Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has revealed that he once turned down a suggestion for former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nasir El-Rufai, to succeed him as President at the end of his tenure in 2007.
Obasanjo explained that he rejected the proposal because he believed El-Rufai, who had served under him as Director-General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) and later as Minister of the FCT, was “not yet mature enough” to lead a country as complex as Nigeria.
The disclosure was made on Friday during the second edition of the Ajibosin Platform Annual Symposium in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
His comments came as former Minister of Aviation, Osita Chidoka, gave a keynote address recounting how El-Rufai had 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 (FRSC).
Midway through Chidoka’s speech, Obasanjo interjected, adding a previously omitted part of the story.
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“Let him tell you,” Obasanjo said with a smile. “He didn’t mention that when I was leaving government, he was pushing that his friend, El-Rufai, should be brought in as my successor.”
Turning playfully to Chidoka, he added, “No be so?” — to which the former aviation minister nodded in agreement.
Obasanjo continued, “I did not yield to the pressure. Later, he asked why I didn’t agree, and I told him El-Rufai needed to mature. Many years later, after seeing his performance, he came back to me and said, ‘You were absolutely correct — El-Rufai needed to mature.’”
The former president went on to commend both El-Rufai and Chidoka, along with other members of his former administration, describing them as “individuals with special attributes” who made valuable contributions to the success of his government between 1999 and 2007.
Speaking further on leadership, Obasanjo emphasiSed that effective governance demands integrity, preparation, and experience.
“It’s only in politics that I found out there is no training for leadership,” he said. “Even among armed robbers, I was told there is apprenticeship. But in politics, there’s no training for leadership. That’s not good enough.”
