I Regret Not Privatizing NNPC While I Was In Office - Obasanjo Says

 Former President Olusegun Obasanjo says he regrets not privatizing the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, while he was still president.

‎ ‎Obasanjo said this at the opening of a two-day Maritime Stakeholders’ Conference in Lagos yesterday May 16th.

According to Obasanjo, the private sector have over the years shown to be very profitable in whatever project the Federal government gets them involved in...

"NNPC is supposed to be doing well like Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG). The involvement of the private sector will ensure growth. The NLNG is making money for the government because of the involvement of the private sector. A general once left this country with two ships. He later came back with no accountability. That cannot happen in the private sector."he said Obasanjo said while he was Head of State, he bought a total of 19 ships for the petroleum sector but sadly, none of them can be accounted for now. According to him, one of the ships was sold off as scrab for $500, 000 and that the Federal government later bought the same ship for $2 million. It was repaired for $1million. He said he was informed that the same ship was later seized for not being sea worthy. " We were asked to pay $2 million. I told them to keep the ship. It was later released (without any payment)” he said.

Those Asking me to Account for Abacha’s Loot Are Stupid - Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, Blast

 Olusegun Obasanjo says those asking for him to account for all the recovered Abacha loots are stupid. 

 According to the 79 year old former president, the Abacha loot recovered when he served as president from 1999-2007 were handed to the then Minister of Finance and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and so all questions about the recovered look should be directed at them.

He said this in an interview with Vanguard over the weekend

"They said the money recovered from Abacha, I should account for it. What stupidity! The man who asked for it, the man who gave the judgement or who answered them are all stupid, with due respect. I don’t keep account, all Abacha loots were sent to Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and every bit of it was reported to Minister of Finance. My job was to write where we can get help to recover the money.‎ Every penny that comes out of it went to CBN, so if they want to know what happened to the money, they should call CBN governor or call the Minister of Finance. But again, it shows ignorance, total ignorance, which is lacking and you wonder, are these people educated? They can also approach the man who helped us in recovering process to give the list of money recovered and where he took it.” he said‎

EFCC is Now a Toothless Bulldog - Obasanjo Blast

 rFormer President Olusegun Obasanjo has attacked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, which was founded during his egime, calling it a toothless bulldog.

Speaking during his 79th birthday celebration held at Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, Abeokuta, Ogun State yesterday March 5th, Obasanjo said

"Honestly, when Nuhu was handling EFCC, he handled it in such a way that people coined the saying that ‘the fear of Nuhu Ribadu is the beginning of wisdom ‘ and then the question you will ask is, how did we go down? How did we lose that? Nuhu Ribadu is still here, he’s still alive. The institution we started together is still there, but what made the institution to become a toothless bulldog? That’s the matter we have to keep looking at, so that we don’t take two steps forward, one step aside and three steps back.”

Posted by Linda Ikeji at 11:48 AM No comments:  

Photos : Meet Olusegun Obasanjo's 20 Successful Children

 Former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, in his memoir, ‘My Watch’, revealed his number of children in the order they were born. Of the highly-successful 20 children, 19 are biological, except Kunle, his nephew. According to Obasanjo, he adopted Kunle as his biological child "in every sense of the word to compensate for his mother being deprived of an education by our father".

Obasanjo further said in his memoir, "All my children are frightfully independent and self-assertive. I have started observing the same traits in their children, my grandchildren. In their different areas of endeavour, my children have all made a mark. Eight of them have acquired PhD degrees in their individual areas of learning.

"Almost all the others have one or two master’s degrees. Iyabo, who blazed the trail for all of them, needs to be commended for being a good example and loving big sister." As listed by the ex-president in his memoir, his children are Iyabo, Busola, Segun, Gbenga, Deboye, Bola, Kofo, Biyi, Seun, Bisoye, Olu, Dare, Funke, Damilola, Jonwo, Dayo, Funso, Toyosi, Bukola, and Kunle.”

See their photos below...

Obasanjo Introduced Bribery to the National Assembly - Dino Melaye Blast

 Senator Dino Melaye says he respects former President Olusegun Obasanjo but accused him of introducing bribery to the National Assembly. According to the TheCable, Dino said this while reacting to the letter Obasanjo sent to members of the Senate on January 13th where he berated them over their plans to buy more cars. He said;

“I have tremendous respect for president Olusegun Aremu Okikiola Obasanjo. Elder statesman, respected pan Africanist and committed patriot. I went through the letter written to all senators and members of the house of representatives. The letter I can see is a misplacement of anger,” he said.

"Our leader is mistaking the eighth national assembly as the same senate assembly that defrauded him in 2007. Those who collected his money and refused to implement the 3rd term agenda. I appeal to baba that we are not the ones please. After nine years of that bribery saga, the first of its kind, I expect forgiveness to have taken place. There was the case of bribery introduced by the Obasanjo regime in the desperate attempt to remove speaker Ghali Umar Na’abba from office then. In fact, there was open display of that bribery money on the floor of the house. That government exposed the national assembly to corruption and easy money. I hope this is not in an attempt to cover up and distract attention from the Halliburton and Siemens corruption allegations. While I am against corruption anywhere in Nigeria, I will not support accusations based on anger and vindictiveness. The eighth senate should also look inwardly and purge herself of all the deliberate misgivings of the past. Nigeria must work and we must support the anti corruption stand of the Buhari administration. God bless Nigeria.”