'I ENJOYED BEING INSULTED WHILE I WAS SITTING PRESIDENT'- Obasanjo

Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo has stated
that he enjoyed being insulted as a sitting
president by his critics and opposition.
Obasanjo said those published insults against his
persons and character were kept in the archives
at his presidential library in Otta.
He said, “If you visit the Olusegun Obasanjo
Presidential Library in Abeokuta, you will find
thousands of archived newspaper comics and
columns meant to spite and insult my person
even as a sitting President. No individual or group
of people was ever queried or jailed or repressed
for expressing this freedom. Rather, I encouraged
them because I derived fun and pleasure from the
humour as I know who I am and nobody needs to
tell me who and what I am not.”
The Otta farmer made this disclosure while
presenting his keynote address at the first
international conference of the African Studies
Association of Africa, ASAA, entitled, “African
Studies in the Twenty-First Century, Past, Present
and Future” which held at the International
Conference Centre of the University of Ibadan.
Obasanjo while describing himself as unrepentant
optimist on a brighter future of Africa, reiterated
that the continent will soon wriggle out of bad
governance and corruption which seemed to be a
syndrome in the continent.
He added, “the stain and stench of slave trade,
the cold war, poor governance made some
Africans to laud the good old days of colonialism,
corruption and problem of human rights
violations.
“In all these, I am delighted that the so-called
great European historians who professed that
Africa has no history lived to realise that African
history and culture had impacts and ramifications
on other parts of the world including theirs”, he
said.
“The right to free speech, the right to express a
different view point, the right to draw personal
conclusions based on self-instituted research and
to querry certain cultural practices and beliefs are
part of the huge liberty that the continent of
Africa now boasts of,” Obasanjo said.
Other notable people at the occasion included
Professor Toyin Falola, a keynote speaker, the
Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan,
Professor Isaac Adewole was represented by the
Deputy Vice Chancellor (Administration), Professor
EmilOlorun Aiyelari, the Deputy Vice Chancellor
(Academic) Professor Mrs Gbemisola Oke, the
Director of the African Studies of the University of
Ibadan, Professor Dele Layiwola, Professor Femi
Osofisan, Dr. Sola Olorunfemi, Dr. Olaoluwa
Shenayon and many others.