Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has described his decision to choose former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as his running mate in the 1999 presidential election as the biggest mistake he made while serving in office.
Obasanjo made the remark on Friday during a fireside chat with veteran entertainer and activist Charles Oputa, popularly known as Charly Boy, at the launch of Charly Boy’s foundation and his memoir, 999: A Memoir in Tribute to Late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa, in Lagos.
Speaking on mistakes made during his presidency, Obasanjo said no leader could claim to have served without making errors. However, he singled out his choice of vice president as one decision he would not repeat.
“What I have found in my own life is that what could have been all my life… mistakes that could have been fatal, God had taken care of them for me,” he said.
When Charly Boy asked him to identify one specific mistake, Obasanjo replied, “Mistake when I was in government. The man I picked as my running mate, my number two; if I had known him as I came to know him later, I would not have picked him,” he said.
Asked if he was referring to Atiku, Obasanjo responded, “My vice president. I don’t know what name you want to give him, but my vice president, I mean that.”
He added that with what he later came to know about Atiku, he would not have selected him as his deputy.
“Of course, what I know about him later, well, thank God, because God did not allow his actions and reactions to overwhelm me, or to divert my own focus from Nigeria, or to harm Nigeria even,” Obasanjo said.
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He stressed that he bears no grudge against the former vice president.
“And there’s no bitterness, because he did things he believed he should do, and God did the things God had to do, which enabled me to achieve what I was able to achieve,” he added.
Obasanjo Reflects on Civil War
The former president also spoke on the Nigerian Civil War, rejecting claims that it amounted to genocide. He maintained that the military campaign was aimed at preserving Nigeria’s unity.
“The civil war was traumatic to all Nigerians. It hurt some maybe a little bit harder than others, depending on where, but the civil war was bad for all Nigerians,” he said.
Obasanjo recalled that he deliberately tried to minimise civilian casualties during the conflict, using the recapture of Owerri as an example.
“I did not drop a single bomb inside Owerri, because it would be destructive — it would have killed innocent civilians. I dropped my bombs short of Owerri and beyond Owerri, to warn people that we are coming home,” he said.
Obasanjo and Atiku were elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party in 1999 and served together until 2007.
Their relationship later broke down following political disagreements during Obasanjo’s second term in office.
Atiku has secured the ticket to contest for president in the 2027 general election under the platform of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Among those who attended the event were former Commonwealth Secretary-General Chief Emeka Anyaoku, Labour Party presidential candidate in the 2023 election Peter Obi, businessman Leo Stan Ekeh, Dr Austin Tam-George and veteran broadcaster Bisi Olatilo.
Rafiyat Sadiq is a political, justice, and human rights reporter with Pinnacle Daily, known for fearless reporting and impactful storytelling. At Pinnacle Daily, she brings clarity and depth to issues shaping governance, democracy, and the protection of citizens’ rights.