Former Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo has decried the size of debt being owed by the country, years after he left office in 2007.

Obasanjo recalled he left the nation with about $70 billion, including a $45 billion reserve and $25 billion in a designated “excess crude” account.

The former President spoke on Thursday in an exclusive interview with Kayode Akintemi of News Central Television.

Obasanjo, who lamented the poor quality of leadership in the country, said his government met a debt overhang of close to $36 billion but reduced it to about $3.5 to $3.6 billion before leaving office in 2007.

His words: “I came in 1999 and met $3.7 billion in the reserve. And I have told you, we were spending $3.5 billion to service the debts. That’s what we had.

“By the time we left eight years later, with debt relief, when I came in, we had a debt overhang of close to $36 billion. By the time I left, with the debt relief and clearing what we had to clear, the quantum of debt that I left was about $3.5 to $3.6 billion from over or around $36 billion.

“At the same time, the reserve that was $3.7 billion when I came in went to $45 billion. At the same time, we had what we called “Excess crude”, which is what is in excess of what we budget and what we actually sell the crude. Normally, we are conservative in budgeting, we call it “Excess crude”. So, we had in it about $25 billion. When you add that to the reserve, we are talking about $70 billion.

“Now, the point is that I left in 2007. Today between 2007 and 2024, all that amount of money has gone; all of it. Not only that, but all the money they made all that period had gone. And today, we owe more than we owe when we came to government in 1999.”

Source: https://dailypost.ng/Despite-leaving-$70bn-in-Nigeria’s-coffers-we-owe-more-debt-now-Obasanjo

Thats because GEJ was one of the few Presidents that ruled us after you

Jonathan was shit...Under him, billions was wasted for no just cause

I remember Dansuki
I remember Stella Oduah bullet proof cars

Ngozi Okonjo couldnt account for the missing $20m under her

GEJ oversaw the most corrupt practices ever in Nigerian history. The biggest heists too

We should skip his era and erase his name from our history

When they are busy electing illiterates and corrupt entities calling it wisdom.

Which educated person will go and queue to vote Buhari and Tinubu if no tribalism. We are learning the hard way now.

Whatever you left behind, your handpicked successor squandered it.

I had to say it before ipob terrorists and the headless mob put it on Buhari and Tinubu

In about six years, APC would have governor Nigeria as long as PDP did.
Ask yourself, do you think Nigeria will be better in six year with the current trend?

Smithkafors:
When they are busy electing illiterates and corrupt entities calling it wisdom.

Which educated person will go and queue to vote Buhari and Tinubu if no tribalism. We are learning the hard way now.

You people are the most tribalisitic in Nigeria. Can you imagine leaving out GEJ that squander the money and jump to Buhari and Tinubu.

JAMO84:
Whatever you left behind, your handpicked successor squandered it.

I had to say it before ipob terrorists and the headless mob put it on Buhari and Tinubu

Jonathan met an Excess crude account of over $20billion and external reserve of $45billion. He squandered every single kobo despite crude oil selling at over $100 all through his tenure. Today, folks like you with short memories are trying to tell us how Jonathan was a better president than those that came after him. Good will judge all of us on this country.

Goodluck and Buhari were the biggest mistakes we had as presidents.

May they die a miserable death

GEJ like a prodigal son squander everything without any concrete projecst on ground. Igbo will never criticise GEJ because they are brain behind that government and that's why many of us will never fall to Obidients rhetorical song.

EmperorCaesar:


Thats because GEJ was one of the few Presidents that ruled us after you

Jonathan was shit...Under him, billions was wasted for no just cause

I remember Dansuki
I remember Stella Oduah bullet proof cars

Ngozi Okonjo couldnt account for the missing $20m under her

GEJ oversaw the most corrupt practices ever in Nigerian history. The biggest heists too

We should skip his era and erase his name from our history

jonathan was a big mistake....
you need a craze person to lead a craze nation and not a passivist aka people pleaser....

Obidients are affording this trend because of GEJ. Hypocrisy everywhere.

EmperorCaesar:


Thats because GEJ was one of the few Presidents that ruled us after you

Jonathan was shit...Under him, billions was wasted for no just cause

I remember Dansuki
I remember Stella Oduah bullet proof cars

Ngozi Okonjo couldnt account for the missing $20m under her

GEJ oversaw the most corrupt practices ever in Nigerian history. The biggest heists too

We should skip his era and erase his name from our history

How to know an slowpoke with no memory.

Obaasanjo try sha, I wonder if his third term bid would have been such a bad thing after all.

But his choice of successor was abysmal to say the least. Yar'a Dua practically reversed many of the things Obj ha set in motion. He reversed the sale of the refinery to Dangotte and then set the power sector backwards forever.

To be popular he reversed the increment in petrol, of course short sighted people still hail him for that till today but in hindsight, it was a wrong move.

Then I do not even want to mention Jonathan, that one squandered the resources of the country.

I strongly agreed with BABA he did his best, HE Goodluck Jonathan squandered the entire reserve even without developing his native state of BAYELSA to impress the north,and now the same north is routing for Mr Jonathan return in 2027,all what nigeria is going through is his major contributions,in the south-south there are good people that can replace HE Goodluck.

Objs 8 years was of no significant value. No single meaningful infrastructure apart from the white elephant national stadium that was built at a ridiculously inflated cost. No roads and schs built. No hospitals built.

Do not mention Jonathan just blame your buhari for everything him and apc brought calamities to this country

How ashamed I feel about humanity, it is very sad to see that in such a tragic moment for the world and with so much difficulty that we are experiencing right now, you waste your time reading my comment.

Buhari and Tinubu are thieves. Corporate thieves worse than Anini

No thanks to Jonathan's cluelessness, and the resistance to removal of fuel Subsidy orchestrated by Buhari and Tinubu!


So, while I blame Jonathan and PDP, I blame Tinubu and Buhari far more!

These 3 people helped bury this nation!

It was because you had the best team that worked for a better economy. Soludo and Okonji Iweala were very active in shaping your economic policy.

Those economic policies were instrumental in pulling many Nigerians out of poverty.

Since 2015, lizard people took over power in Nigeria, and the results are what this country is experiencing today.

What do you expect when you have a certificate criminal like Gbola Tinubu? A certificate fraud. The only man who graduated from a secondary school, even before the school was established.

Svoboda:
Objs 8 years was of no significant value. No single meaningful infrastructure apart from the white elephant national stadium that was built at a ridiculously inflated cost. No roads and schs built. No hospitals built.

None of the president after obj can boast of performing better than him, hope you know this?

Chukwuobasanjo according to zombies

....na statistics we go chop has ended up swallowing statistics

EmperorCaesar:


Thats because GEJ was one of the few Presidents that ruled us after you

Jonathan was shit...Under him, billions was wasted for no just cause

I remember Dansuki
I remember Stella Oduah bullet proof cars

Ngozi Okonjo couldnt account for the missing $20m under her

GEJ oversaw the most corrupt practices ever in Nigerian history. The biggest heists too

We should skip his era and erase his name from our history

Reserve some lies so you can at least see the light of another day.
No govt in the history of Nigeria matched or can match the looting in Buhari's govt.
Govt that different animals were swallowing money and no scapegoat was made.
Govt that ministers were stealing money in billions.
Govt that CBN governor was more powerful than all cabinet members.
Govt that president's siblings and kinsmen accesses govt coffees anytime they want.

EmperorCaesar:


Thats because GEJ was one of the few Presidents that ruled us after you

Jonathan was shit...Under him, billions was wasted for no just cause

I remember Dansuki
I remember Stella Oduah bullet proof cars

Ngozi Okonjo couldnt account for the missing $20m under her

GEJ oversaw the most corrupt practices ever in Nigerian history. The biggest heists too

We should skip his era and erase his name from our history

so thats why buhari and tinubu come think of spoiling it patapata abi? Continue blaming gej. Gej spoiled everything, yet bag of rice never passed 10k during is time, but within bubu 1 year, rice jumped to 28k. And now, under bulaba, it is 97k for Big bull rice which is nigeria rice oooo

Lamentation

When you have barons and drug dealers in power, what are you expecting?

Every other president after OBJ were all calamity with the exception of no one but this present one is just too much over calamity

EmperorCaesar:


Thats because GEJ was one of the few Presidents that ruled us after you

Jonathan was shit...Under him, billions was wasted for no just cause

I remember Dansuki
I remember Stella Oduah bullet proof cars

Ngozi Okonjo couldnt account for the missing $20m under her

GEJ oversaw the most corrupt practices ever in Nigerian history. The biggest heists too

We should skip his era and erase his name from our history

you are mad