Nigerians react to Buhari, Obasanjo encounter in Addis Ababa

The coincidental encounter between President Muhammadu Buhari and ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo at the ongoing African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, has continued to attract comments on the social media.
Their encounter marked the first time both men met since the controversial special press statement by Mr. Obasanjo criticising Mr. Buhari’s administration and advising him not to seek re-election in 2019.
Femi Adesina, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, in a pictorial report posted on his Facebook page on Sunday, confirmed the face-to-face meeting between Buhari and Obasanjo.
He posted a group photograph of Buhari, Obasanjo, former Head of State Abdulsalami Abubakar and some serving cabinet ministers who are on Mr. Buhari’s entourage during the opening ceremony of the 30th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Sunday.
Buhari and Obasanjo met briefly before the opening ceremony of the 30th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU).
Mr. Obasanjo first went round to exchange pleasantries with other African leaders attending the summit, before looking out for Mr. Buhari among the crowd to also have a word with him.
“Their brief pleasantries became a sensation inside the Nelson Mandela Hall as photojournalists made frantic efforts to capture the moment,” a reporter covering the event stated.
However, some social media commentators expressed mixed feelings over the encounter as Obasanjo had stirred up controversies in Nigeria when he released the 13-page statement accusing Mr. Buhari of under-performance and therefore should not seek re-election in 2019.
Aliyu Ahmed said: “Buhari is too busy to allow the likes of OBJ to distract or intimidate him. He is too busy cleaning the mess hipped on Nigeria and Nigerians by the likes of row and unpolished Obasanjo (NAN).