Nigeria is Sitting on A Keg of Gunpowder If We Don't Listen to the Legitimate Voices of Impoverished Nigerians, Obasanjo Warns

By: Olufemi Orunsola 

Former Nigerian President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has warned Nigeria's political class to listen to what he described as "the legitimate demands of citizens protesting against the country’s worsening economic hardships."

Like the proverbial elder in Yoruba proverbs parlance who chooses to speak out with a stern and firm voice to avoid picking up an awkward escape race thereafter, Chief Obasanjo gave this warning on Friday during a visit some members of the National Assembly to him at his residence in Abeokuta.

OPEN TELEVISION NAIJA (OTN) News gathered that the group of legislators had visited the elder statesmen over their agenda to push for a single term of six years for political office holders among other political reforms in the country.

However, the former Nigerian president known for his unapologetic stands on issues of national interests, confronted the visiting legislators with the fact that the youths who took to the streets in genuine protests against hardships being faced by them did so because the government failed to attend to their legitimate concerns.

“You are what you are today because you’re a Nigerian,” Obasanjo said.

“I am what I am also because I am Nigerian. So why should they be Nigerians and be languishing in poverty?

“Like I have warned earlier, we should know that we are all sitting on a keg of gunpowder if we fail to begin to do the right thing.

“For instance, what the youth are demanding is very legitimate and should be listened to, or why should they be denied what rightfully belongs to them?

“They make demands, and we are not listening to them. Many of them are frustrated, desperate, angry, hungry and unemployed.What do we expect? 

Obasanjo further revealed that he has had to weep after listening to the horrifying ordeals of Nigerian youths who had tried to escape from the hardship in the country via the Sahara desert and horrible sufferings they go through in the Mediterranean countries. 

Obasanjo advised the visiting legislators that fixing term limits for public office holders is not the issue but emphasized that the mentality of the representatives in the government should change.

“The issue is not whether Nigeria should adopt a single six-year term or maintain the status quo,” Obasanjo said.

“If the mentality of the people in governance does not change, then Nigeria will remain where it is.

“For me, the issue is for us to get it right. Whether we have one term of six years or two terms of four years, where it’ll work is our mentality.” the former President insisted.