Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, has expressed deep concern that Nigeria’s 15-year battle against Boko Haram insurgency has now lasted far longer than the 30-month civil war, warning that the country cannot win the fight without overhauling its military training, intelligence system and technological capabilities.
Obasanjo spoke on Sunday during a virtual appearance on the Toyin Falola Interviews, where he featured as the guest alongside Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah and former CBN Deputy Governor, Dr Kingsley Moghalu.
The former president said, “Civil War lasted 30 months. This fight against insurgency and criminals has lasted almost 15 years. That should worry anybody.”
Obasanjo argued that the Nigerian military remains structured for conventional warfare, which is ill-suited for the asymmetric, guerrilla-style conflicts ravaging the country.
“Training is key. What the military is trained for is conventional war; you plan, you go and deal with the enemy. But the people we are dealing with now are fleeting targets, or they live among the people,” he said.
He cited examples of nations such as Colombia, suggesting Nigeria may need external specialised training teams or send personnel abroad for exposure to modern counter-insurgency techniques.
“There is no shame in that. It is a specialised kind of training,” he added.
Failed 2011 Peace Window With Boko Haram
Obasanjo also revisited his 2011 mission to Maiduguri to understand the roots of the insurgency. He said Boko Haram leaders expressed a willingness to engage in dialogue and even proposed a temporary ceasefire.
“I reported back that they were ready to talk, that they agreed to a 21-day ceasefire for the government to reach out. Government never reached out,” he said.
The former president criticised the country’s defence procurement system, noting that expecting the military to purchase its own equipment undermines efficiency.
“Then you ask the military to buy equipment. It is not done. The whole thing is an industry,” he lamented.
Obasanjo said the fight against insurgency must also address internal sabotage and inadequate intelligence.
He questioned whether Nigeria currently enjoys sufficient trust from friendly nations to share actionable intelligence, warning that internal moles and compromised systems pose serious threats.
“When I handled the Niger Delta crisis, our helicopters’ movements were being leaked as we were taking off. We had to deal with such people within the force,” he said.
Obasanjo criticised the tendency to throw money at security and developmental challenges rather than address deep-rooted grievances.
He narrated how a Niger Delta militant once told him he turned to violence after graduating with a chemical engineering degree, but finding no job.
“That was what led me to start quarterly stakeholder meetings. But instead of sustaining that, they started sharing money. That does not solve any problem,” he said.
Govt Should See Security As National Issue – Obasanjo
Earlier, he said security must be treated strictly as a national priority, stressing that Nigeria should not hesitate to seek global support when necessary.
“The government should see security as a national issue. And if we are incapable, let us ask the global community. The global community has an interest in our peaceful existence,” he said.
Obasanjo, who spoke on political coordination among past leaders, stated that it is entirely within the incumbent president’s discretion to convene the Council of State or seek advice from any Nigerian or foreign expert.
The interview also featured Bishop Matthew Kukah of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto and Prof. Kingsley Moghalu, a former CBN deputy governor.
Obasanjo also spoke on Congo’s protracted instability, describing it as “majorly internal” and insisting it cannot be blamed solely on Rwanda. He said the roots of the crisis date back to 1960.
Tracing the origins of the Rwanda–Congo tensions, he said, “The conflicts and disputes between Rwanda and DR Congo stemmed from the genocide that happened in Rwanda about 30 years ago. Some of those who committed the genocide went into Congo. That formed one aspect of the problem.”
He added that an even older fault line continues to complicate relations, “Before independence, there were Rwandis who moved into Congo. Some of them were third or fourth generation, but up till now, they have not been fully absorbed into Congo as citizens. These two are critical issues of contention between Congo and Rwanda.”
However, Obasanjo insisted that Congo’s crisis goes far beyond external actors.
“There are several internal issues within Congo itself. Those issues have been there before independence, and they were the issues that actually took the UN peacekeeping force into Congo in 1960,” he said.
Recalling his own role in that historic intervention, he said, “I was a member of the Nigerian contingent in 1960. I was in Casongo.”
Decades later, when he was appointed UN Special Envoy to Eastern Congo and the Great Lakes Region, he said those same problems had remained unresolved.
Obasanjo said, “When Ban Ki-Moon appointed me as an envoy to Eastern Congo and the Great Lakes region, one of the things he did was to visit and call the president of the Great Lakes region. I told him that on the 5th of October 1960, I was part of the Nigerian contingent. I told them that some of the problems of Congo then are still the problems of Congo today. This was in 2010.”
He recalled a striking diplomatic exchange between Rwandan President Paul Kagame and former Congolese President Joseph Kabila.
The former President added, “President Kagame, who was not on talking terms with Kabila, said that the problems of Congo in 1960, when President Obasanjo went there as a young officer, are still the problems of Congo today. He said he was just two years old in 1960, and people claimed that he was the cause of the problems in Congo.
“At that meeting, President Kabila said, ‘Please, stop where you are, President Kagame. In 1960, you were two years old, but I was not yet born. So if anybody says that I am the problem of Congo, it would be a lie.’ Everybody at the meeting laughed. But the problem remained.
“The problem of Congo is majorly internal, and unless Congo solves its internal problems, the eyes of the international community will remain there.”
He highlighted the scale and complexity of Congo’s structural challenge: “Congo is the only country in Africa that has two time zones. Congo is the only country in Africa that is bordered by nine other countries and the sea. Congo’s land mass is two and a half times the area of Nigeria, and yet it is about one-third of the population of Nigeria.
“Congo is being run like a unitary form of government. No real federalism. It is too large in land mass to be run as a unitary form of government.”
Obasanjo also drew attention to heavy geopolitical interests around Congo’s vast resources, “Whenever President Donald Trump talks about the Rwanda and DR Congo issues, he never misses the opportunity to talk about strategic minerals, and America’s interest is mainly strategic minerals.
“When the US was heavily involved, the Chinese were heavily involved, France was heavily involved, the UAE was heavily involved.
“For the Chinese, strategic minerals are very important. The number of Chinese in the forests of Congo is alarming. And their government must know about their presence.”
Yet he maintained that ultimate responsibility lies with the Congolese leadership. He said, “It is up to the government of Congo to know that the world is interested in what it has and how it would manage it.”
Obasanjo also shared a private moment with the leaders of Rwanda and Congo during his mediation efforts.
The elder statesman said, “I went to the two leaders of both Rwanda and Congo. I said, ‘Look, at this stage, do you really think we have a role to play?’ Both of them separately said, ‘Please, you have to stay put because you have a role to play. These outsiders will do their bid, but the real job will be done by ourselves.’
“Congo has no military organisation that can defend its territorial integrity and protect its people. All the leaders before the current leader have not built a military organisation for the country. They have built presidential guards to protect themselves.”
Obasanjo insisted that no external power can rescue Congo from itself.
“If you look at the problem of the country in its stark reality, it can only be solved by the leaders of the country if they are realistic,” he said.
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