Guinea Bissau leader hails Obasanjo for peace role

President Jose Mario Vas of Guinea Bissau has praised former Nigerian leader, Olusegun Obasanjo, as a “pride of the continent” for helping to resolve his country’s political crisis.

He said this Thursday after meeting Mr. Obasanjo at the presidential wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, shortly after the end of the ECOWAS meeting in Abuja.

Mr. Vas, who spoke through an interpreter after about one hour private session with President Obasanjo, said he was in Nigeria to thank Mr. Obasanjo for his mediatory role.

“We have come to visit Baba to appreciate him for coming to Guinea Bissau. You know President Buhari appointed him special envoy to come and mediate in our crisis and he was able to put everybody on the same level,” he said.

“He really played an important role in finding a political solution for the situation we faced in Guinea Bissau and I told President Buhari that I needed to come and say thank you and wish him a merry Christmas.”

He said in delivering on his mandate, Mr. Obasanjo went a step further to demonstrate his fatherly role in Africa, “when I told him about the situation in Burkina Faso. I asked Baba to look into Burkina Faso as he did for Guinea Bissau. I should be frank to say that Baba is one of the greatest leaders in Africa. We must all be proud to have him in this continent”.

Mr. Obasanjo, in his reaction after departure of his visitor at about 6.25pm said “we were able to contribute our little efforts to bring peace and stability to the country. It was just that the president seemed not to get all that he wanted and the political party leadership seemed not to get what they wanted too.

“But, we were able to resolve all these. I think he is just a man that appreciates such good deeds and that was why he came. I also asked him how far they are now doing and he said everything is going fine. And he wanted to go to my village from here, but I said not now, may be another time.”