Former President Olusegun Obasanjo today obtained the membership card of the Coalition for Nigeria Movement (CNM), urging all well-meaning citizens to join the movement towards building a new Nigeria.
Obasanjo registered his membership at the Ogun State secretariat of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Oke-Ilewo, Abeokuta, where the state chapter of CNM was formally launched.
The former president was accompanied by former governor of Osun State and acting National Coordinator of CNM, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, former Cross River State Governor, Donald Duke, former Minister of State for Defence, Mrs Modupe Adelaja, former military governor of Ondo State, Chief Ekundayo Balogun, and two-time gubernatorial candidate in Ogun State, Prince Gboyega Isiaka, among others.
In his address, Obasanjo expressed happiness in being a member of the new movement, which he described as a pressure group towards good governance.
The former president, however, pointed out that the movement is not a third force, but rather a popular movement to accommodate all Nigerians irrespective of political interest or affiliations.
He said, “Some people have started worrying about the problem of personalities, in which some, in other efforts, allocate positions to themselves. This movement is not about personality or personalities; but about platform and system.
“Our system so far has not given us what we must have. For the first time, we are building a platform from bottom-up. The movement’s base is the grassroots and the people – all the people.
“It is necessary to make it clear that this movement does not regard itself as a third force. It sees itself as a popular movement that can accommodate all Nigerians irrespective of their political interest or affiliations and will propel Nigeria forward.”