Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has launched a scathing criticism of Nigerian lawmakers, accusing them of corruption, self-enrichment, and undermining the nation’s development through what he described as “daylight unarmed robbery.”
In his newly released book, Nigeria Past and Future: Contemplations on Nigeria’s History and Vision for Tomorrow, Obasanjo compared current legislators to their predecessors in the First, Second, and Third Republics, saying the present crop is “much worse” and lacks the capacity to build the Nigeria envisioned in the constitution.
The former president said lawmakers devised constituency projects out of “hunger for illegitimate money,” inserting them into the budget without executive input, thereby distorting national planning and driving deficits. He insisted that such practices were criminal and must be treated as such.
Recalling his battles with the legislature during his military and civilian administrations, Obasanjo revealed that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Act was deliberately delayed and watered down by lawmakers who feared imprisonment once they left office. He said he reluctantly signed the bill into law after realizing that returning it to parliament would have killed it completely.
Obasanjo also alleged that legislators manipulated other bills to suit personal and political interests, citing the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) Act, which he claimed was altered after some states bribed lawmakers to exempt them from contributing to the fund.
He accused lawmakers of breaching the constitution by awarding themselves extravagant salaries and allowances, despite provisions empowering the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) to fix emoluments for public officials. He noted that this had made Nigerian legislators among the highest paid in the world.
Obasanjo disclosed that during his presidency he refused to release certain funds to the National Assembly, even when threatened with impeachment, in order to curb “profligacy and area boys’ conduct” among lawmakers.
He further condemned oversight visits by parliamentary committees, describing them as avenues for extortion. According to him, legislators routinely demand money from ministries, departments, and agencies during such visits, turning accountability exercises into another corrupt revenue stream.
