Few details on Obasanjo's game plan

With just days to go before Olusegun Obasanjo is sworn in as Nigeria's new democratically elected president, little detail has emerged on the programmes his administration plans to adopt to heal a country brutalised by 15 years of military misrule, analysts say. "The president-elect has not been talking about specifics because he's not in office," Obasanjo's campaign manager, Onyema Ugochukwu, told IRIN on Wednesday. "He's careful to get there first, but things will move quickly after that." However, for civil liberties and opposition groups, the concern is that Obasanjo - a former military head of state who handed over to a civilian government in 1979 - may not offer fundamental change. In his presidential campaign Obasanjo - a southwesterner who was jailed for three years by the regime of late General Sani Abacha - was portrayed as the candidate of the military and the north, which has historically dominated Nigerian politics. He could therefore not be expected to lead the country's transformation, his critics said. "What Nigeria wants now is a government that is transparent and accountable. Whether we'll get that is another matter," leading human rights lawyer Olisa Agbakoba told IRIN. "The question is, will Obasanjo rely on the interests that put him there, or will he rely on civil society and the people?" The problems facing his new administration after he is sworn in on Saturday are daunting. Nigeria has sunk into economic despair, the basis of national unity is under question, corruption has become a socially acceptable way of life, and a politicised military casts a shadow over the country's re-embrace of democracy, analysts say. "There will be change, definitely," Ugochukwu insists. "Obasanjo is his own man. If I was looking for somebody to manipulate I wouldn't pick him. He is going to give leadership. He's going to be fighting corruption, he's going to be fighting to educate Nigerians about their rights, and their duties." According to Agbakoba, the cabinet team Obasanjo chooses will provide an indication of his intentions: "If he's high on good governance and anti-corruption, there must be a radical departure from the types of people we've seen in the past. If he's not on top of the situation Nigeria will sink."