The former president also declared that he is not apprehensive over the forthcoming general elections. Obasanjo made these declarations while speaking with eminent Southwest women leaders, including the Iyaloja – General of Nigeria, Chief (Mrs.) Folashade Tinubu – Ojo, who paid him a courtesy visit at his Hilltop Mansion in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
The former president said he was speaking against the backdrop of media reports that some powerful politicians in Nigeria were jittery over the news that the women were to visit his Abeokuta home yesterday.
He emphasised that Nigeria had in the past survived perilous situations such as the post independence coupe-de-tat, the civil war as well as the dark days of the late Gen. Sani Abacha's military regime, which he said were terrible than what the country is presently passing through.
Earlier, the South West women leaders had told Obasanjo that they were on a courtesy call to his house and to take counsel from him over "some knotty issues" bedeviling Nigeria presently.
The group, which also include the National President Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, (women wing), Dr (Mrs.) Oyin Sowoolu, were led to Obasanjo's home by the Iyalode of Yorubaland, Chief (Mrs.) Alaba Lawson.
The women leaders had through Lawson, expressed worry over the growing insecurity in the land, the need for credible polls, the need to return to agriculture as well as the empowerment of women to enable them mitigate the harsh economic situation in the country.
Responding, Obasanjo urged Nigerian women to make use of their sense of judgement about the track records of every contestant to determine how they cast their votes in the forthcoming general elections.
He stressed that Nigeria does not deserve the position it found herself presently. He said: "Now you said this year is an election year, I have no apprehension over these coming elections.
I have no fears over the forthcoming elections. I was reading it in one paper today where they said why they became jittery when they heard you were coming to visit me, is that I and Jonathan are not in good terms, there is nothing as such. "I have no grudges against Jonathan and I think Jonathan equally has no grudges against me.
I'm not quarrelling with Jonathan but all I know is that whatever is good for Nigeria, that I'm ready to die for. I emphasise that whatever is good for Nigeria, is what I'm ready to defend with my life.
"Whoever, I emphasise whoever says he would not do anything good for Nigeria, even if he says he's ready to go 'konko-bellow', I'm ready to square it up with such a person.
I say again, whoever that person may be; I want you to get that correctly. If this country is going to change for the better, it would start from the top and if it's going to be otherwise, it would start from the top, too. "I have had some little experience about this country.
I was a military head of state and I was also a civilian president, so what is left? "So, if I talk, I know what I'm saying. Whoever wants, should listen to me and whoever feels otherwise may turn a deaf ear.
But when I'm talking, I'm talking with my understanding and intellect. I'm drawing from my experience and from what I've learnt with others and from other countries and fellow eminent citizens of the world that I relate with. But leave all of that."
The former president noted that the country is currently bleeding under the yoke of crippling "poverty, sheer impunity, economic downturn and insecurity," adding that leaders elected to make things better for the people do otherwise.
"Good governance comes from voting, from selection of leaders. It is now left to you to decide who you cast your vote for because if you throw away your votes and tomorrow you are saying good governance; once you throw away your votes you have lost out. That is one. Find out the track records of achievements of those you want to vote for. What have they achieved in the past and not what they have said.
"Our problems in Nigeria, let's look at the foundation of our leadership. In the profession I know very well, the military, what we normally say is that there are no bad soldiers but bad officers.
"If you see a situation where the soldiers are not doing well, we need to examine the officers in charge. So it is in the family, the community, the town and the country," Obasanjo said.
Commenting on the present state of the Nigerian economy, the former president explained that bad leadership will continue to formulate bad economic policies that will affect the womenfolk.
"If our economy is not good, it would affect those of you in the market everywhere. It takes us back to what we said earlier that if the head is rotten, it will affect the entire body because if there is no good governance, it would affect the economy.
"Our economy should not have been this bad. When I was leaving office about eight years ago, I left a very huge reserve after we had paid all our debts. Almost $25bn (that) we kept in what they called excess crude. "The excess from the budget we were saving as reserve for the rainy days.
When we left in May 2007, the reserve was said to have been raised to $35bn. But today, that reserve has been depleted! "As at today, that reserve has been depleted: the reserve we left when we finished paying all our debts. Our debts that was about $40bn, including debt forgiveness.
The remaining debt was not more than $3bn. "Our reserve after we had paid off this debt was about $45bn. As I said, they continued till the end of 2007, I heard that the reserve increased to almost $67bn before the end of the year.
"Our reserve now, as I learnt is around only $30bn. That is why the Naira has been falling against the dollar. What would now happen, I learnt if you want to buy a dollar now, it's about N192 or N195. What it means is this, what you have been buying at N150 to a dollar, now you need N192 or N195 to buy it. That is the real situation.
Is there any remedy? There is but it does not come overnight because it means we have to give up all the bad things we have been doing.
"Truly, the price of crude has fallen, but anyone who is wise enough should know that since we depend on just one resource and since we have no control over its pricing, we should be planning for this type of situation and the way out of it. Our inability to have reserve has brought us into this economic quagmire."
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