Ex president, Obasanjo reflects on life, legacy, unknown age

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said he does not know his exact age but estimates it based on the ages of his surviving schoolmates.

Speaking on Sunday during the Toyin Falola Interviews series titled “A Conversation with His Excellency, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo,” he said six of his secondary school classmates are still alive, and none of them is under 90 years old.

“I don’t know my exact age, but I could judge from those who were in school with me… So I leave it to you to guess what my age could be,” Obasanjo said.

On the purpose of the Presidential Library, which he set up to preserve historical records and institutional memory, Obasanjo said, “We have digitised over 3 million materials, and we still have about the same number left to digitise. The idea is that people can access these records… We preserve the past, take note of the present, and hope to inspire the future.”

The library contains his school records, letters he wrote while in prison (including to his wife and a letter to the late General Sani Abacha after his son’s death), manuscripts of books he wrote, and even records of crops he planted while incarcerated.

“Why the Presidential Library? One thing we don’t do well in our society is keeping records; institutional memory is not something we maintain properly,” he added.

Despite this uncertainty about his age, Obasanjo celebrated his 88th birthday in March.