The Presidency has taken a swipe at former President Olusegun Obasanjo for allegedly downplaying the importance of President Bola Tinubu’s infrastructural projects, especially the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, in his newly launched memoir, ‘Nigeria: Past and Future’.
Special Assistant to the President on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, on Thursday accused Obasanjo of attempting to rewrite history while neglecting his own failures while in office.
In a verified post on his X handle, @DOlusegun, Olusegun descended on the ex-president, saying his claims in the memoir would “further relegate his integrity as the leader who opened Nigeria to the cankerworms of corruption.”
According to the presidential aide: “By underplaying the importance of the Lagos-Calabar project in his latest book, President OBJ has not only affirmed to those who witnessed his administration’s several failures to address the needs of the country when he had the opportunity, but he has also put in written form a position which generations to come will indeed question”.
He accused Obasanjo of failing to deliver on key infrastructure projects during his eight-year tenure, particularly in his home state of Ogun.
According to Olusegun, the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, one of Nigeria’s most crucial road projects, stagnated for 16 years under Obasanjo and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), until former President Muhammadu Buhari revived it.
He said: “Despite spending eight years in government and failing in his attempt to force himself on Nigerians for a further four years as President, Baba Obasanjo failed woefully in addressing the infrastructural needs of his state.
“Indeed, it took former President Buhari just three years to deliver the first modern rail to pass through Baba’s backyard in Abeokuta”.
Olusegun also accused Obasanjo of mishandling Nigeria’s power sector, failing to revive the nation’s refineries, and overseeing a fraudulent privatization of NITEL.
He disclosed that President Tinubu is now making the tough decisions that past leaders, including Obasanjo, failed to take.
“President Tinubu will not be deterred by distractions such as these,” he stated, insisting that Nigerians who prioritize development will remain focused on the administration’s progress.
According to him, Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, a key project under Tinubu’s administration, is expected to significantly boost Nigeria’s economy and improve connectivity along the nation’s coastline.
Alongside other major road projects like the Sokoto-Badagry Highway and the Lagos-Abuja Highway, it represents a bold infrastructure push by the current government.
Olusegun suggested that instead of attempting to diminish President Tinubu’s achievements, Obasanjo should reflect on his own legacy.
His words:”President Obasanjo must emulate others before him by returning to his writing board to at least attempt to explain to Nigerians why he failed to help Nigeria transition into a proper country under his leadership”