By Johnbosco Agbakwuru
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Saturday recounted how he personally intervened to overcome widespread opposition to the Land Use Act.
Speaking at the public presentation of three books in honour of General Abdulsalami Abubakar on his 84th birthday at the Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja, Obasanjo said Abubakar engaged community leaders across Oyo State, pointing out that the effort helped secure the survival of a law that remains a key part of Nigeria’s constitutional framework.
Using the story to illustrate the importance of leadership, consultation and national service, Obasanjo said the Land Use Decree faced stiff resistance from both Northern and Southern interests when it was introduced during his military administration.
“When the Land Use Act was promulgated as a decree, a colleague came to me and said nobody liked it. The North didn’t like it, the South didn’t like it,” he recalled.
According to him, reports later emerged that the Agbekoya movement in the South-West was preparing protests against the legislation, prompting him to seek advice from elder statesman Chief Adebo.
Obasanjo said the elder statesman advised him to engage directly with the people instead of relying on intermediaries.
“I left Lagos at about 2 a.m., got to Ibadan before dawn and visited villages to meet Agbekoya leaders in their homes. By about 8 a.m., I had visited more than a dozen villages explaining the policy to them,” he said.
The former president noted that the consultations succeeded in diffusing tensions and ensuring acceptance of the policy.
“That was how we were able to suppress the protest against the Land Use Decree, and that is why the Land Use Act has endured till today,” he said.
Obasanjo, however, used the occasion primarily to celebrate Abdulsalami, whom he described as one of four military leaders whose contributions were instrumental to the survival and evolution of modern Nigeria.
He identified former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, the late General Murtala Mohammed, the late Lt.-Col. Adekunle Fajuyi and Abdulsalami as military leaders whose actions helped shape the country’s history.
According to him, Gowon’s handling of the crisis that followed the 1966 counter-coup and the civil war preserved Nigeria’s unity, while Murtala Mohammed accelerated the country’s return to democratic governance and elevated Nigeria’s standing both domestically and internationally.
He also praised Fajuyi for what he described as uncommon courage and loyalty to national unity, noting that the former military governor chose to die alongside the late Head of State, General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi, during the 1966 crisis.
Obasanjo further reflected on lessons he learned as military Head of State from respected national elders, including the late Sultan of Sokoto, Sir Kashim Ibrahim and Chief Adebo, saying their counsel helped him navigate difficult policy decisions and national challenges.
He cited how consultations with the Sultan of Sokoto helped manage the sensitive issue of government support for pilgrimage to Mecca during the economic downturn of the late 1970s, as well as concerns surrounding the participation of women in elections in Northern Nigeria.
The former president said such experiences reinforced the importance of dialogue, consultation and inclusive leadership in governance.
He congratulated Abdulsalami on his 84th birthday and on the publication of his autobiography and two other books launched in his honour, describing them as important contributions to preserving Nigeria’s political history and educating future generations on the country’s democratic journey.
