Former Nigerian president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has disclosed that he once declined a proposal to support former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, as his successor at the end of his tenure in 2007.
Obasanjo said on Friday that he rejected the idea because he believed El-Rufai was not yet mature enough to handle the responsibilities of leading the country.
El-Rufai, who served under Obasanjo’s administration first as Director-General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises and later as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), was among the prominent figures in his cabinet between 1999 and 2007.
At the second edition of the Ajibosin Platform Annual Symposium in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Obasanjo disclosed that former Minister of Aviation, Osita Chidoka, recommended El-Rufai as his potential successor.
The keynote speaker at the event, Chidoka, earlier recounted how El-Rufai introduced him to Obasanjo at the age of 34 — an encounter that eventually led to his appointment as Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps.
Interrupting Chidoka’s presentation, Obasanjo reminded the audience of a detail he had left out.
“Let him tell you. He didn’t mention that. He was pushing when I was leaving government that his friend, El-Rufai, should be brought in as my successor,” Obasanjo said, turning to Chidoka.
“No be so (meaning -Is that not true)?” to which Chidoka nodded in agreement.
Obasanjo said he turned down the suggestion because El-Rufai needed more time to grow politically and personally.
“I did not yield to the pressure. Later, he said, ‘I suggested this person, why didn’t you agree?’ I said El-Rufai needs to mature. You remember?
“When I left government and, many years later, he saw the performances of El-Rufai, he came back to me and said, ‘You’re absolutely correct. El-Rufai needed to mature,’” Obasanjo recalled.