National Telescope national telescope newspaper
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has made a passionate plea for corrupt politicians to face jail time, emphasizing that “thieves cannot provide just governance”.
Speaking at the memorial lecture of Denis Joseph Slattery in Lagos, on Thursday, Obasanjo stressed the importance of accountability in governance.
In his message tilted ‘the Imperative for moral rectitude in governance,’ Obasanjo said the most important aspect of governance is “accountability”.
“If you look clinically at the people in government today, some of them should be permanently behind bars for their past misdemeanour and criminal misconduct,” Obasanjo said.
He added that government officials with questionable integrity cannot make fair decisions for the greater good.
Obasanjo also shared his personal experience with corruption, recalling how a government official normalized criminal behavior when confronted.
“Every bad thing they do is passed on as politics, which means politics has no room for morality, principles, rectitude, ethics, good character, and attributes.”
The former president emphasized that Nigeria needs transformational leaders, truth, honesty, integrity, hope, production, inclusion, and marginalization.
His speech was part of the memorial lecture organized by the Old Boys’ Association of St. Finbarr’s College.
By funmi ojo
