By Banji Ayoola
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, has bemoaned what he called failure of leadership, declaring that Nigeria would not move forward, “if we continue the way we are.”
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Speaking passionately of the Nigeria project to which he is committed till death, he charged the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to reorganise itself and offer the country the much needed vibrant opposition as true democracy demands.
Particularly, he advised the party to purge itself of those he called hypocrites and bad eggs who are not committed to genuine service of the people through responsible governance, but only for their narrow and selfish interests.
He spoke in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, during a meeting with the party’s leadership in the South West, led by its National Vice Chairman South West, Dr Eddy Olafeso,
Obasanjo said that Nigeria demands a vibrant voice and opposition in the PDP with a view to building a virile democracy. But he said that the party should cleanse itself of the alleged bad eggs who lack the needed commitment to return the opposition party to its lost glory.
Noting sadly that many leaders of the party were after their pockets and stomachs, he wondered why some top echelon had left the party while others had lost hope shortly after the result of the 2019 Presidential election was announced.
For the PDP to bounce back, the former President said the party must purge itself of hypocrites and bad eggs and shop for those he called “critical mass of committed people,” who “would be ready to stand with the party come rain, come shine.”
In his words: “I knew the PDP would lose election in 2015 because it was clear. And I knew the PDP would need to be rebuilt after losing the election.
“You need what I call critical mass of committed people, and come rain, come shine, they are committed. With that, you can make Nigeria better.
“You see people’s faces are beautiful but you don’t know what each person harbours inside of him. If you discover a bad egg, remove such a person. And if such person has learnt his or her lessons, there can still be room to accommodate the person.
“Politically speaking, you can’t be my friend if you don’t buy into the Nigeria project. For me, till death, I will continue to push for a better Nigeria.
“I said if you compare the two of them (referring to Atiku and Buhari); with what I know and all I have written about the incumbent which they have decided to cover up, Atiku is better than the incumbent by far. That’s the point I am making. And nobody is perfect.
“I am not a perfect person. I have my shortcomings. If I deny my shortcomings, it means I am not being truthful to myself. But my shortcomings have nothing to do with my love for Nigeria. It has nothing to do with being greedy or selfish.”
In his address earlier, Olafeso said that the visit was to celebrate Obasanjo on his 82nd birthday which he marked recently and equally thank him for his support for the PDP presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in the 2019 elections.
He described Obasanjo as a loyal, upright and committed leader who is “ready to speak the truth to power,” not minding whose ox is gored.
He said: “We could not have done well in the last elections in the South West without your support. Your voice resonated above all the lies told in the country and you told the world what was actually happening in your country. You decided that you were going to stand up and fight. There is nothing we can say here that would compensate the role you have played.
“You supported our presidential candidate and I know for sure that he won that election even if the powers that be decided to write results for themselves in the North. It is certainly sure that it is the corner you asked all of us to go that won that election and I know full well that God will take this thing back to our party.”
Those at the meeting included PDP governorship candidate in the 2017 election in Ondo State, Mr Eyitayo Jegede, SAN; PDP governorship candidate in Ekiti State in the 2018 election, Prof Olusola Eleka; Senate Minority Leader, Biodun Olujimi; Senators-elect, Oyo South, Kola Balogun; Ondo Central, Ayo Akinyelure; Representatives-elect, Ibarapa North and Central, Hon Ajibola Muraina; former Osun State governor, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola; former Minister of State for Defence, Erelu Olusola Obada; former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Senator Kofoworola Bucknor-Akerele; and former Deputy National Chairman, Alhaji Shuaibu Oyedokun.
