Nigeria: Arewa Think Tank Faults Obj On Jail Comment for Leaders

18 August 2024

The Arewa Think Tank (ATT) has faulted former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, over his recent remark that many Nigerian leaders ought to be in jail for alleged corruption and failure to lead the nation to the promised land.

Obasanjo was reported to have made the comment when he received some members of the House of Representatives and co-sponsors of the bill on a single six-year term power rotation between the North and South in Abeokuta on August 9, 2024.

They lawmakers were led by a former chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Downstream Petroleum, UgoChinyere Ikenga.

Obasanjo who presided over the affairs of the country for eight years; from 1999 to 2007 had questioned the character of Nigerian leaders, saying those who occupied public offices and had corruption cases should be behind bars by now.

However, in a statement issued to newsmen yesterday, the convener, Arewa Think Tank, Muhammad Alhaji Yakubu, said, "Let the Otta farmer begin to probe himself and send his cabinet members to jail as an example for others to follow."

"Yes, we are agree with him, but let him lead the way by probing himself and members of his cabinet during the 8-year in office from 1999 to 2007, and let us see how many of them will be sent to jail before subsequent government will follow."

The Arewa group said they expected Obasanjo who spent eight straight years in office backed with an added advantage of a military background to continue to make utterances that would unite Nigeria rather than which would cause disunity in the country.

"We are however, forced to go on memory lane to remind the two-term former president that not even the revival of airline, revival of refineries, revival of vehicle assembly plants, and not even the construction of the road under his nose, that is, Sango- Abeokuta expressway few meters to Otta farm was done."

ATT averred that till today, they can say without fear or favour that residents along that axis are still crying up till tomorrow for the pains they go through on daily basis using that bad road.

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