Obasanjo, the letter writer ~ by Olusegun Adeniyi
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One man who has cultivated the habit of writing letters at critical epochs in our history is President Olusegun Obasanjo. Well-timed and brutally delivered, Obasanjo takes no prisoners when he decides to write a letter, especially if the recipient is in a position of power and authority.
It is therefore little surprise that Musikilu Mojeed, one of the few genuine investigative reporters in the country (and co-founder/editor-in-chief of Premium Times) has decided to dig deep into Obasanjo’s letters in his book, ‘The Letterman’ that will be publicly presented in Abuja today. By putting context to these letters, including some that are already in the public domain and others that are private, the author has given us a window into the mind of Obasanjo.
After spending considerable time at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital to research the book, the author attests to the incredible record-keeping capacity of the former president who retains huge volumes of personal correspondence, including many more than 70 years old.
“For instance, I saw a letter written to Obasanjo by his father, Amos, dated 16 February 1952. There were also at least nine letters written to him by his mother, Aje, between 2 February 1952 and 11 November 1955. Also preserved for posterity are at least nine letters to Obasanjo from his late younger sister and only sibling, Adunni. So are letters by his children to him, beginning with one by his eldest daughter, Iyabo, dated 28 January 1977,” Mojeed wrote.
With a foreword by former Commonwealth Secretary General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, the 462-page book opens with the behind-the-scenes drama of how the author scooped Obasanjo’s December 2013 letter to the then incumbent President Jonathan and the varied reactions that followed the damaging publication. But there was nothing unusual about the letter, given the history of the writer. According to the author, Obasanjo “has been writing to almost every key person who played important roles in the affairs of Nigeria, Africa and the world since 1969” and many of those letters are captured in the book. “Some letters are just goodwill messages, salutations, or expressions of appreciation for favours done to him or telephone calls made to him. Other letters deal with issues of governance, they contain Obasanjo’s suggestions to public officials in Nigeria and elsewhere on workable solutions to some burning controversial matters. Several letters are however strongly worded criticisms and expressions of anger and irritation at certain events.”
Among those who have received intemperate letters from Obasanjo are the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Second Republic President Shehu Shagari and General Sani Abacha, as well as General Ibrahim Babangida, Chief Audu Ogbeh and Archbishop Peter Akinola. There are also several civil war exchanges with military colleagues. But Obasanjo also wrote endearing letters like the one to Austin Jay Jay Okocha in 2002, asking the mercurial midfield football player not to retire from the Super Eagles and another to American tennis legend, Serena Williams, through her father.
As explained to the author, Obasanjo did not have copies of his own letters that elicited replies from his parents because “he was not smart enough at the time to make duplicates for his files. But some of the letters clearly indicate they were replies to missives from Obasanjo.” I found this admission rather interesting because of my own experience, which confirms Obasanjo’s love for letter writing and meticulous record keeping.
On 12th November 2007, the first Council of State meeting held under the late President Yar’Adua and as usual, Obasanjo was at the Villa. Even though he acknowledged greetings from other presidential aides, he ignored me, and it was not the first time. As it would happen, during the Council of State meeting, my seat was directly behind Obasanjo’s and as the session progressed, I grew increasingly uncomfortable. At a point, I picked up the papers in front of me and wrote Obasanjo a note seeking forgiveness for whatever I may have done to rile him so much. He read it, looked back, and smiled. About five minutes later, he handed me a piece of paper on which he wrote a terse reply: “Dear Segun, you are forgiven and restored. O.O.”
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The next day, as I walked to the office of then Chief of Staff, Major General Abdullahi Mohammed (rtd), he handed me a piece of paper, “This is a photocopy of your handwritten note to Baba. He said I should collect from you a photocopy of his own response.” That experience taught me the importance of keeping even the seemingly minutest of records. Meanwhile, despite that professed ‘forgiveness’, Obasanjo still reserved ten pages in Volume Two of ‘My Watch’ to deal me (and my late principal) heavy blows in response to my book, ‘Power, Politics and Death’ on the Yar’Adua years. But right now, I am in good standing with the tireless and perpetually restless ‘old soja’.
In ‘The Letterman’, Mojeed offers readers a treasure-trove which, as Kadaria Ahmed, points out in the blurb, “provides significant insight into the philosophy and politics (life and times, head, heart, and soul) of one of the most consequential post-colonial African leaders, former President Olusegun Obasanjo.” It is a book I strongly recommend, especially for those to whom President Obasanjo may have (at one point or another) prefaced his remark, ‘With all due respect’, before wielding the sledgehammer! Read more.
You can follow me on my Twitter handle, @Olusegunverdict and on www.olusegunadeniyi.com.
