Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has dismissed claims by former Ogun State Governor, Chief Olusegun Osoba, that he deceived leaders of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) ahead of the 2003 general elections, insisting that the electoral defeat of most AD governors was a consequence of their political choices rather than any betrayal on his part.
In a detailed letter dated July 23, 2026, titled “Reply to Your Inaccurate Posture: ‘How Obasanjo Deceived Us in 2003′”, Obasanjo described Osoba’s account as inaccurate and misleading, saying it contained several omissions and misconceptions.
Osoba had accused the former president of misleading AD governors and Afenifere leaders during political negotiations before the 2003 elections. The allegations were contained in his 2018 memoir, Battlelines: Adventure in Journalism and Politics, excerpts of which were recently republished by online platforms.
Responding to the claims, Obasanjo firmly denied ever deceiving the AD leadership, maintaining that he had always been transparent in his political dealings.
“I take strong and serious objection to your calling me a deceiver because I deceived nobody. I always presented my case and all issues as I had them and as I understood them, no matter whose ox is gored,” he wrote.
The former president also rejected Osoba’s account of a meeting allegedly held at his Ota farm, where a delegation of AD governors and Afenifere leaders, led by the late Chief Ayo Adebanjo, was said to have presented proposals to resolve the political crisis before the elections.
Questioning the claim, Obasanjo argued that it was unrealistic to suggest that six governors from one region could dictate terms to a sitting president backed by the Federal Executive Council, the National Assembly, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), 21 PDP governors and nine governors from another political party.
“I had an Executive Council, I had a National Assembly, I had a virile political party, 21 governors and nine other governors from another party with my government, and it was AD and Afenifere that would dictate to me what my government would do? You grossly underrated me,” he said.
While acknowledging that he listened to political leaders and stakeholders, Obasanjo stressed that he never accepted political dictates from any group.
He further defended his decision to invite members of the AD into what he described as a broad-based national government after assuming office in 1999, saying the move was motivated by a desire to foster national unity rather than political weakness.
According to Obasanjo, he was encouraged by prominent Nigerians from different parts of the country to contest the presidency before joining the PDP in 1998 and consulted widely across the South-West, North and South-East before accepting the challenge.
Reflecting on his relationship with the late Afenifere leader, Chief Abraham Adesanya, Obasanjo noted that although Adesanya openly opposed his presidential ambition, they maintained mutual respect throughout.
Addressing the events surrounding the 2003 elections, Obasanjo alleged that the six AD governors had reached a separate political understanding with then Vice President Atiku Abubakar without his knowledge.
He claimed the arrangement was that the governors would encounter little or no electoral opposition in 2003 in exchange for supporting Atiku’s presidential ambition in 2007.
“You were all convinced of this anti-democratic plan and you all fell for it,” Obasanjo alleged.
He insisted that the defeat of five of the six AD governors reflected the wishes of the electorate rather than interference by the presidency, adding that only one state experienced manipulated election results.
Despite his sharp criticism of Osoba’s narrative, Obasanjo praised the former governor for allocating the land on which the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library in Abeokuta was built, describing it as one of the city’s most enduring landmarks.
