Ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo Visits Jamaica

Former President of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo was on a visit to the Caribbean island of Jamaica recently.

Obasanjo who was a guest at the St Andrew home of Ambassador Carlton Masters, Jamaica’s first representative to the African Union.

Obasanjo greeted by former Jamaican Prime Minister Patterson. Source: The Jamaican Observer

 

Obasanjo was in the island for just a few days on what was described as “a friendly personal visit”.

Asked about his life after retirement, he jokingly said he was ”unemployed and unemployable”.

I don’t hold any political office; I don’t even belong to any political party now. I think I can call myself an elder statesman in Nigeria because the position that I have, of not belonging to any political party or not holding any Government or political office, allows me to be able to be adviser to all and sundry and to make informed comments on situations in the country and indeed in Africa,” he told The Jamaica Observer.

I do occasionally get invited, either by the African Union, by the Commonwealth or by ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) to be involved in election observation, or to investigate some situations in Africa. I did that in the case of South Sudan after the unfortunate violence and destructive actions in 2013,” he added.

Then I was asked to observe elections in Zimbabwe [and] Ghana. I’ve in fact now been asked to observe elections in Gambia, which are coming up towards the end of November. That’s the sort of thing I do, in addition to running my farm,” Obasanjo explained.

Obasanjo also revealed to the Jamaicans that he had seven farms – four producing poultry, and three providing maze and cassava, and said the farms employ approximately 7,000 people.

Asked whether his produce are for export, he said, ”no, they are purely for the domestic market”. “Whatever we produce, Lagos is a good market,” he added.