Former President of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, on Monday, lambasted some state governors in Nigeria for living like emperors while demanding sacrifice from the citizens for Nigeria to survive the hard times.
Obasanjo chided the governors while speaking as the chairman at the inaugural conference of the Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy, held at the University of Ibadan.
The former president said when he became Nigeria’s president in 1999; he recognised corruption as a major impediment to the Nigerian state, setting up structures like the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission to fight the rot. However, he said that after he left, corruption returned to Nigeria with a vengeance, draining billions of dollars from the nation’s economy that could hardly afford to lose even a million dollars.
He said, “Leaders who call for sacrifice from the citizenry cannot be living in obscene opulence. We must address these foundational issues to make the economy work, to strengthen our institutions, build public confidence in government and deal with our peace and security challenges.
“We must address the issue of employment for our teeming population particularly for our youths. Leadership must mentor the young, and provide them with hope about their future as part of a process of inter-generational conversation. “Nigeria is a country where some governors have become sole administrators, acting like emperors. These governors have rendered public institutions irrelevant and useless.
“Is there development work going on in the 774 constitutionally recognised local government councils, which have been merely appropriated as private estates of some governors? “Some governors have hijacked the resources of the local governments and this has crippled the developments of the local government councils in the country. The National Assembly must also open its budgets to public scrutiny.”
The former president said drastic fall in the price of oil in the international market had exposed the weakness of governance in Nigeria, while also saying that Nigeria was racing towards becoming a nation of debt with its attendant burden on the citizens.
