Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said he is still unsure of his exact age, noting that his only guide comes from the ages of his surviving schoolmates, most of whom are now over 90.
Obasanjo made the remark on Sunday during the Toyin Falola Interview Series titled A Conversation with His Excellency, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo. The session was moderated by Professor Toyin Falola, with Bishop Matthew Kukah and former presidential candidate Professor Kingsley Moghalu also taking part.
Speaking about his childhood, the former president explained that he never had a verified birth record and now relies on the ages of his primary and secondary school classmates to estimate how old he might be.
He said, “I don’t know my exact age, but I could judge from those who were in school with me. I have given you an example of Olubara (Oba Jacob Olufemi Omolade) who is still alive.”
Obasanjo added that several of his schoolmates are still living, and all of them are believed to be above 90. He said, “I believe there are six of my classmates in secondary school that I know are still alive and none of them is less than 90 years of age. So I leave it to you to guess what my age could be.”
During the interview, Obasanjo also spoke about the purpose of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, saying it was created to help Nigerians keep and access important historical records.
He said the archive has already digitalised more than three million items, with another three million waiting to be processed. According to him, “When these materials are digitalised, people can have access to them. That is number one. As document preservation, we preserve the past, take note of the present and we want all these to inspire the future.”
He also revealed that the library holds many personal documents, including his school records, private letters and materials from his time in prison.
He said, “My school record cards in primary school, I have been able to keep them and when I became president and I wanted to establish the library, they were available to be exhibited.”
He noted that the collection also includes letters he wrote to the late General Sani Abacha after his son died, as well as letters he wrote to his wife while he was in prison.
Obasanjo said the goal of the library is to strengthen public memory. “Why the Presidential Library? I believe one of the things we don’t do too well in our society is that we don’t keep records too well. Institutional memory is not what we do very well,” he said.
