Ex-General Nominated in Nigeria

A former military ruler--and political prisoner--was named the presidential nominee from Nigeria’s most prominent political party Monday, putting him in a strong position to lead the nation’s latest attempt at democratic rule.

Olusegun Obasanjo, who ruled Nigeria for three years before relinquishing power to an elected government in 1979, was named the candidate from the People’s Democratic Party, which has won key victories in local government and state elections since December.

Obasanjo said he would fight to make Nigeria--a West African country submerged in poverty, ethnic divisions and debilitating corruption--”great again.”

Obasanjo’s nomination came as the national convention of Nigeria’s next largest party, the All People’s Party, dissolved into confusion and violence, bringing into question the viability of its nominee.

In a country split along regional, ethnic and religious lines, Obasanjo is an anomaly. Although a Baptist, he draws most of his support from the predominantly Muslim north, where the military is popular.

Obasanjo is well known for being the only Nigerian ruler so far to give up power voluntarily. He was also jailed from 1995 until June by then-military dictator Gen. Sani

Abacha for alleged involvement in a coup plot.

But his military past is exactly why he is widely distrusted in his home region in the south, where opposition to successive military governments has been strong. Obasanjo does not even draw much support from his own ethnic group, the Yorubas.

Nevertheless, he swept Monday’s convention vote, capturing 1,658 delegate votes in the party meeting in the northern town of Jos, nearly triple that of the next closest candidate, former Vice President Alex Ekwueme.

Reflecting the view that Obasanjo is backed by Nigeria’s military, several delegates had complained that they had been coerced by party leaders to back Obasanjo, according to Nigerian newspaper reports.

But Obasanjo said Monday that his nomination showed that former military officers deserved a chance at seeking civilian office.

“It would have been a great disservice to the cause of democracy to create the impression among serving officers . . . that a future role in politics as civilians” was closed to them, Obasanjo told convention delegates.

Battered by corruption and poverty after years of military rule, Nigeria--the world’s sixth largest oil producer--has been moving toward civilian democracy since Abacha’s death in June.

His successor, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, has vowed repeatedly to hand power over to civilians in May.