2015: Consider track record of presidential candidates before voting, Obasanjo warns

Apparently disturbed by myriad of socio-economic problems plaguing Nigeria, former President Olusegun Obasanjo has seriously warned the electorate to trace the track records of the presidential candidates vying in all political parties for the forthcoming general election to know who to vote for.
Although the former president said he bears no grudges against President Jonathan, he, however, declared that Nigeria’s economy is getting worse under the president, saying he is ready to work for the betterment of the country.
This is as he said he is ready to fight anybody that impedes the nation’s socio-economic growth.
The former president, while receiving the Iyalodes (women leaders) and eminent women of the South West at his Hilltop mansion in Abeokuta on Monday “to discuss some knotty issues bleeding their hearts”, also disclosed that the decay that is bedeviling the nation was caused by carefree attitude of past and present leaders as well as followers.
He said, “I know that God did not create Nigeria not to be rich or great. Is it that the people he created in Nigeria are not knowledgeable enough or not intelligent enough? Or is it that they don’t know their rights? Let’s look at the foundation of our leadership. In the profession I know very well, the military, what we normally say is that there are no bad soldiers but bad officers.
“If you see a situation where the soldiers are not doing well, we need to examine the officers in charge. So it is in the family, the community, the town and the country. Now you said this year is an election year, I have no apprehension over this coming election. I have no fears over the forthcoming election. I was reading it in one paper today where they said they are jittery when they heard you were coming to visit me, is it that I and Jonathan are not in good terms, there is nothing as such.
“I have no grudges against Jonathan and I think Jonathan equally has no grudges against me. I’m not quarrelling with Jonathan but all I know is that whatever is good for Nigeria, that I’m ready to die for. I emphasise that whatever is good for Nigeria, is what I’m ready to defend with my life. Whoever, I emphasise, whoever says he would not do anything good to Nigeria, even if he says he’s ready to go ‘koko bellow’, I’m ready to square it up with such a person.
“I say again, whoever that person may be I want you to get that correctly. If this country is going to change for the better, it would start from the top and if it’s going to be otherwise, it would start from the top too.
“I have had some little experience about this country. I was a military head of state and I was also a civilian president, so what is left? So, if I talk, I know what I’m saying. Whoever wants, should listen to me and whoever feels otherwise, may turn a deaf ear. But when I’m talking, I’m talking with my understanding and intellect. I’m drawing from my experience and from what I’ve learnt with others and from other countries and fellow eminent citizens of the world that I relate with. But leave all of that.
“If our economy is not good, it would affect those of you in the market everywhere. It takes us back to what we said earlier that if the head is rotten, it will affect the entire body because if there is no good governance, it would affect the economy. Our economy should not have been this bad. When I was leaving office about eight years ago, I left a very huge reserve after we had paid all our debts. Almost $25 billion we kept in what they called excess crude. The excess from the budget we were saving as reserve for the rainy days.”