Politics
Atiku Has Learnt His Lessons, Vote For him instead of Buhari – Obasanjo
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Wednesday said he could vouch for the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar, to reposition the country, a position different from what he had written in his memoirs.
Obasanjo made the statement in Lagos while speaking at the 2019 Island Club Quarterly Business Lecture.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Atiku had earlier delivered a lecture titled: “My vision to get Nigeria Working again”.
Obasanjo said he believed that Atiku has the experience, the capacity and passion to move the country forward.
He said Nigerians should no longer find his support for the former vice president strange going by what he said or wrote about him in the past.
He reiterated that he stood firmly by whatever he said in the past about Atiku and indeed President Buhari.
He, however, said the PDP candidate had demonstrated what was expected of a committed and sincere leader by owing up to his past mistakes and showing remorse.
Obasanjo added that Atiku had not only apologised to his political party and the nation, but also apologised to him for the past mistakes he made as his deputy.
He said that Atiku was not infallible like every other human being and that he, (Obasanjo) would be playing God by not forgiving the former Vice-President.
“I have been called names because of my position on Atiku Abubakar, the Wazirin Adamawa.
“Everything I have said as far as I have knowledge of Atiku, I have not retracted and I stand firmly by it because it is, the best of my knowledge, true.
“And neither has what I have said and written about Buhari been controverted, if anything, it has been confirmed and proved beyond any shadow of doubt.
“But Atiku has done things which are absolutely imperative for a leader to be followed and believed.
“First, know who you are and present yourself as you are – a human being in blood and flesh and susceptible to human mistakes and human frailties.
“Don’t cover up with sanctimonious veneer of bogus integrity, incorruptibility, uprightness, goodness and false figures and statistics, all of which are contrived to deceive, to cheat, to plunder and to destroy.
“Atiku never claimed to be a saint and I never described him as such. I will never so describe any human being alive let alone calling him a Messiah.
“On an occasion in the past when I said that someone was not a Messiah, some Nigerians out of bad “belle’’ were up in arms.
“For me, as a Christian, the only Messiah I know and have is Jesus Christ and even then, the man aspect of Him was imperfect while the divine aspect of Him was perfectly messianic.
“Secondly, a leader must be honest to himself and to the people he serves or he wants to serve.
“He must identify and acknowledge his situation, mistakes, shortcomings and inadequacy; show remorse where and when he has erred, seek forgiveness and repent; and not passing the bulk or keep blaming others and fail to accept responsibility.
Bodex F. Hungbo, SPMIIM is a multiple award-winning Nigerian Digital Media Practitioner, Digital Strategist, PR consultant, Brand and Event Expert, Tv Presenter, Tier-A Blogger/Influencer, and a top cobbler in Nigeria.
She has widespread experiences across different professions and skills, which includes experiences in; Marketing, Media, Broadcasting, Brand and Event Management, Administration and Management with prior stints at MTN, NAPIMS-NNPC, GLOBAL FLEET OIL AND GAS, LTV, Silverbird and a host of others
