Obasanjo, Jonathan, Buhari are accidental leaders, says Na’Abba

Ghali Na’ Abba, speaker of the house of representatives, says all those who have presided over the country since the return of democracy in 1999,  are accidental leaders.

Former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, Goodluck Jonathan and President Muhammadu Buhari have been in charge of the country during those periods.

Speaking in Abuja during the 2016/2017 matriculation and fellowship endowment of the National Institute for Legislative Studies (NILS), Obasanjo said accidental leadership brings about trial and error in governance.

He blamed the nation’s leadership for the recruitment process.

“Circumstances at hand or situations on ground have to a large extent over the years determined who and who were elected into office in Nigeria as presidents since 1999 as against the level of preparedness on the part of the leaders in terms of clear vision and programmes obtainable in most democracies of the world culminating in accidental leadership for the country,” he said.

“I believe that not just the legislature, every arm of government that is serving the purpose of governance must invest in exposing democracy to the people. It is a sad commentary on our political life that today recruitment into leadership has been subverted by a few politicians because they deny Nigerians opportunity to contest elections and achieve their aspirations through the systematic appropriation of political parties to themselves.

“These politicians have stopped the growth of democracy. And it is true that unless democracy is allowed to grow, we cannot achieve the desired political growth, we cannot achieve the desired economic growth and we can also not achieve the desired social growth in our country. And that is why we are still in political, economic and social doldrums. We have been having successive accidental leaders since 1999.

“It is time for us to begin to understand that the more participation Nigerians enjoy in politics, the more political development we attain. And consequently economic and social development.”