Foreign Policy and Leadership in Nigeria : Obasanjo and the Challenge of African Diplomacy

"Steve Itugbu, for many years a foreign policy aide to Obasanjo, draws on an extensive corpus of official documents, interviews, unpublished material and first-hand experience to explore the president's multi-faceted personality in depth. In so doing, Itugbu demonstrates that Nigeria's foreign policy has suffered through a combination of personalisation - that is subjugation to the will of Obasanjo - and the failings of bureaucratic structures. The book focuses specifically on Nigeria's decision not to intervene in Darfur in 2004, which is shown to be attributable to Obasanjo's politicking and inherent focus on shoring up his own position. Ultimately, an important opportunity for the African Union to set a precedent for humanitarian intervention was missed - a pattern which has since repeated itself across Africa. Such personalisation is common in the region, and the book therefore acts as a case study for better understanding the problems facing foreign policy making, diplomacy and leadership in Africa. Throughout, Itugbu provides a reasoned and thorough analysis of the complex and interconnected issues facing Nigeria and Africa today, and the prospects of resolving these in the future. This behind-the-scenes account of the mechanics of Nigerian foreign policy is essential reading for all students, researchers and policy makers working on Africa."--Bloomsbury Publishing. Olusegun Obasanjo has played an extraordinary role in Nigeria's modernisation-from army dictator to prisoner to democratically elected head of state. Steve Itugbu, for many years a foreign policy aide to Obasanjo, draws on an extensive corpus of official documents, interviews, unpublished material and first-hand experience to explore the president's multi-faceted personality in depth. In so doing, Itugbu demonstrates that Nigeria's foreign policy has suffered through a combination of personalisation-that is subjugation to the will of Obasanjo-and the failings of bureaucratic structures. The book focuses specifically on Nigeria's decision not to intervene in Darfur in 2004, which is shown to be attributable to Obasanjo's politicking and inherent focus on shoring up his own position. Ultimately, an important opportunity for the African Union to set a precedent for humanitarian intervention was missed-a pattern which has since repeated itself across Africa. Such personalisation is common in the region, and the book therefore acts as a case study for better understanding the problems facing foreign policy making, diplomacy and leadership in Africa. Throughout, Itugbu provides a reasoned and thorough analysis of the complex and interconnected issues facing Nigeria and Africa today, and the prospects of resolving these in the future. This behind-the-scenes account of the mechanics of Nigerian foreign policy is essential reading for all students, researchers and policy makers working on Africa. Book jacket Cover 1 Half-title 3 Title 5 Copyright 6 Contents 7 List of Abbreviations 9 Acknowledgements 13 Introduction 15 Theoretical framework 16 Book’s structure 18 1. Obasanjo, Nigeria and the AU 21 Obasanjo’s early life 21 Obasanjo in the military 22 Obasanjo Farms 25 President Olusegun Obasanjo 26 Obasanjo’s foreign forays 27 Obasanjo and Afrocentrism 32 Nigeria’s crisis of nationhood and the roots of the personalisation of foreign policy-making 35 Why Darfur? 45 Nigeria as a regional hegemon 50 Conclusion 58 2. The Impact of Darfur 59 3. The Ethical/Philosophical Motivation Driving Obasanjo’s Diplomacy on Conflicts in Africa 75 4. Investigating Obasanjo and Darfur 83 Interviews 84 Data analysis of archival materials on the conduct of foreign policy under Obasanjo 85 Afrocentrism 86 Afrocentrism and Nigeria’s quest for a UN Security Council seat 99 Diplomatic expectations 100 Personalisation of foreign policy decision-making 114 Peacekeeping 119 Strong and failed states 130 Undercurrents of diplomacy 131 5. Analysing the Interviews: Using the Public View as Commentary on the Inside View 135 Discernible patterns/continuity 163 Collegial management/personalisation of foreign policy decision-making 171 Ethical/philosophical concerns and motivations 201 Future challenges 202 Comments 215 Conclusion 217 Notes 242 Bibliography 263 Index 279