By John Alechenu, ABUJA

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has described Nigeria as a work in progress, charging those working for Nigeria at any level not to consider their work as finished because there was so much left to be done.

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Obasanjo said this in his address at the public presentation of an autobiography: “Being True To Myself,” written by Alhaji Sule Lamido, in Abuja, on Thursday.

He said: “Nigeria that we are working for, we haven’t gotten there. And I believe it is the responsibility of each of us to ensure that we get there.

“Our job is not finished until we are finished.”

The former Nigerian leader expressed gratitude to the author, who served as Foreign Affairs Minister during his administration, for doing a magnificent job of projecting Nigeria’s positive image.

Obasanjo was billed to be in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but explained that he chose to honour the author in gratitude for his tieless service to Nigeria.

He said: “Your upbringing I found very instructive. I didn’t know you in your NEPU days. We came to know ourselves when we came to be in government together.

“And now, how did our paths cross? The chairman of a party, rightly I believe, has an idea of who the vice president should be. I also have an idea of who the vice president should be. We tried to reconcile our two ideas, and we settled.

“And when we settled, we decided that my candidate would be the vice president and the chairman’s candidate would be the foreign minister. But then, the chairman’s candidate, who we agreed to be the foreign minister, declined.

“And then, the choice of Lamido as foreign minister became my responsibility. Because I saw him as the closest, or one of the closest, persons to the person who had declined to be the foreign minister.

“Sule Lamido has admirable character, and I admire him. I did not want a situation where the minister would do something wrong and I would want to say, ‘Look, Mr. Minister, thank you, you can go,’ and there would be a problem.

Lamido and resignation letter

“I said all my ministers should give me undated letters of resignation. Sule Lamido came to me and said, ‘You appointed me, and I did not ask you to appoint me. You think I will fall?’ I acceded to his request.

“And of course, he didn’t have to give me a letter of resignation. And I had no cause to ask him to give a letter of resignation.

“I want to emphasize the difficulty or the difficult situation that we were in. To remember, Nigeria had become a pariah state. So we had a lot to do, both inside and outside.

“But Sule Lamido was the agent of the outside. And any time he went out, I wanted to know what the reaction was, what impact we were making, how we were changing or not changing the impression of the outsiders about Nigeria.

“And so they did such a magnificent job, such a magnificent job, that within the three years of our coming to government, the Queen of Britain and the Queen of the Commonwealth actually came to Nigeria to participate in the CHOGM that we had.

“And that was actually the greatest indication that we had now been accepted—no matter what the past was—that we have now been accepted by the international community: in Africa, in the Commonwealth, in the United Nations, and everywhere.

“Again, as a result of my regular visits to you in Jigawa, I could say without any shred of doubt that you performed adequately as a governor.

“So, of course, it’s no difficulty for me to write the foreword. You are in your own right now a stateman. I think what I will say is: the young shall grow. And the young is growing. But when you find the young has grown, then your job is not finished.”

In his remarks at the event, the Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, who represented President Bola Tinubu, said, “This is not merely the unveiling of a book, it is the celebration of a life defined by courage, consistency, and commitment to democratic ideals.

“Alhaji Sule Lamido, though a staunch member of the political opposition and often a critic of the government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (GCFR), remains one of the strong pillars of Nigeria’s political evolution.”

He also noted that the reforms embarked upon by the President Tinubu administration were beginning to yield positive results.

A former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, who was represented by former INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, said the author deserves commendation for contributing his quota to national political discussion with his decades of experience.

The event attracted Political heavyweights across party lines to the Nigerian Air force Conference Centre, Abuja, where the event held.

Roll call

Those who attended included: Former Vice Presidents, Atiku Abubakar, Namadi Sambo, Ex-National Security Adviser, Lt. General Aliyu Gusau, former Senate Presidents: Ayim Pius Ayim and Ken Nnamani.

Others were the Minister of Information Mohammed Idris, who is also represented President Bola Tinubu and former PDP National Chairman, who is also the book reviewer, Dr. Iyiorchia Ayu.

Former INEC Chairman, Attahiru Jega also stood in for former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar.

The presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), in the 2023 election, Mr. Peter Obi and former Governors of Rivers, Bauchi, Cross River and Niger States: Rotimi Amaechi, Adamu Muazu, Liyel Imoke, Babangida Aliyu among others.

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