Obasanjo: ‘I don’t know my real age, guess it yourself’

By Paul Dada

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo officially turned 88 in March this year, but he  does not really know his actual age.

Obasanjo admits that he is unsure of his true age, explaining that he relies on the ages of his surviving schoolmates to make an educated guess.

Speaking on Sunday during the Toyin Falola Interviews series, titled “A Conversation with His Excellency, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo,” the former President noted that six of his secondary school classmates are still alive, and none of them is younger than 90.

“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,” he said.

Obasanjo also used the platform to shed light on the purpose of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, which he said he built to serve as a national repository of historical documents and institutional knowledge.

According to him, more than three million archival materials have already been digitised, with another three million awaiting the same treatment.

He explained that the library houses an extensive collection of personal and public records, including his primary and secondary school documents, letters written during his time in prison,  among them messages to his wife and a condolence letter to the late General Sani Abacha after the loss of his son, as well as manuscripts of his books and detailed records of crops he cultivated while incarcerated.