… laments leadership failure could shape fate of entire generation

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has attributed Nigeria’s worsening economic challenges, growing hardship, and insecurity to poor leadership, warning that if these problems are not urgently addressed, they could have far-reaching consequences and ultimately shape the fate of an entire generation.

Obasanjo made the remarks in Abeokuta, Ogun State, on at the weekend, while delivering the keynote address at the 2026 Leadership Empowerment International Conference (LEIC), with he theme, “The Gravity of Leadership Failure & Correction Methodologies,” he sparked a broad examination of Nigeria’s deepening governance challenges.

The two-day conference was organized by the Perspective Leadership Development Institute (PLDI) in collaboration with the Olusegun Obasanjo Leadership Institute. The initiative, replicated in about 50 countries worldwide, was conceived by PLDI Founder, Prof. Olusesi Obateye.

The former President who reflected on the state of the nation, said that the quality of leadership in Nigeria was the result of hardship, insecurity, hunger as well as growing disillusionment, and institutional shortcomings currently witness by the citizens.

Although he did not explicitly mention President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, many of his comments resonated strongly with contemporary political realities, particularly in light of the Tinubu administration’s economic reforms and growing public concerns about their impact.

Obasanjo said that the greatest threat lies not simply in the possibility that leaders may err, but in the broader consequences of unchecked leadership failure, which can affect and even shape the fate of an entire generation.

He asserted that the country’s deepening problems are closely linked to the quality of leadership responsible for steering its affairs, while calling for a remedy on the leadership style before its effects become permanent and irreversible.

The two-term civilian president emphasized that true leadership extends beyond holding political office or wielding authority, rather it involves the ability to exercise power responsibly, make difficult choices in the public interest, and take responsibility for the outcomes of those choices.

” A government may present itself as a reformist, transformation or determined to rescue the country. But if it’s decisions ultimately deepen hardship, weaken institutions, erode trust or leave citizens more vulnerable, the consequences become more important measure of leadership.” he noted

Obasanjo said that consequences of poor leadership are far from theoretical and are felt directly by citizens through economic hardship, insecurity, institutional decline, dwindling public trust, social dislocation, and the steady loss of hope in the nation’s future.

He also criticised the government’s tendency to assess its performance largely by the policies it announces, projects it commissions, and reforms it introduces, without paying adequate attention to the real impact of these actions on the lives and welfare of ordinary Nigerians.

“The immediate effects of reforms and policies introduced by the government have imposed considerable pressure on households and businesses but they continue to argue that the measure are necessary for long-term economic recovery. And when a leader continue to say that hunger and hardship has been there before he was born, then that tells you clearly that there is leadership failure” the former president said.

He argued that leadership failure the current situation should be measured by the consequences of government actions rather than the intentions or promises expressed at the beginning of a tenure.

Obasanjo, however, reinstated that Nigeria’s major challenge is not a shortage of resources or potential, but the inability of those in positions of authority to transform the nation’s vast opportunities into meaningful and sustainable development.