Since the election of Olusegun Obasanjo as President of Nigeria in 1999, the country has seen positive changes. The new leader managed to prevent the collapse of Nigeria, curb the predatory military elite, cancel clearly fraudulent contracts for offshore oil production, for the construction of radars at airports and telecommunications networks, and return to the treasury almost one billion dollars of money stolen by the clan of dictator Sani Abachi. Democratic changes have taken place in political and public life, and freedom has been granted to the press and television. Obasanjo regained the trust of international financial institutions and restructured foreign debts. Nigeria's international prestige has grown, and its foreign policy is being pursued in all directions, including strengthening ties with Russia. Why is it that today, when more than half of his term of legitimate rule has passed, the president is facing growing public cynicism, frustration and bitterness? A former general, a military leader who voluntarily handed over power to civilians in 1979, jailed by the Abacha dictator, Obasanjo could hardly have had the best record to lead Africa's most populous country, now home to 120 million people, in 1999. After twenty years of ruling generally incompetent and corrupt civilian and military regimes, his rise to power was greeted with a huge sense of relief inside and outside the country. The new leader's personal qualities - his deep knowledge of the armed forces and Nigerian society, his dedication to the country and democratic ideals, his ability to take into account the interests and characteristics of ethnic and religious groups, and his tenacity in achieving his goals - all made him the most suitable leader to stop the country's degradation. Nigeria has regained a central role in the continent's international relations, especially in the sub-Saharan region. Nigerian soldiers continue to form the backbone of the peacekeeping force in war-torn Sierra Leo ... Read more