Biography
Chief Olusegun Matthew Aremu Obasanjo (born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian political and military leader, author, veteran statesman and prominent agronomist.
A retired general of the Nigerian Army, he served as Head of State of Nigeria from 1976 to 1979. He served as the first democratically elected President of the Fourth Republic from 1999 to 2007.
Olusegun Obasanjo was a member of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) from 1998 to 2015 and a member of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) since 2018.
Former President of Nigeria
Olusegun Obasanjo |
|
|---|---|
 Olusegun Obasanjo: History • Biography • Photos |
|
| Wiki Events & About Data | |
| Full name: | Olusegun Matthew Aremu Okikiola Ogunboye Obasanjo |
| Stage name: | Olusegun Obasanjo |
| Born: | March 5, 1937 (age 87) |
| Place of birth: | Ibogun-Olaogun, Abeokuta, Ogun, Nigeria |
| State of origin: | Ogun State |
| Nationality: | Nigerian |
| Height: | 1.68 meters |
| Parents: | Amos Adigun Obasanjo Bankole, Ashabi Obasanjo |
| Siblings: | Esther Adunni Eweje |
| Wife • Husband/wife: | Oluremi Obasanjo, Stella Obasanjo, Lynda Obasanjo (m. ?–1987) |
| Girlfriend • Partner: | Oruh Gold |
| The children: | Dare Obasanjo, Iyabo Obasanjo, Adeboye Obasanjo, Gbenga Obasanjo, Olubumi Obasanjo, Damilola Obasanjo |
| Job: | Politician • Businessman |
| Net worth: | 1.8 billion USD |
Early life
Olusegun Obasanjo was born in the Ibogun-Olaogun farming community on 5 March 1937. He was born to Amos Adigun Obasanjo Adekunle (father) and Ashabi Obasanjo (mother). His parents named him Olusegun Matthew Aremu Okikiola Ogunboye Obasanjo.
He was the first of nine children born to his parents. Only he and his elder sister, Esther Adunni Eweje, survived childhood. He is of the Owu tribe of the Yoruba ethnic group and is a native of Ogun State. During his childhood, he was raised as a Baptist and attended the Village Church of the Southern Baptist Church of America.
Olusegun Obasanjo’s father was a farmer and he started farming when he was a child. His farming activities only decreased when he started primary school at the age of eleven. He was an active member of the Boy Scouts during his secondary school years and did well in his studies.
Sadly, his father abandoned the family, leaving his mother to care for him and his younger sister alone. To survive in school and pay for his exams and tuition, Olusegun Obasanjo had to work as a farm laborer, fisherman, and sell sand to builders.
Education
Before moving to Baptist Boys High School, Olusegun Obasanjo attended Baptist Day School, Abeokuta. After graduating, he sat for the University of Ibadan entrance examination.
Although he was admitted, he could not afford the tuition and had to drop out.
He soon decided to become a civil engineer and joined the Nigerian Army to fulfill this dream.
Olusegun Obasanjo holds a master’s degree in Theology. He also holds a PhD in Theology from the National Open University of Nigeria.
Career
After joining the Nigerian Army in 1958, Olusegun Obasanjo was sent to the Regular Officers’ Training School in Teshie, Ghana. In September 1958, he was one of the selected cadets sent to the Mons Officers’ Training School in Aldershot, England. After completing his studies at the school, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant and received his Engineer’s Certificate. He returned to Nigeria in 1959.
In the following years, Olusegun Obasanjo would rise through the ranks of the Nigerian Army, participating in a peacekeeping mission in the Congo (1960–1961) and the Nigerian Civil War, where he played a senior role in the fight against the Biafran Army. He rose to international prominence after participating in the coup that overthrew General Yakubu Gowon in 1975.
A new military government was formed with General Murtala Mohammed as Head of State and Olusegun Obasanjo as Chief of Staff (in effect the second in command in the country). It was a ruling triumvirate joined by Theophilus Danjuma as Chief of Army Staff.
After Murtala Mohammed was assassinated in a failed coup, Olusegun Obasanjo was appointed Head of State of the country by the Supreme Military Council. He continued Murtala Mohammed’s policies throughout his regime and planned to return the country to civilian rule.
He oversaw the creation of a new constitution and organized the 1979 elections that ushered in the Second Republic. He handed over control of the country to the democratically elected president, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, on October 1, 1979. He then retired to Ota, Ogun State, and became actively involved in agribusiness. During this time, he wrote four books and served as an elder statesman in Nigeria and other African countries, working to resolve national conflicts.
Olusegun Obasanjo was arrested and convicted of treason by the Sani Abacha regime. He was accused of being one of the main instigators of a coup to overthrow the current regime. Olusegun Obasanjo, who denied the charges and claimed innocence, has been critical of the Sani Abacha regime since it came to power in 1993.
He spent the next three years in prison and was only released after the death of Sani Abacha in 1998. As the military regime of Abdulsalami Abubakar began preparations to return the country to democracy, Olusegun Obasanjo decided to enter politics. He emerged as the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and contested the general elections. He won the election and was sworn in as President of Nigeria, ushering in the Fourth Republic.
Upon assuming office, Olusegun Obasanjo depoliticized the military, increased the size of the Nigerian Police Force (NPF), and privatized several public enterprises to cut the country’s debt and revive the economy. He was a key figure in the founding of the African Union and served as its chairman from 2004 to 2006.
Olusegun Obasanjo was re-elected as President of the country in 2003. He sought to change the constitution to run for a third term, but members of the National Assembly blocked the move. He was succeeded as President by his handpicked successor, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. After leaving office, he became Chairman of the PDP Governing Council and voluntarily resigned in April 2012.
Olusegun Obasanjo is the founder and Chairman of Obasanjo Farms, a poultry and livestock farm in Nigeria. The farm has several branches and employs thousands of Nigerians.
Book
- My Watch Episode 1: Early Life and the Army
- My Watch Episode 2: Politics and Public
- My Watch Episode 3: Then and Now
- My order
- Nzeogwu
- The animal called Man
- Not my intention
- Africa in perspective
Personal life
Although Olusegun Obasanjo was a born-again Christian, he lived a polygamous life for many years. He married his first wife, Oluremi Obasanjo, in 1963. They were married in London. She was the mother of his first child, Iyabo Obasanjo, who was born in 1967. The couple divorced in the mid-1970s.
In the 1970s, he began a relationship with NTA reporter Gold Oruh, with whom he had two children. He married Stella Obasanjo in 1976, and she bore him three children. Stella Obasanjo was his second wife.
Olusegun Obasanjo also had a relationship with Lynda Obasanjo Soares, who was murdered by armed robbers in 1986. Lynda Obasanjo was a businesswoman before her death.
Olusegun Obasanjo has six children: Dare Obasanjo, Iyabo Obasanjo, Adeboye Obasanjo, Gbenga Obasanjo, Olubumi Obasanjo and Damilola Obasanjo.
Net worth
A successful agriculturist, Olusegun Obasanjo also has several thriving businesses around the world.
Olusegun Obasanjo’s net worth is estimated to be US$1.8 billion.
