Obasanjo: As Head of State and President, U.S. couldn’t do anything in Africa without my knowledge

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, on Monday, declared that as Head of State (1976 – 1979) and President (1999 – 2007), the United States (U.S.) would not do anything in Africa without his knowledge.
Only three U.S. Presidents had visited Nigeria – Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and George Bush (jnr).
They visited when Obasanjo was Head of State and President.
Speaking on Monday in Abeokuta, Ogun State during the Presidential Youth Mentorship Retreat organised by the Youth Development Centre, an arm of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), the octogenarian Nigerian statesman recalled how the U.S. under Carter held Nigeria in high esteem.
Carter died at 100 years and Obasanjo was one of the closest African leaders to him.
Obasanjo said right from independence, the world and indeed America saw Nigeria as Africa’s leader, saying the country lost the confidence at some point before the Murtala-Obasanjo military regime “brought it back“.
“Carter as the U.S. President would not do anything on African soil without informing the Nigerian government when I was Head of State.
“They were not taking permission from us but they will tell us that ‘they are doing this’.
“When I was President and Head of State, three American presidents came to Nigeria. They have not lost anything that they were looking for in Nigeria. What did they see? At Independence, the world saw Nigeria as a giant coming up. Soon after independence, we lost that. When Murtala and I came into government, we brought it back.
“The Americans saw that there was a possibility of Nigeria being Africa’s leader and we were on the way. When I was military Head of State, President Jimmy Carter was the President of America, he would not do anything in Africa without informing us. They are not taking permission from us but they will tell us that ‘they are doing this’.
He also recalled that a couple of the then under 40 military leaders, including himself, were always driven by the belief that Africa and Nigeria must be liberated.
“We were young. We were idealistic and we knew what we wanted for Nigeria. It was not about money. We were young, we were all under 40, all of us. We were probably a bit naïve too. But our ambition is not money”.
The retreat, with the theme: “Africa and the Conflicts in Europe and the Middle East,” attracted participating youths from across Nigeria and parts of other African nations.
Citing examples of sit-tight syndrome in Africa, Obasanjo told youths to see themselves as leaders of today and not leaders of tomorrow.
“You are leaders of today because if you leave tomorrow in the hands of leaders who are there today, they will destroy it, you won’t have your tomorrow. You can see that happening almost everywhere.
“Cameroon just had an election. My brother, Paul Biya is 92. So, what are you going to do with the youths, or are there no youths in Cameroon?
“Here (referring to Nigeria), we have #NotTooYoungToRun and they even made it into law. Those who made it into law are 80 years old and they are still running. When will you have the opportunity to run? Like I said to you yesterday, you have to be positively disruptive and I mean that.
“Look, if three people are sitting and two of them start to press the one in the middle, when it becomes uncomfortable for him, it is either he yields the space or allows them to share. You have to be positively disruptive; otherwise, you will have no role to play.
“You have the number, but the number will only matter when you use the number to your advantage,” Obasanjo advised.