Atiku gets backing for Obasanjo to be on new naira note

Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere; and its northern and eastern counterparts, Arewa Consultative Forum and Ohanaeze Indigbo, respectively, on Saturday, backed the proposition by former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar that the image of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo should be on one of the naira notes to be newly designed.

Atiku, who took to his Twitter handle to congratulate the former President for his role in restoring peace in Ethiopia after two-year-long crisis, also said Obasanjo deserved a Nobel Peace prize for the feat.

The crisis between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front ended on Wednesday after talks and an agreement facilitated by Obasanjo, ex-Kenyan President, Uhuru Kenyatta, and a former Deputy President of South Africa, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka.

Lauding the role of his former boss, Atiku tweeted, “I celebrate the extraordinary prowess of His Excellency, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, in bringing peace to Ethiopia. I am not surprised. I know my boss. He did the same thing in Liberia and São Tomé and Príncipe during our time in office.

“If for nothing else, he is most deserving of a Nobel Peace Prize, and I will nominate him when entries are open for nominations. Africa is blessed to have a statesman of such impeccable democratic credentials as Chief Obasanjo, a man whose image ought to be on the redesigned naira note, to inspire future generations of Nigerians to sacrifice for their nation and continent.”

Reacting to Atiku’s proposition, the National Secretary-General of Afenifere, Chief Sola Ebiseni, said he agreed with the former vice-president that Obasanjo deserved to have his image on the naira note for his contributions and place in country’s history.

He said, “The naira notes that are to be redesigned already have pictures of some personalities who are part of our history but Obasanjo is well deserving of any honour that Nigeria considers necessary for him. As a matter of fact, no one has been more part of Nigeria’s history as Olusegun Obasanjo, so a place of honour should be reserved for him. When you look round Nigeria so far, no monument of much importance has been dedicated to his personality. I have looked round, no airport, no university, no stadium.”

Similarly, the National Publicity Secretary of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Dr Alex Ogbonnia, said, “Chief Olusegun Obasanjo deserves national recognition on the Nigerian currency. He is a moral edifice who governed the country with an appreciable level of equity, fairness and ethnic sensibility. The governance structures across Nigeria are dotted by his accomplishments. Obasanjo remains the conscience of not just the nation but the entire Africa.”

On his part, the Secretary-General, ACF, Murtala Aliyu, said Obasanjo’s roles as an international figure stood him out.

He said, “Looking at the history of the country, whether you like him or not, you cannot dismiss him when talking about the development of this country. From the roles he played during the civil war, as military head of state and handing over power to the civilian government and then during his time as civilian president and even being an international figure. There is nothing stopping a country like Nigeria from honouring Obasanjo.”