Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, on Friday, asserted that without moral rearmament and positive reorientation among Nigerians, the leadership problem bedevelling the socio-economic and political development of the country cannot be resolved.
Obasanjo made the call in Abeokuta,the Ogun State capital while receiving in audience six members of the House of Representatives, who co-sponsored a bill for a single term of six years for elective offices and rotation of the presidency between Northern and Southern Nigeria.
The bill is also seeking rotational governorship position among three senatorial districts in each of the 36 states of the federation and holding of all elections in one day, to check bandwagon.
The team led by the Chairman of the House of Representatives on Downstream Petroleum, Ikenga Ugochinye, of Ideato North and South Federal Constituency of Imo State, were at Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), to consult him on issues concerning Nigerian polity.
Specifically, the former President insisted that Nigeria cannot move forward if there are no changes in the way and manner of governance is being administered.
Other lawmakers at the interactive session were Hon. Abdulmalik Danga representing Adavi/Okehi); Hon. Usman Midala (Askira -Uba/Hawul); Hon. Peter Aniekwe (Anambra East /West) and Hon. Kama Nkemkanma (Ohaozara/Onicha/Ivo) federal constituencies.
He said that the nation’s challenges would be overcome if Nigerians re-examined themselves critically by doing the right thing all the time.
Obasanjo noted that the call by the lawmakers for a one term single term presidency; one day election across the country; power rotation between the North and the South, were not enough to put the nation on the right track.
He attributed purposeful leadership and a solid team as the only drive that could bring about positive development to the country.
He said, “What I know about Nigeria is that we need to get it right in terms of leadership and the team. We are able to achieve all you have highlighted as achievements of my administration because of the team I had.
“If we have good team in place, in a spate of two and half years, we will put all these challenges behind us.
“In another 10 years, we would have laid a solid foundation for the country. Our problem is that we take two steps forward, one step aside and probably two steps backward, and that won’t get us anywhere.
“For me, it is not so much of the system , except we have a rethink of what we call Democracy. We have to rethink what we call the Western Liberal Democracy and talk about loyal opposition.
“What we need to do is that both the opposition and the government must join hands together to make things work. The opposition must form partnership with the government.
“If we get it right, whether we have one term of six year presidency or two terms of four years, things will work out.
“We need to work on our mentality.We have to decarbonise our brain. Our main problem is ourselves. Until we take care of ourselves, it doesn’t matter the term of office, if it is the same people, same mentality, it won’t change. Our beginning is ourselves.”
The former president stated further that Nigerians should endeavour to elect leaders who are known to have pedigree and characters capable of proffering solutions to the myriad of challenges confronting the nation.
He insisted that Nigeria would only move forward when people with upright characters and good role models are put in positions of power, noting that the number of terms spent in office will amount to nothing, if wrong persons are made leaders.
Earlier, Ikenga in his speech, said they were in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital to express their solidarity to the former president and equally learn from his fountain of strong knowledge on development and good governance.
The lawmaker said Obasanjo saw the future of the country and worked towards it having been in the helm of affairs as the President in 1999.
He commended the former president for the various reforms put in place under his administration, blaming successive governments for not consolidating on them in the interest of Nigerians.
“If there has been consolidation on electricity reforms, foreign policies, civil service reforms and digital reforms among others by successive governments, today, we will not be in the economic challenge that is fighting us.
“If not for the foundation you laid in 1999, things would have been worse and at that time you are doing it, most people do not see the future of Nigeria.
“We can see your effort in the telecommunication reform transformation in the country. That you did in the civil service reforms; the establishment of anti -corruption agencies,” Ugochinye said.
Ikenga informed Obasanjo that the lawmakers were co-sponsors of bills seeking for a single term of six years for president and governors, power rotation between the northern and the southern parts of the country and one day for presidential, governorship, national assembly and houses of assembly elections, to eradicate bandwagon effects.
James Sowole
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