81st birthday: 13 most memorable quotes by Olusegun Obasanjo
Chief Olusegun Mathew Okikiola Aremu Obasanjo, GCFR, PhD was born on March 5, 1937. He is a former Nigerian army general who served as the president of Nigeria from 1999 to 2007.
Obasanjo was a career soldier before serving twice as his Nigeria's head of state. He served as a military ruler from 13 February 1976 to 1 October 1979, and as a democratically elected president from 29 May 1999 to 29 May 2007.
From July 2004 to January 2006, Obasanjo also served as chairperson of the African Union.
As Obasanjo celebrates his birthday today, Monday, March 5, Legit.ng brings to you 13 memorable quotes credited to the prominent African leader.
1. "Corruption, the greatest single bane of our society today."
2. "Let me make a solemn pledge before all of you, before the whole world and before God, that I will devote all my energy and all I possess in my power to serve the people of Nigeria and humanity."
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3. "We regard America and Europe as old friends. We keep old friends, but we make new friends in Japan, India, and China."
4. "I believe God knew what he was doing when he put oil under our ground. It should be a means to an end."
5. "If I am not above the law, nobody in this country can then claim to be above the law."
6. "My gut feelings and my faith tell me that until God shuts a door, no human can shut it."
7. "My joy knows no bounds... I will devote all my energy and all the powers available to me to the service of Nigeria and humanity."
8. "The givers of most of the corruption in Africa are from outside Africa."
9. "There is no part of the world where corruption is absolutely eliminated."
10. "When I left office in 1979, I was about the only one who had really left public office on my own."
11. "Nigeria has no business with poverty. With our human and material resources, we shall strive to eradicate poverty from our country."
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12. "Unfortunately, the true force which propels our endless political disputes, our constant struggles for political advantage, is often not our burning concern for democracy, it is often of our dedication to the principle of the rule of law."
13. "Fighting corruption is not a one-night affair."
Legit.ng previously highlighted seven important facts about former president Obasanjo.
According to one of the highlighted facts, Obasanjo belongs to some of the most powerful organizations in the world. He is a member of the Africa Progress Panel (APP), a group of ten distinguished individuals who advocate at the highest levels for equitable and sustainable development in Africa.
He is also a member of Club de Madrid, an independent non-profit organization created to promote democracy and change in the international community. Its members are over 100 former democratically elected Presidents and Prime Ministers from more than 60 countries.
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Source: Legit.ng
