… says ‘no successor can afford to go below your achievements’ standards’
Former governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, says Nigerians don’t appreciate good leaders until they leave office, eulogising former President Goodluck Jonathan for leaving enviable legacies behind.
Oshiomhole, who is also an ex-national chairman of the All Progressives Congress, expressed regret that he fought Jonathan out of office because of political differences and interests.
The former governor spoke during the one-year memorial lecture in honour of late Captain Hosa Okunbo, in Abuja, on Saturday.
According to him, “You (Jonathan) left legacies even though that I had cause to fight because it is politics. The legacy you have left, there is no successor who can afford to do less.
“But the logic of multi-party democracy is that even an angel can be defeated. You have set a standard that none of your successors can afford to go below.
“Part of your (Jonathan) legacies was when you launched the almajiri school and your thought was that no Nigerian child should be left on the street and also appropriated special funds.
“These ideas are not new but what we lack is the will to transform it to practice. We never know who are our friends until when we are no more.
“No one is appreciated until he or she leaves office.”
Ex-president Jonathan and the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwase III, in their speeches, decried the glorification of stomach infrastructure in Nigeria’s political culture, among others.
They described the late Captain Hosa Okunbo as a man with a large heart, the spirit of philanthropy and ardent love for the needy.
They noted that one of his legacies that will continue to endure is his decision to nurture and mentore many to become responsible members of the society.