At an occasion in Lagos where he publicly presented his controversial memoir, former President, Olusegun Obasanjo spoke in defense of why he publicly criticizes President Goodluck Jonathan in recent time despite having access to him. He linked his open criticism of the present administration to Jonathan’s lack of receptive ears.
Speaking Obasanjo said: “You will see a few letters I put in the book that were correspondences between me and the president and how I described my frustration of going privately to the president, taking up issues with him and getting no reaction.
“When I was president, I had my predecessors who would come to me, some with written notes and I would give answers and react and if I cannot give answers and react there immediately, I will say: ‘give me time, let me do something’ and I would react.
“That’s the way I believe it should be. He should be able to come, talk to me and I give you an answer. You would see in the book some of my reactions in the past. So if you have audience but you have no receptive ears, then you must have another way of communication. That’s what has happened,” he said.
The former president, who used his speech to react to a court injunction against the publication of the book secured by the Chairman Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) South-West Committee on Mobilisation and Organisation, Chief Buruji Kashamu, said he refused to obey the court injunction because he completed the production of the book three weeks before the presentation.
“The book had been printed and published before that man went to court. I don’t regard that. Another thing you don’t know is that the man went to court and today (the day the book was presented) was fixed for hearing. After that, he went to another judge to get injunction at 5pm on Friday. What is that? If there is anything illegal, you know I won’t be part of it. We are here lawfully, legally and we will continue to act lawfully and legally,” he assured.
Meanwhile, Kashamu has criticized Obasanjo’s action and threatened to sue him for contempt of court. Disclosing this in a statement released in Abeokuta, Kashamu said he had already instructed his lawyers to press criminal contempt charges against the ex-president. While describing the ex-president as “lawless,” he said his disregard for the judiciary was “indecent and uncivilized.”
Obasanjo also took advantage of his address at the event to throw broadsides at the president, former Vice- President, Atiku Abubakar; former Ogun State Governor, Chief Gbenga Daniel and former Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mallam Nasir el-Rufai.
While describing General Muhammadu Buhari(rtd.) in the book as someone who “would not be a good economic manager” he said he would be “a strong, almost inflexible, courageous and firm leader,” the former leader labeled Atiku as a ‘blatant and shameless liar” accusing him of being the main architect of the alleged third term saga.
As regards the reelection bid of President Jonathan, Obasanjo said: “Even if legally and constitutionally Jonathan could go for a second term, morally, ethically, he cannot because he voluntarily gave that up even before he was voted in for the first term.
“I hope he was not playing a game of deceit then. If he reneges, on whatever grounds, he would have mortally impaired himself as an untrustworthy man; deceitful, selfish and unreliable, and would say anything to achieve his interests,” he added.
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