Obasanjo blames Nigeria’s underdevelopment stagnation on self-centered leadership

Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo has attributed the country’s stagnation to what he described as “self-centred” leadership lacking relevant knowledge, Channels TV reported on Sunday.

Obasanjo, who spoke in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, on Saturday, made these comments while attending the Leadership Empowerment International Conference as a Special Guest of Honour.

The ex-president remarked that leadership is a lasting virtue that endures until the end of one’s life. He added that once the issue of poor leadership is resolved, “we will get all other things right.”

Obasanjo, who became Nigeria’s first democratically elected president on May 29, 1999, said, “There is no end to leadership and service to your community until you take your last breath. You are never too old to be a leader and contribute to your community, your state, your country, the continent, and the world.

“And if you ask me in one word what is the bane of Nigeria today, I will not hesitate. I will say it is leadership. Leadership that is self-centred, leadership that lacks knowledge and understanding, and leadership that does not view service as the core of what leadership is about.

“If we can get the leadership right, we will get all other things right. This is what LEIC is doing that is commendable and very good. We must encourage and instil good leadership at every level of our national life.”

In early June 2024, Obasanjo stated that the country was becoming increasingly volatile, uncertain, and complex. He added that insecurity had rendered Nigeria a dangerous place, marked by suffering and hunger.

He stressed that leadership must rise to its responsibilities to create a better world for all Nigerians.

“We have resources in Africa; we have 70 per cent of the world’s copper. Japan has no mineral resources. Singapore is even worse—no resources!

“But, whatever resources we have, if we lack leadership, it won’t get us anywhere. That is why leadership in Africa is so crucial.

“We can’t create an Africa of hope, prosperity, free from oppression, and characterised by security, peace, and visionary leaders without effective leadership,” the former military general said.

The LEIC conferred honorary doctorates in leadership upon 25 Nigerians at a ceremony held by the South Africa-based Immanuel Theology Institute International, in affiliation with the Priesthood Leadership Development Initiative Inc.

Among those honoured were three former Commissioners in Ogun State: Anthony Ojeshina, Kehinde Sogunle, and Dele Obadina, among others.