|
Listen to article
|
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has described his decision to pick Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as running mate in the 1999 presidential election as the biggest mistake of his life.
Obasanjo made the statement on Friday in Lagos during a fireside chat with maverick musician and activist Charly Boy. The event was held to unveil Charly Boy’s foundation and his memoir, “999: A Memoir in Tribute to Late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa”.
According to Obasanjo, with hindsight he would not have chosen Atiku as vice president.
“I would say the greatest mistake I made was picking Atiku Abubakar as my vice president in 1999,” he said.
Read Also: 2027 Election Must Be Won At Ballot, Not In Court – Atiku
The former president added that he was thankful God did not allow Atiku’s actions and overreactions to derail his administration or distract him from governing the country.
“There is no bitterness in me over what happened,” Obasanjo said.
“Despite everything, I was able to achieve what I set out to achieve while in power.”
He also addressed the long-running controversy about his roots, stating that his parents hailed from Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
“I still know our family house there,” he said.
The event attracted prominent figures including Chief Emeka Anyaoku, former Secretary-General of the Commonwealth; Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress, NDC; business mogul Leo Stan Ekeh, who donated N20 million each on behalf of Obasanjo and Chief Emeka Anyaoku; book reviewer Dr Austin Tam-George; and veteran broadcaster Bisi Olatilo, among other dignitaries.
Obasanjo and Atiku ran together on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and served from 1999 to 2007.
Their relationship later became strained due to political differences during their second term in office.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar on Tuesday declared that Nigeria’s 2027 general election must be decided at the ballot box, not in the courtroom, following the Court of Appeal’s decision overturning a Federal High Court judgment that sought to remove the African Democratic Congress, ADC, and other political parties from Nigeria’s democratic space.
The ruling removes the legal obstacles facing the ADC’s leadership, allowing the party to focus on the 2027 general election instead of fighting battles in court.
In a statement issued by his media office in Abuja, Atiku congratulated the Justices of the Court of Appeal for what he described as their courage, fidelity to the Constitution and unwavering commitment to justice, saying the judgment had reinforced public confidence in the judiciary and strengthened constitutional democracy.
Read Also: Pressure Mounts On House To Summon Gbajabiamila Over Agency
“As the nation advances towards the 2027 general elections, political contests must be decided by the votes of Nigerians—not by contrived lawsuits seeking to achieve in the courtroom what cannot be won at the ballot box,” he said.
According to the statement, the appellate court’s ruling, alongside an earlier judgment by Justice Liman of the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, affirming the Senator David Mark-led National Executive Committee of the ADC, has effectively brought to an end all litigation challenging the party’s leadership ahead of the 2027 general election.
It said the development firmly establishes the ADC’s legal standing to participate in the polls.
The statement further noted that the Court of Appeal held that the judgment delivered on June 15 by Justice Lifu was a nullity because it was rendered in disobedience to a subsisting order of the appellate court. It added that the respondents lacked the locus standi to institute the action, describing their claims as speculative and legally unsustainable.
It also said the appellate court clarified that Section 225A of the Constitution should be interpreted disjunctively rather than conjunctively, holding that the suit was premature because the Osun and Ekiti election cycles were still ongoing when the action was filed.
According to Atiku, the appellate court also faulted the trial court for disregarding the uncontroverted affidavit evidence presented by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, confirming that the ADC and the other affected political parties had complied with all constitutional and statutory requirements.
“Having accepted INEC’s evidence, the lower court had no legal basis to manufacture additional conditions in order to arrive at what the Court of Appeal rightly described as a perverse decision,” he added.
