Former President Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday urged the President-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, not to be frightened by the enormous expectations and daunting challenges of governing the country when he is eventually inaugurated.
The former president gave the charge while hosting South West women leaders, which included the Iyaloja-General of Nigeria, Chief Folashade Tinubu-Ojo and Iyalode of Yorubaland, Chief Alaba Lawson among others, who visited him at his Presidential Hilltop mansion in Abeokuta, Ogun State, yesterday.
Obasanjo, who described the Presidentelect as an experienced leader who had once been at the helms of affairs of the country, also charged him to take the right steps within the first three months of being sworn-in to navigate the country to the right path and direction.
Emphasising that Nigerians are watching and counting to see what would be done to better their lots, Obasanjo said Nigeria and Nigerians have a “new opportunity” in the in-coming administration of to make the country work for the better again.
Obasanjo, who maintained that Nigerian economy had been poorly managed within the last eight years, advised Buhari to be honest and truthful, warning that he should not do any “cover up” or try to play an “ostrich” on Nigerians.
He said that there are high expectations about the in-coming government to sort things out quickly for Nigerians.
He also added that there is equally a high level of goodwill locally and internationally in favour of the new government.
Obasanjo assured the market leaders that he believed in the political acumen of the President-elect at leading Nigeria aright, insisting that Buhari is not a novice in governance.
“The situation was like this when I took over in 1999. No light, no fuel, but it didn’t take us so long before the issues of light and fuel were resolved.
“There’s something very important that I observed, the incoming President has a lot of experience, he’s not a greenhorn, it is not as if he hasn’t been into power before, he is experienced.
“He knew what we did to turn things around, even when we were there together during the military regime, we did it together, and it was as a result of our performance that we were invited to do it again.
“What I would say is that we should all put our minds at rest, he’s someone that would perform but we must exercise patience, because what has been destroyed for eight years cannot be undone overnight.
“But like the Chinese proverb, ‘the journey of a thousand miles starts with a step’, it is not only first step but first step in the right direction because if you took a wrong step, you’re not likely to get to the destination,” he said
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