Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, has revealed that he once considered abandoning the construction of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library in Abeokuta, Ogun State, but was persuaded to continue by the late renowned geographer, Prof. Akinlawon Mabogunje.
Naija News reports that Obasanjo made the disclosure at the launch of the Prof. Akinlawon Ladipo Mabogunje Foundation and the second public lecture held in honour of the late scholar at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, Victoria Island, Lagos.
The former president recalled that the project, which eventually cost about $150m and was inaugurated on March 4, 2017, had at one point become overwhelming.
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“When I thought a little unfortunately about the presidential library, at one location I went to him (Mabogunje) quietly and said, ‘Look, this library has become beyond what I expected.’ He asked what I wanted to do about it, and I said I wanted to stop it. He told me I dared not,” Obasanjo recounted.
The ex-president said Mabogunje’s persistence, alongside the determination of other trustees, ensured the project reached completion.
“If that library is standing today, it was the encouragement and the fear that Akin and my friends on the Board of Trustees instilled in me that I dared not stop it,” he said.
The Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, sitting on 32 hectares, houses over 42 million books, documents, and archival materials, including Obasanjo’s primary school uniform, military attire, first car, and other personal belongings.
Obasanjo, who was the Special Guest of Honour at the event, described Mabogunje as a man of exceptional community spirit and service.
“He (Mabogunje) served this country meritoriously in every capacity he was called upon,” Obasanjo said.
He added that Mabogunje played a key role in shaping major national policies, particularly the establishment of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
“Akin was a geographer, and in that regard, he helped my administration. When we were trying to establish a new capital territory, Abuja, his knowledge and profession were brought to bear. So, when you call him a nation-builder, you are absolutely right,” he said.
Obasanjo further noted that successive governments, including those he personally did not support, had benefited from Mabogunje’s expertise.
“There is no government before or after me that called on Akin and he did not help, even some governments that I personally didn’t feel encouraged to assist,” he added.
The event, which also marked Mabogunje’s third posthumous birthday, drew dignitaries such as the Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission, Dr Tunji Olaopa; Pro-Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN); and Vincent Maduka, who chaired the occasion.
Prof. Mabogunje, Africa’s first professor of geography and a respected intellectual, passed away on August 4, 2022, at the age of 90.