicitous mechanism for any of the persons Obasanjo pointed the finger at as they are all enveloped in improprieties, just like most other Nigerians in and out of public ecology. The challenge is: which former or present public official in Nigeria is not lacking in integrity—before, during and after Obasanjo’s inglorious era?
Obasanjo’s military (1976-1979) and civilian tenures lacked vision, integrity and accountability hence the eras are regarded as Nigeria’s locust/wasted/worst years, contrary to his erroneous beliefs and grandiloquent self-deception!
It may interest the Ota farmer to note that the 1999 Constitution (as amended) did not prescribe any age limitation other than the age of consent, which is 18 years for public office holders. Only a rustic technician will be so amnesic as not to recollect this basic component of the Laws of the Federation.
Therefore, whether a youthful Salisu Buhari or a senile Robert Mugabe, attitudinal disposition, character inclination and official conduct are idiosyncratic matters that are not synergetic with age. Good leadership is essentially service to humanity—not the obscenity of crass accumulation of primitive wealth and rudderless governance. If anything, there is indeed a proven correlation between gerontocracy and poverty of leadership in Nigeria, Mozambique and indeed Africa.
It will amount to sweeping generalization to postulate that because a few youthful leaders fumbled, other leaders of the same age bracket failed equally or are likely to fail. That kind of befuddlement is tantamount to a hasty conclusion, illogicality and pedestrian rationalization. Such queer judgmental pessimism questions the proponent’s state of mind.
The point is: what are we doing to tame the monstrosity of corruption? It is not enough to make puerile declarations without proffering solutions to the menace. For now, we have not begun the fight against corruption at all. That is, sadly, the truth of the matter. The first step is to get top corrupt persons in and out of government jailed for life after substantial recovery of their ill-gotten wealth! Until this is done, the country walks on the precipice, but the only challenge is: who will do it and when without constraints of permissive primordial sentiments? I am confident President Muhammad Buhari will make a difference.
It is petrifying that Obasanjo delivers suffocative homilies and calumnies whenever any occasion presents itself. OBJ and the few beneficiaries of his misrule can only escape the looming eternal damnation by taking remorseful steps. Let us responsibly confront the corruption monster instead of indulging in dialectal acrobatics with critics and perceived enemies.
Corrupt politicians of the Obasanjo genre could probably be building on the massive corruption substructure laid by the technician from Ota.
The interesting thing is that they seem to be erecting astonishing super layers using their inimitable brains and entrepreneurial endowments unlike their daft and judgmental principal! Probity here is a mirage, just as corruption is not necessarily a function of age—all generations have a predilection for it. Just by the way, where did Obasanjo get money to establish The Bell’s group of schools, among other billion-naira investments just like his accused co-travellers?
Somebody should let Obasanjo know that there is no affinity between age and good leadership. Both the under-50 and their gerontocratic counterparts are evidentially all culpable of dysfunctional leadership.
The Obasanjo presidency between 1999 and 2007, instead of having redemptive value, plunged Nigeria into a seemingly intractable descent. This man, an epitome of vain-gloriousness and a bombastic symbol of self-conceitedness, cannot be a saint. This is hoping that Obasanjo’s futile effort at flawless heroism is not coming from his ceremonial Ota Leadership Forum! Obasanjo’s leadership charlatanism and mediocrity are enough to make him keep some measure of silence instead of loquacity and removing all doubts as regards senility!
Apart from systemic corruption and decadent leadership, what else did younger generations inherit from Obasanjo? Are there not supposed to be critical linkages between past and present governments? The constitutional and political crises we have in Nigeria today were perpetrated by Obasanjo’s military autocracy, which vitiated our constitution to enthrone oligarchy. This General should stop monitoring elections and giving bombastic preachments amid sterile pontifications on leadership at seminal events. I blame the mischief-makers who invite him to such cerebral occasions!
Obasanjo’s delusional fantasy, blissful self-exoneration and justificatory verbiage on his blighted tenure testify to character frailty. President Buhari should look elsewhere for advice and direction—not the Ota axis—military camaraderie apart.
This article was originally published on The Sun