'Distortion of history': knocks for OBJ over controversial memoirs

The recently published autobiography of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, My Watch, has continued to generate criticisms with the most recent coming from a former Governor of Ogun State, Olusegun Osoba. Describing the book as a "distortion of history," the former governor promised to write his own book to address the lies by Obasanjo especially his claims that the third term agenda was foisted on him in 2007.

Speaking in Lagos at the public presentation of a book, titled, “Watching the Watcher: A book of remembrance of the Obasanjo years,” by the Publicity Secretary of the Afenifere, Yinka Odumakin; Osoba who chaired the occasion said, “I haven’t read the book but I am of the profession of the watchdog. And when you have somebody watching the watcher, who thought he could be all-in-all in Nigeria… That was why I was interested in coming to honour Yinka. The watcher wrote something important in his book, which Wole Soyinka has given his own verdict about.

“I am going to give my own verdict in my own book. An aspect of it was the mention of 2003, where Gen. Obasanjo denied the relationship between the AD and the PDP. He said it was the idea of the Vice President, the Turaki of Adamawa, Atiku Abubakar. I think the story is far from the fact. Well, we are age mate. So, I can say that it is far from the truth.”

“I am shocked and surprised that he wrote in his book that he knew nothing about the Third Term Agenda which he said God would have given him if he had asked.”

“It is an event to put the records straight. Many aspects of the book written by President Olusegun Obasanjo need correction. He was at the centre of all the negotiations to broker a political agreement between Alliance for Democracy and the Peoples Democratic Party in 2003. For him to say he knew nothing about it, I totally disagree with him because the final meeting with him was attended by highly placed Nigerians, a highly placed royal father, the Awujale, Pa Adesanya, Bishop Gbonigi, Bishop Ladigbolu, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, all the governors and a host of others.”

Chief Ayo Adebanjo, a chieftain of the Afenifere who also spoke at the event, expressed shock over the claims by Obasanjo stating that “A man who says he is clean…, the Yorubas have a saying that if you want to know who you are, speak to the people around you. Your wife says you are bad, your son says you are of no use, your daughter says you are a miscreant, and you still say you have done well… You know the type of people they are.”

Adebanjo further criticed the former president saying “Here is a man. Those who had been fighting for the independence of this country, he has no good word for them. All his predecessors – the late Nnamdi Azikwe, the late Sardauna of Sokoto, Awolowo and all. And even the greatest opponent of Awolowo would declare that he was a man who made Nigeria great.

“You all remember (the late Chief Emeka) Ojukwu after the death of Chief Awolowo, even with all the controversies that they had, Ojukwu had to remark after Awolowo’s death that he was the greatest and the best President that Nigeria never had. Nobody has contradicted that statement. But to Obasanjo, Nigeria never existed before he came into office, Nigeria cannot exist until he is in office. He has only one adviser: Olusegun Okikiola Aremu Obasanjo, that is his adviser,” he said.

“I also don’t know whether the author remembered the interview that Danjuma gave some time ago that if you audit the account of the NNPC, you would not hesitate to send Obasanjo back to Yola prison. I didn’t say so, but Danjuma said so. And you know how credible that man is. He (Obasanjo) has not refuted the statement.”

The book reviewer, Prof. G.G. Dara, described the book as “a provocative and polemical book of memoirs and reflections by Yinka Odumakin about Gen, Olusegun Obasanjo.” Dara noted that the author intended to challenge “the exaggerated claims of heroic grandeur and accomplishments made by the former President.”

“He (Odumakin) hopes that the book will add to the collective memory card of Nigerians, so that they would not suffer the disease of amnesia, which encourages unworthy public men and women to act with impunity.”