2023: Why Buhari’s Successor Must Be ‘Mad’ – Obasanjo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said Nigeria needs a leader who is ‘mad’ enough to see the country succeed.

CityNews Nigeria reports that the former president stated this on Thursday when he received Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, a former managing director of the now-defunct FSB International Bank and presidential aspirsnt, at his residence in Ogun state.

The former president said he has not apologies for been mad about Nigeria, as he has no other country he can call his own.

While describing Nigeria’s situation as agonising, he said no matter how bad the situation is, it can only be made better by Nigerians.

“You are right in saying that wherever you go now, one of the things you hear is that Nigeria is not at the table. Why shouldn’t Nigeria be at the table? What does it cost Nigeria to be at the table? What should it cost Nigeria to be at the table?” Obasanjo asked.

“I would think four things — one is knowledge. If Nigeria is not at the table, maybe the knowledge we should have of ourselves, our situation, our region, continent and indeed of the world we live, that knowledge is not adequate. If the knowledge is adequate, we will do what is right when it is right.

“The second is vision. What is the vision that we have? And if you have no vision, you may have eyes, but you are blind. And I believe that is part of our situation.

“The third is passion. I was telling some people this morning that passion means madness — that you are mad about Nigeria. I am and I have no apologies for that, because I have no other country I can call my own. Passion means being mad about Nigeria — having a touch of madness. I look at you and I feel ‘yes, you are mad’.

“The fourth is innovation. You cannot be doing same thing we have done in the past that has not paid us and expect any change. We have to innovate. We have to re-strategise.”