Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s damning letter to President Goodluck Jonathan must rank as the most narcissistic (and the narcissism of our rulers is legendary) action of any Nigerian ruler in recent times.

In the 18-page diatribe, Obasanjo took President Jonathan to task for his handling of corruption, insecurity, and the crisis in the ruling Peoples Democratic Party among other issues.

Like most Nigerians, the former president expressed deep concern about the tragic consequences of the current crisis. Unlike most Nigerians, however, Obasanjo has had two glorious opportunities to help turn around the fortune of Nigeria and he squandered both. Of course, it is easy to say we should focus on the message rather than the messenger. But this is one instance in which the messenger can’t be divorced from the message.

Obasanjo’s letter dated December 2, 2013, and titled, “Before it is too late” had all the telltale signs of a deeply troubled man. Rather than writing this particular letter, Obasanjo should have atoned for his many crimes against Nigeria and Nigerians.

It was bad enough that his eight years as president were a tragedy; to have imposed Umaru Yar’Adua and Goodluck Jonathan on the nation as a farewell gift is unpardonable. Perhaps, it was payback for the trenchant opposition to his third term agenda.

In his warped thinking, Obasanjo must have reasoned that his only option was to foist on Nigerians the very worst amongst us; people so inept and incapable that after a while we’ll be hankering after him. Looking back now, that theory has worked well as Nigerians now look with nostalgia at the Obasanjo era.

All the things Obasanjo said about President Jonathan and his administration may be true. But we can say the same and even more about the two Obasanjo’s administrations, 1976-1979 and 1999-2007. Obasanjo seems to have forgotten too soon his squabble with his deputy, Atiku Abubakar, that made a nonsense of governance, the political assassinations (including that of Bola Ige, his Attorney-General of the Federation and minister of justice) during his macabre rule, the massacres in Odi and Zaki Biam. The less said about corruption (who could forget the wholesale pillage of our patrimony in the name of privatisation) the better. Obasanjo laid the foundations on which President Jonathan is building and consolidating. He is acting out the Peoples Democratic Party’s playbook.

Obasanjo’s latest intervention is no doubt anchored on the politics of 2015. In his messianic posturing, he feels he has a divine right to determine or at least have a say on who emerges as president in the 2015 election, an election that may sound the death knell of Nigeria if we go by the postulations of Mujahid Dokubo-Asari, Junaid Mohammed and Farouk Adamu Aliyu for whom the election is a “do-or-die” affair, à la Obasanjo.

A few months ago, rather than participating in activities marking Democracy Day (May 29) that he and his military collaborators foisted on us, Obasanjo was in Jigawa State as guest of Governor Sule Lamido. He literally made a case for Lamido as the next president of Nigeria, the same Lamido whose two sons have been accused by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission of laundering billions of Jigawa State funds through companies allegedly owned by the governor.

That is the problem with Nigeria: the Feeling of entitlement which the likes of Obasanjo and Ibrahim Babangida survive on. Obasanjo should realise that his “ethnic balancing” theory is not the solution to “strengthening the unity and stability of Nigeria.”

In the postscript to his letter, Obasanjo referenced Generals Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar as those “who on a number of occasions in recent times, have shared with me their agonising thoughts, concerns and expressions on most of the issues I have raised in this letter concerning the situation and future of our country.” This simply, and amply too, shows that Nigeria and we (the 99 per cent who ought to decide the future of the country) are in a big trouble. It’s like asking cats to help improve the conditions of rats.

Suddenly, President Jonathan has become the alibi of a ruling class fearful of its imminent implosion. Earlier in the week, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, who superintends over a house that reeks of corruption accused President Jonathan of paying lip service to the fight against corruption.

Many Nigerians know the problems of the country, and if the likes of Obasanjo and Babangida will allow, perhaps they can seriously begin the long and arduous task of fixing the mess created by these rulers.

Obasanjo has outlived his usefulness, if ever anyone found him useful. Now that he has confirmed that the man he imposed on the country is not fit to rule, we shouldn’t grant him the opportunity to decide the person to replace him. It is time we the people rose in unison to decide that.

Let no one be in doubt where I stand on the PDP, the Jonathan administration and our so-called democracy: To reecho Karl Maiaer, “This house has fallen.” There is no amount of letter writing or patchwork that can fix it.

Obasanjo should know that the train has left the station; that the problem he and his cohorts caused can’t be solved by letter writing but by a complete restructuring of the country.

Obasanjo, Babangida and company have lost all moral right to dictate how to define the new Nigeria we envisage.

-Follow me on Twitter @conumah

http://www.punchng.com/

In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is the King. GEJ's performance so far is miles ahead that of past Nigerian leaders Obasanjo inclusive.

Obasanjo's lust for power and relevance has finally come to an end. Baba is dead! Long live the King Jonathan.

..... and King Jonathan gave the Otta farmer the biblical Naman's treatment. Afterwards Nigeria lived happy ever after.

The above posters are tribal cretins, no one should take them serious.

C Onumah....Ibo.

They are having the best of times under GEJ...so Ibos generally will insult anybody that criticize GEJ.

Eze Promoe: Newest disease in the South West, JONAPHOBIA!

I guess that's why they are setting up baby factories all over the South East. Omo eran

Dahomey Amazon:
I guess that's why they are setting up baby factories all over the South East. Omo eran

I wish you were a male

Satanic letter indeed.

Couldn't have termed it better!

Look at yourselves argue about one fool in power and another that is not. Can't we the youths for once tell ourselves the pure truth and where it hurts us?? Am Igbo, and I can say at anytime that the GEJ administration hasn't favoured we the "poor masses" neither did the OBJ administration. Can't we as youths of this potentially great nation come together to decide our future. Must the next leader be from my state/region before I must elect him?? Must we argue and insult ourselves while some political juggernaut squanders all our National wealth?? Must we continuously sit down and watch things go haywire in the country we share most of our memories. All ye supporters of these political players, tell yourselves the truth: Is the nation truly moving in the right direction?? Am no supporter of any political party, be it APC, PDP, nPDP etc....am just voicing my opinion and how I feel about this country.
We have another opportunity to make things right come 2015, why don't we use our brains and conscience instead of allowing sentiment and ethnicity cloud our sense of judgement.
We deserve better than we are getting.
Why settle for less when yu can get the lion share.
Pls, vote wisely!

It seems the north and southwest are bent on bringing down the govt of Jonathan at all cost. I can see the old alliance coming together again to protect their interest and ensure that their spoils of war, since 1970, is never taken away from them by the real owners.

Dahomey Amazon:
I guess that's why they are setting up baby factories all over the South East. Omo eran

am not igbo but is it also why child molestation and raping of of underage and babies in the sw. Crimes in nigeria are everywhere

Eze Promoe:
It's not my thing to be brusque on ladies, but I would have to remind you that you are going off topic.

And you are on the topic? What has obj's letter got to do with the SW? Is sls or tambowa too from the SW

karl max: am not igbo but is it also why child molestation and raping of of underage and babies in the sw. Crimes in nigeria are everywhere

Imo
www.nairaland.com/830271/man-held-sleeping-daughters

Enugu

niggist..com/2013/08/this-randy-man-impregnated-mother-and.html?m=1

KingMEXX: Look at yourselves argue about one fool in power and another that is not. Can't we the youths for once tell ourselves the pure truth and where it hurts us?? Am Igbo, and I can say at anytime that the GEJ administration hasn't favoured we the "poor masses" neither did the OBJ administration. Can't we as youths of this potentially great nation come together to decide our future. Must the next leader be from my state/region before I must elect him?? Must we argue and insult ourselves while some political juggernaut squanders all our National wealth?? Must we continuously sit down and watch things go haywire in the country we share most of our memories. All ye supporters of these political players, tell yourselves the truth: Is the nation truly moving in the right direction?? Am no supporter of any political party, be it APC, PDP, nPDP etc....am just voicing my opinion and how I feel about this country.
We have another opportunity to make things right come 2015, why don't we use our brains and conscience instead of allowing sentiment and ethnicity cloud our sense of judgement.
We deserve better than we are getting.
Why settle for less when yu can get the lion share.
Pls, vote wisely!

Find answer below:

In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is the King. GEJ's performance so far is miles ahead that of past Nigerian leaders Obasanjo inclusive.

Obasanjo's lust for power and relevance has finally come to an end. Baba is dead! Long live the King Jonathan.

..... and King Jonathan gave the Otta farmer the biblical Naman's treatment. Afterwards Nigeria lived happy ever after.

EzeCanada:

Find answer below:

In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is the King. GEJ's performance so far is miles ahead that of past Nigerian leaders Obasanjo inclusive.

Obasanjo's lust for power and relevance has finally come to an end. Baba is dead! Long live the King Jonathan.

..... and King Jonathan gave the Otta farmer the biblical Naman's treatment. Afterwards Nigeria lived happy ever after.

Why do I doubt that bolded part?? Are yu for real

KingMEXX: Look at yourselves argue about one fool in power and another that is not. Can't we the youths for once tell ourselves the pure truth and where it hurts us?? Am Igbo, and I can say at anytime that the GEJ administration hasn't favoured we the "poor masses" neither did the OBJ administration. Can't we as youths of this potentially great nation come together to decide our future. Must the next leader be from my state/region before I must elect him?? Must we argue and insult ourselves while some political juggernaut squanders all our National wealth?? Must we continuously sit down and watch things go haywire in the country we share most of our memories. All ye supporters of these political players, tell yourselves the truth: Is the nation truly moving in the right direction?? Am no supporter of any political party, be it APC, PDP, nPDP etc....am just voicing my opinion and how I feel about this country.
We have another opportunity to make things right come 2015, why don't we use our brains and conscience instead of allowing sentiment and ethnicity cloud our sense of judgement.
We deserve better than we are getting.
Why settle for less when yu can get the lion share.
Pls, vote wisely!

..vote for who is the million-dollar question??...cos as far i am concerned,the so-called opposition APC is as useless as they come...
..i wont be surprised if they field one of the incompetent defected PDP Governors in their camp as their 2015 presidential flag-bearer,to continue from where PDP will stop...every single one of them is as bad or worse sef than the PDP they are trying to dethrone...there's simply no hope in the horizon...

TribalEAST: The above posters are tribal cretins, no one should take them serious.

hahahahaha.

No one should take OBJ and his fellow mischief makers serious either.

The only person to take serious is me: Split Nigeria now to avoid moire blood bloodshed.

Eze Promoe:
Is OBJ not a south westerner?

He was the best thing after sliced bread when he was taking all the bullets for GEJ to become President....while the whole of SE was cowed under, waiting for where the ball will fall before taking a position.

We know all the love of SE comes with a price...it's all due to the perceived advantage and prominent positions GEJ has given to some individuals from there.

The day GEJ starts to drop some of his political appointees from the SE...you will change music.

The best caption for that Obasanjo's letter should be "OBJ the cry of a forsaken Godfather". A heartless power hungry monster who thought that he could control power outside the government by putting up clowns as President and vice president. It is the corruption, lawlessness, gross abuse of power and other evils he cultivated that GEJ is fertilizing. I'm sure the only reason he is shouting up and down is because they have sidelined him and not because of any genuine love for this Nation.

KingMEXX: Why do I doubt that bolded part?? Are yu for real

Well, as for me Nigeria is non-existent...so you may be right