By Abbas Jimoh
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo says expecting President Muhamadu Buhari to do anything more than what he has done is akin to beating a dead horse.
He spoke in Abuja Monday at a retreat on inclusive security organized by the Global Peace Foundation and Vision Africa.
Obasanjo said: “The truth is this: President Buhari has done his best. That is what he can do. If we are expecting anything more than what he has done or what he is doing, that means we’re whipping a dead horse and there is no need.
“Then, where do we go from here? We cannot fold our hands. I believe that is part of what we’re doing here and what we continue to be doing. How do we prepare for post-Buhari? Buhari has done his best. My prayer is that God will spare his life to see his term through.
“But what should we do to make post-Buhari better than what we have now? That is our responsibility now, because it concerns all of us.”
Obasanjo also said that military action alone would not effectively end the insurgency in the country.
He said the stick-and-carrot approach should be used to tackle the security challenges.
“People talk of political will, but I talk of political action. Political will is not enough. It must be matched by political action.
“The problem of insurgency will not go away, if all we are using is the ‘stick’ (military action). We may suppress it, and keep it down a bit, but we have to use ‘carrot and stick’ together to effectively tackle the problems,” Obasanjo said.
The former leader also advocated state policing, saying “Security in Nigeria is local, it must be addressed locally. Legislation should be able to tackle that before the next election.”
