Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said he rejected a suggestion to make former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai his successor in 2007 because he considered him immature for the role.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has revealed that he declined a proposal to anoint former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, as his successor in 2007, citing immaturity as the reason.
Obasanjo made the disclosure in Abeokuta, Ogun State, on Friday during the second edition of the Ajibosin Platform symposium themed *“Importance of Leadership in Governance.”*
The former president said ex-Minister of Aviation, Osita Chidoka, had recommended El-Rufai for the presidency at the end of his tenure, but he refused. “He was pushing when I was leaving government that his friend, El-Rufai, should be brought in as my successor,” Obasanjo said.
According to him, he turned down the suggestion because he felt El-Rufai “needed to mature.” Obasanjo added, “Many years later, Chidoka came back and said, ‘You’re absolutely correct. El-Rufai needed to mature.’”
Obasanjo, however, praised Chidoka, El-Rufai, and others who served in his administration for their exceptional qualities.
Speaking on leadership, he stressed the need for training and character development, saying, “Even among armed robbers, there is apprenticeship, but in politics, there’s no training for leadership. That’s not good enough.”