It is safe to say Chief Obafemi Awolowo, a Nigerian nationalist and statesman who played a key role in Nigeria’s independence, was a man who saw tomorrow.
Unlike clerics of today who make predictions that never come to past, Awolowo have made predictions and many of them have been fulfilled.
He predicted the emergence of Goodluck Jonathan as president and the conflict that is ongoing in the northeast of Nigeria started by the Islamist sect, Boko Haram.
Some of Awolowo’s prediction date back as far as 1947. Thanks to Obafemi Awolowo Foundation, Nigerians can enjoy some of the most popular quotes and prediction by Awolowo.
Here are some quotes by the former Federal Commissioner of Finance.
Awo on an Ijaw Presidency of Nigeria
“I look forward to the day – not in the far distant future – when an Ijaw would be President of our Republic, and a Birom his Vice or vice versa.”
– Speech at the UPN’s First Campaign (1978): In Voice of Wisdom (1981)
– Speech at the UPN’s First Campaign (1978): In Voice of Wisdom (1981)
Awo On Future Conflicts
“The seed for a future minority problem in the North has been sown by the Government. It will grow with growing political consciousness on the part of those who settle permanently in the North.”
– Path to Nigerian Freedom. 1947
“The seed for a future minority problem in the North has been sown by the Government. It will grow with growing political consciousness on the part of those who settle permanently in the North.”
– Path to Nigerian Freedom. 1947
Awo On The Risk That The Few Rich Are Running“We have in our midst about 1,000 rich Nigerians who in the past cleverly rigged the sources of the wealth of our nation, and we are now tactically poised to oligopolise all the munificent avenues of riches that may supervene now and in the future. The rich, and the highly-placed in business, public life, and government, are running a dreadful risk in their callous neglect of the poor and down-trodden.”
– Address delivered to Ondo House of Assembly (/980): Voice of Wisdom, 1981.
– Address delivered to Ondo House of Assembly (/980): Voice of Wisdom, 1981.
Awo’s Self-Assessment As A Leader“While many men in power and public office are busy carousing in the midst of women of easy virtue and men of low morals, I, as a few others like me, am busy at my desk thinking about the problems of Nigeria and proffering solutions to them. Only the deep can call to the deep.”
Awo on State Police“Under my proposals, Police is a residual subject, because the immediate problem of maintaining law and order can only be properly and more effectively tackled by the State Government.”
– The Strategy and Tactics of the Peoples’ Republic of Nigeria, 1970.
– The Strategy and Tactics of the Peoples’ Republic of Nigeria, 1970.
Awo on Population As Basis Of Sharing Revenue“In a country where the accuracy of the census figures is so much in acrimonious dispute, it is gross and aggravating provocation to urge that population should be used as a basis of sharing what belongs to others who are much fewer in number.”
-The Strategy and Tactics of the People’s Republic of Nigeria, 1970.
-The Strategy and Tactics of the People’s Republic of Nigeria, 1970.
Awo On Creation of More States for Minorities“The creation of the Mid- West State will be the beginning of a journey which may be short or long but which will irresistibly bring Nigeria to the goal of true federalism and more States, and of individual freedom and happiness for all our people.”
– Awolowo and Nigerian Federalism, 1988.
– Awolowo and Nigerian Federalism, 1988.
Awo On Nigeria As Created By The British“It is incontestable that the British not only made Nigeria, but also hand it to us whole on their surrender of power. But the Nigeria, which they handed over to us, had in it the forces of its own disintegration. It is up to contemporary Nigerian leaders to neutralize these forces, preserve the Nigerian inheritance, and make all our people free, forward-looking and prosperous. ”
– The Peoples’ Republic, 1968.
– The Peoples’ Republic, 1968.
Awo on Self-Seeking African Leaders
“Africa has produced more self-seeking leaders than public-spirited ones. But, thank goodness, the masses of the people remain largely unspoilt and uncorrupted, and are developing fast the technique of differentiating gold from lead and real metal from dross. What is more, they have begun to show their preparedness for very rough action against any political leader who may be caught in the game of public trickery and fraud.”
– The People’s Republic, 1968.
“Africa has produced more self-seeking leaders than public-spirited ones. But, thank goodness, the masses of the people remain largely unspoilt and uncorrupted, and are developing fast the technique of differentiating gold from lead and real metal from dross. What is more, they have begun to show their preparedness for very rough action against any political leader who may be caught in the game of public trickery and fraud.”
– The People’s Republic, 1968.
Awo On “The Courage To Look”
“The gloom of the world is but a shadow, and there is radiance in the darkness, if we could butsee. To be able to see this radiance, all you need to do is to cultivate the courage to look, and theinsight to apprehend the light which shines, at all times and in all places, for those who make Truth the object of their daily pursuit.”
Speech to University Graduands (1967): In Voice of Courage, 1981
“The gloom of the world is but a shadow, and there is radiance in the darkness, if we could butsee. To be able to see this radiance, all you need to do is to cultivate the courage to look, and theinsight to apprehend the light which shines, at all times and in all places, for those who make Truth the object of their daily pursuit.”
Speech to University Graduands (1967): In Voice of Courage, 1981
Culled from Obafemi Awolowo Foundation
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Any individual or so called pastor that failed to foresee danger happening to himself or his household must be a fake human in that predictions field.Awolowo didn't even see his own death coming at the time he died,now you want people to believe he saw the future?Jesus predicted his own life and death,that's what we know as God guided predictions
ReplyDeleteAwo is indeed a true leader who saw tomorrow because his predictions are really true in our time, hence our leaders should learn to rule d people right
ReplyDeleteAwo committed genocide.
DeleteAnonymous 12.21, i don't truly understand what you mean by true leader. A leader that caused kwashiok in the eastern region during biafran war through his infamous policy? If he is a leader, he was a regional one because his policies were not beneficial to the nigerian populace. He had a regional interest and mind you his was just a wishful thinking and never a prophecy nor prediction.
ReplyDeleteYou should read history with an unbiased mind and ask the right questions .
DeleteHow do you win a war when you are feeding and arming the enemy?
You should also ask what happened to all the food sent in by the Red Cross despite Awo's so called advice? How come during and after the war the biafran army generals and their children looked well fed while the masses all looked malnulourished?
Do you know the definition of genocide?
DeleteI suppose he predicted the death of 3 million people with his policies because he thought the north will let him be president. Imagine this so called national leader killed half as much as Hitler and even more than half with his 20 pounds policy. Imagine how backward we africans are that we can think to call such a person a hero. What an emotionally bankrupt set of tribal bigots who ignore facts just because they are of the same tirbe as him. That is why we no more teach history in class because we cannot tell he truth about these so called heroes.
DeleteAll negative rejoinders of Awolowo are nothing but bundles of sentiment they stem from the platform of a myopic mind and hatred. Nobody can ever predict his death Jesus knew He came purposely to die for humanity, Jesus is God as such Omniscient. To compare or equate Awolowo with Jesus further reveals the foolishness in the heart of whoever made such comparison or equation. No leader has ever achieved such success feat Awolowo has achieved in our nation. Many became professors due to his free education programme, many farmers rose to the zenith of their vocation due to his agricultural programme. Our per capital income in those days was $3,000 how much is it today? Less than $1,000. Awolowo masterminded most of the infrastructural development in our nation today. Think of the first TV in West Africa, the first high scraper, the first stadium etc. What do you people want again? Is he God that he had to live without flaws? Who will satisfy you human beings? Ojukwu who initiated biafra statehood and fought for its botched actualization eulogized Awolowo as the best president Nigeria never had. As a commissioner of finance in Nigeria you expect him to have abated Biafra? You that said this is truncated in your mind, you are not sensible enough.
ReplyDeleteSo he was a hero to Yoruba and evil person to the igbos. That cannot be a national hero and it shows we are not one nation.
DeleteThe person does not know the meaning genocide, he/she just want to blow inapplicable grammar. Awolowo, a Nigerian working for his country would have been so unpatriotic to ask his country men to be feeding his country's opponents so as to give them strength to fight, do you call that genocide?
ReplyDeleteAwolowo is a confutionist. God Almighty denied him being the President of Nigerian until his death.
ReplyDeleteYou kill 3 million citizens and what to be president of the same people? Only in a zoo
ReplyDeleteYou cannot reason with the Ibos they are not part of this world. They are gready and always look to reap where they have not sown. Now these idiots are looking to create a Biafra Empire with them as they rulers and the minorities from the Rivers, Cross River and others from the old Eastern Region as the ruled and oppressed. These people will never forget what the Ibos did to them in the old Eastern Region. That was why they refused to join them in the old Civil War in the firstt place.
ReplyDeleteYou that call Awolowo a confutionist don't know what you are saying because you are already a confused person because there is no English word called confutionist.
ReplyDelete