Elder statesman and former President of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo has said that there should be no age limit regarding who leads the nation. The former president made this statement while responding to the Senate’s recent constitutional review where a reduction in the age for Presidential candidates is being proposed from 40 years to 35 years.
According to Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, age should not be a barrier so long as such a leader was the choice of the people. He said for instance that General Yakubu Gowon for instance was 33 years when he became the Head of State
Obasanjo said “Quite frankly, if we put minimum age, why are we not putting maximum age? If they put minimum age and then say that even if you are 90, you can be President, because there is no maximum age limit to being President. To me, there should be no age limit. Gen. Gowon became the Head of State at the age of 33, I became the Head of State at 39…I believe there should be no age limit; let the people decide,” Obasanjo said.
The former president said the most important thing in choosing a leader was the person’s capabilities and competency at leadership rather than focusing on the person’s age.