By Ochereome Nnanna
I
have only encountered President Olusegun Obasanjo twice. The first time was in
2001 when his Media Adviser, the late great journalist, Mr. Tunji Oseni,
invited me to Aso Villa for the Presidential Media Chat series. The second
event was quite dramatic. I visited a friend, Osita Chidoka, in his office in
August 2007.
 |
| *Obasanjo |
He
had just been appointed Corps Marshall of the Federal Roads Safety Commission,
FRSC. At lunch time, he asked me to accompany him to see “someone” at the
Hilton, Abuja.
When we arrived at the hotel, I became suspicious when we rode the elevator to
the topmost floor and Chidoka led me to the end of a hallway with two coated
security guards on duty.
It
was then that I knew we were seeing a VVIP. After signing us in, Chidoka stood
aside as a bespectacled elderly man still wearing shabby bedclothes (at 2.00pm)
came out. Everyone in the room stood reverently. He bantered with Chidoka and I
took a closer look. It was former President Obasanjo!
Chidoka
introduced me: “Baba, this is Ochereome Nnanna of Vanguard…” Obasanjo, who
was already about to shake my hands, quickly withdrew it as if I had turned
into a cobra. He gave me a hostile stare and walked away. I whispered to
Chidoka that I would wait for him downstairs.
All
this drama apart, the lesson I took away from the encounter was that, contrary
to Obasanjo’s pretensions that he does not read Nigerian newspapers, he does.
His reaction to me just proved it. I have never hidden my disdain for the
recycling of the military generals who fought the civil war as elected
“civilian” presidents.
