Former President Olusegun Obasanjo recently threw a bombshell into the political landscape of Nigeria. He accused President Muhammadu Buhari of lack lustre performance and lack of requisite vision and ability to take Nigeria to greater heights even as the country struggles to attain growth after an excruciating recession. He therefore advised President Buhari not to go for a second term in office, come 2019 elections.
Chief Obasanjo also had hard knocks for both the ruling APC and the PDP. He said neither of the two parties possessed the panacea to cure the country of its ailments. He therefore called for a new movement which he called Coalition for Nigeria (CN) to wrest power from the present ruling class and lead the country into the path of rebirth.
He said at its beginning, the Coalition for Nigeria may not be a political party but a movement to which all well-meaning Nigerians can belong. The movement, he said, must be a coalition for democracy, good governance, social and economic well-being and progress. It will be a coalition to salvage and redeem the country.
Chief Obasanjo is not known for speaking in vain. He must have done his home work by consulting many well meaning Nigerians across the whole spectrum of the country. His wise counsel to President Buhari not to stand for re-election in 2018 and his recipe for a rebirth for Nigeria has come at a right time. In addition, Chief Obasanjo has spoken the minds of millions of well meaning Nigerians who are yearning for the speedy socio-economic and political development of Nigeria.
There is no doubt that Nigeria at this point in time needs a corps of sterling, visionary and patriotic men and women who can lead the country to greater heights in all positive areas of human endeavour. They may not belong to political parties. So, to be effective and draw like-minded people into its fold, the Coalition for Nigeria must be a movement that will drive Nigeria up and forward. It must have a pride of place for all Nigerians, particularly for the youth and the womenfolk. It must give hope to all Nigerians for speedy, quality and equal development, security, unity, prosperity and progress.
Going forward, we believe that the coast is now clear for like-minded Nigerians who share the views canvassed in Chief Obasanjo’s letter to President Buhari to come together and form the Coalition for Nigeria, which will be the vanguard to lift Nigeria out of its socio-political and economic abyss, onto a path of
In particular, if the coalition for Nigeria gets opportunity to lead Nigeria politically, it must banish poverty, insecurity and despair from the country. It must assiduously work towards making Nigeria a strong and united country, a socially-cohesive and moderately prosperous society with equity, equality of opportunity, justice and a dynamic and progressive economy that is self-reliant and takes active part in global division of labour and international decision-making.
Also, the future of Nigeria is in the hands of Nigerians and not in the hands of its so-called international friends who will rather wish the country dead and rubbished into the dustbin of history. As such, like-minded Nigerians from all walks of life must rise up to the occasion and stand to be counted at this point in time to give Nigeria a rebirth. Such like-minded Nigerians must be ready to work selflessly to lift Nigeria up in all spheres of human endeavour. They must passionately love Nigeria, be committed to it and have the interest of Nigeria at heart. In addition, they must show compassion and love for the down trodden, the poor and the underprivileged, no matter where they come from in Nigeria.
Going forward, we believe that the coast is now clear for like-minded Nigerians who share the views canvassed in Chief Obasanjo’s letter to President Buhari to come together and form the Coalition for Nigeria, which will be the vanguard to lift Nigeria out of its socio-political and economic abyss, onto a path of rebirth and greatness. The path to greatness by any emerging country like Nigeria is strewn with a lot of obstacles; so it is for this movement. So, its members must realise from the outset that those in the establishment will utterly and stoutly oppose them and call them names. But, they must realise too that time is not on their side; members of the coalition must move with speed and without rancour; they must show love for each other, for the country and have members drawn from across the country and be prepared to register as a political party to contest the 2019 elections.
