# Yemi Osinbajo

Oluyemi Oluleke "Yemi" Osinbajo GCON (born 8 March 1957) is a Nigerian politician and a lawyer, who is the current Vice President of Nigeria, in office since 29 May 2015. He is also a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Professor of Law and until his inauguration as Vice President, a Senior Partner with SimmonsCooper Partners, a commercial law practice.

## Quotes

* We don't have all the time in the world with oil. We have to use oil while it makes sense to do so.
** "Running for presidency “not on the cards”, says Osinbajo". businessday.ng. 9 October 2017.
* Hate speech is a specie of terrorism.
** "Hate speech is a specie terrorism – Osinbajo". ynaija.com. 17 August 2017.
* No economy can tolerate the level of corruption seen in Nigeria without consequences.
** "“No economy can tolerate the level of corruption seen in Nigeria without consequences”". pulse.ng. 21 September 2016.
* We all know that Nigerian jollof rice is the best anywhere. We beat the Ghanaians and Senegalese hands down.
** "Osinbajo Says Nigerian Jollof Rice Is Best Across The World". thewillnigeria.com. 1 May 2017.
* Here in Nigeria, what makes the news is conflict between the executive and the legislature.
** "Opening Ceremony Of The 16th Commonwealth Speakers And Presiding Officers Conference". yemiosinbajo.ng. 25 July 2017.
* There must be more rigorous enforcement of rules promoting transparency in the international banking and financial systems, especially more stringent KYC rules on customer identity, source of wealth, and even country of origin.
** "Osinbajo accuses foreign countries of frustrating efforts to recover loot". nigeriannewsdirect.com. 31 March 2017.
* Corruption and illicit financial flows are different. But they really must be twinned. This is because, for practical purposes, it is an eminently more sensible approach to treat most of the sources of illicit financial flows as corrupt activity, within a broader use of the term.
** "Vice President says corruption fueled Boko Haram insurgency". pulse.ng. 30 March 2017.
* Tracing, freezing, and return of stolen assets has proved in many cases to be exceptionally difficult for most African countries.
** "VP calls for robust global framework on repatriation of stolen assets". pulse.ng. 31 March 2017.
* There is no wisdom of man that can change men or change nations; it is the power and wisdom of God that can.
** "God has plans for Nigeria – Osinbajo". pulse.ng. 15 October 2017.
* We in Nigeria have seen just how difficult it is to get back stolen assets from the international financial system, such as banks that ought not have received those funds in the first place if even the most routine questions were asked.
** "Recovering Stolen Assets Is Strenous – VP Osinbajo". pulse.ng. 31 March 2017.
* It doesn't matter where one starts from; it doesn't matter at all where you start from. It is how committed you are, how determined you are, and how hardworking you are that will ultimately make the difference.
** "Vice President Yemi Osinbajo Visits Rochas Foundation College Of Africa". 247ureports.com. 25 October 2017.
* The carnal nature of man is that he places his tribe above others, but the only basis for the power and unity of the church is that there is no Jew or Gentile.
** "God has plans for Nigeria – Osinbajo". pmnewsnigeria.com. 15 October 2017.
* I am so pleased and happy, and I believe that the Almighty God has a plan for our nation by putting us in strategic positions in politics, business, and everywhere.
** "God has plans for Nigeria – Osinbajo". leadership.ng. 16 October 2017.
* The fundamental for the sustainable growth of Nigeria is not in the hydro-carbon industry but in agriculture.
** "Niger State can feed Africa – Osinbajo". agronigeria.ng. 16 August 2017.
* With 10 per cent of Nigeria's total land mass, 80 per cent of which is arable, Niger state symbolises the hope and greatness of Nigeria and has potential to feed the continent.
** "Nigeria: Niger Has Capacity to Feed Africa - Osinbajo". allafrica.com. 15 August 2017.
* Nigeria is still grappling with the negative consequences of the use of opacity by senior members of government and their cronies between 1993 and 1998, awarding themselves juicy contracts in the extractive industry.
** "Nigeria still suffering from Malabu scandal, says Osinbajo". thecable.ng. 23 October 2017.
* An active and vibrant railway system confers many benefits on the society.
** "Lagos-Ibadan rail project ready in 2018 — Osinbajo". premiumtimesng.com. 7 March 2017.
* Railway network will support efforts to diversify the economy and enhance our export potentials.
** "Lagos-Ibadan rail project reduces train services by 75 percent". businessday.ng. 4 March 2020.
* Any nation that does not emphasize integrity will always fail.
** "Osinbajo tasks citizens on integrity, hard work to enhance nation’s development". guardian.ng. 10 January 2018.
* The values of integrity and hard work are necessary for the development of our nation.
** "We must embrace values of integrity, hard work to succeed as a nation". legit.ng. 10 January 2018.
* You don't have to cheat or steal to be successful in life, but you must be ready to convert your challenges to opportunity.
** "Osibanjo Asks Youths To Embrace Integrity, Hardwork". channelstv.com. 9 January 2018.
* If people are stealing the resources of this nation, if people are taking bribes - if judges or persons in authority, whether they are judges or whoever they may be in government, ministers, whoever, if they are taking bribes - it attacks the fundament of our existence as a society.
** "#AskVPOsinbajo: Media Chat with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo". pode.ng. 25 July 2017.
* The most important thing is that we are on the right path, and we will not deviate from it, even in the face of strong temptation to choose temporary gains over long-term benefits.
** "We won’t take short-cuts to national restoration – Osinbajo". punchng.com. 29 May 2017.
* Our vision is for a country that grows what it eats and produces what it consumes. It is for a country that no longer has to import petroleum products and develop a lucrative petrochemical industry.
** "Acting President Osinbajo’s 30 Key Points on Democracy Day". economicconfidential.com. 29 May 2017.
* Our diversity as a people united is also our potential to transform our large deposits of mineral resources and use same for national development.
** "Nigeria sets top 16 largest economies target". punchng.com. 18 July 2017.
* If the church says we will not accept you here or that we will expose you if you are stealing the resources of the country or stealing the resources of a private company or other establishment, where you work, then we would not have the type of problem that we have in this country. If only the church does so - just the church.
** "Osinbajo Tells Church to Reject Treasury Looters". thisdaylive.com. 19 June 2017.
* Many would say the reason why they steal is because they want to have an arsenal for future political exploits. It is a lie. It is greed. In any case, even if you want to do that, you have no right to do it.
** "Osinbajo to churches: Kick out thieves in your midsts". dailytrust.com.ng. 18 June 2017.
* If the church says you are not allowed to steal, and we will ostracize you in our midst if you did, if what a man has does not measure up to what he has, if we found that a man has more money than he should have, if a man is earning a salary of a civil servant or a public servant and he has houses everywhere, we have to hold him to account.
** "Osinbajo Tells Church to Reject Treasury Looters". thisdaylive.com. 19 June 2017.
* If this government is doing the right thing by fighting corruption, the Church should support it.
** "“I want to see a great Nigeria”, Buhari tells Osinbajo". premiumtimesng.com. 30 September 2016.
* In stabilizing the macroeconomic environment, we have focused on aligning fiscal with monetary policy and nudging the central bank toward the objective of more market-determined exchange rates.
** "Nigeria May Lift Foreign-Currency Restrictions on 41 Imports". bloombergquint.com. 7 May 2017.
* It is not possible for one tribe to dominate another based on the way God has structured the country.
** "Buhari will do everything to make Nigeria great - Osinbajo". vanguardngr.com. 29 September 2016.
* The reason we have Christian president and Muslim vice president or Muslim president and Christian vice president is to have balance.
** "“I want to see a great Nigeria”, Buhari tells Osinbajo". premiumtimesng.com. 30 September 2016.
* If there is one person in Nigeria that believes that petroleum prices should not go up by one naira, it is President Buhari.
** "Fuel Price Increase: Buhari had no choice-VP Osinbajo". pmnewsnigeria.com. 17 May 2016.
* Great economies and great nations, prosperity, and abundance of nations and communities are created by men and not spirits.
** "Nigeria'S Vice-President Tells Civil Servants To 'Stop Praying And Start Working' As President Buhari Recovers". newsweek.com. 25 May 2017.
* The truth is that many, if not most, nations of the world are made up of different peoples - and cultures and beliefs and religions - who find themselves thrown together by circumstance.
** "Nigeria: Why 'Biafra' Should Remain in Nigeria - Osinbajo". allafrica.com. 25 May 2017.
* The most successful of the nations of the world are those who do not fall into the lure of secession but who, through thick and thin, forge unity in diversity.
** "Biafra at 50: Full text of speech by Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo". dailypost.ng. 26 May 2017.
* I understand the law of sowing and reaping. It is a spiritual law that has tremendous physical implications. Every time that we delay or frustrate what we can do today, leaving it till tomorrow, we hold back the future. We, too, must reap what we have sown by experiencing delays.
** "Economy: Prayer, fasting not enough to save Nigeria – Osinbajo". nigeriancatholicreporter.com. 26 May 2017.
* No matter how much you pray or fast, our country cannot grow without some of us deciding to do the hard work that makes nations work.
** "No amount of praying, fasting can make Nigeria great without hardwork – Osinbajo". vanguardngr.com. 24 May 2017.
* The quality and quantum of potential investors in Africa is huge.
** "Africa must reposition its economy to attract investors – Osinbajo". guardian.ng. 24 October 2017.
* The most important thing for Africa is that whoever wants to invest in our countries should start in manufacturing.
** "Africa must reposition its economy to attract investors – Yemi Osinbajo". today.ng. 24 October 2017.
* We in Africa must prepare our economies in that direction that attracts such huge and qualitative investments. It is for us to push, and we must push.
** "Africa must reposition its economy to attract investors – Osinbajo". guardian.ng. 24 October 2017.
* It is the resolve of the government that none will be allowed to get away with making speeches that can cause sedition or that can cause violence, especially because when we make these kinds of pronouncement and do things that can cause violence or destruction of lives and property, we are no longer in control.
** "Biafra: Nigeria'S Vice-President Promises Hate Speech Crackdown As Ethnic Tensions Rise". newsweek.com. 14 June 2017.
* Nigeria's unity is one for which enough blood has been spilled and many hundreds of thousands of lives have been lost. Many have paid for the unity of this country with their lives, and it will be wrong of us, as men and women of goodwill in this generation, to toy with those sacrifices that have been made.
** "Nigeria: Ipob, Arewa Youth Agitations Unlawful - Osinbajo". allafrica.com. 19 June 2017.
* We are committed to a continuous engagement with our people to explain government policies, receive advice and criticism.
** "We Are Committed To Engagement With Our People&Fixing The Economy". nta.ng. 7 February 2017.
* As we move to diversify our economy, we are particularly aware that we need oil to get out of oil.
** "Opportunities in Oil Sector’ll be Over Soon — Osinbajo". nta.ng. 15 November 2016.
* It will be wrong of us to approach our grievances by threatening to disobey the laws or by threatening the integrity of our nation.
** "Agitations For Secession, Ultimatum To Igbos Unconstitutional – Osinbajo". aitonline.tv. 28 June 2017.
* Africa Rising is as much about improving standards of governance as it is about an increasingly confident youths and civil society. It is also about businessmen and women who are stepping beyond national borders and going global.
** "Transformation in Africa driven by ambitious businessmen, women – Osinbajo". vanguardngr.com. 17 January 2018.
* Africa cannot afford to underestimate the power of technology to fast-track the continent's rise. Emerging technologies have played extraordinary roles in every aspect of the continent's most touted successes.
** "Africa cannot afford to underestimate the power of technology – Osinbajo". vanguardngr.com. 17 January 2018.
* Many of the ethnic and other parochial tensions that have tended to create insecurity and outright conflict, time and time again, are largely as a result of failure to deliberately undertake nation-building efforts.
** "Transformation In Africa Driven By Ambitious Businessmen, Women – Osinbajo". independent.ng. 17 January 2018.
* Economic growth is not sustainable without nation-building and, even of greater importance, state building.
** "VP Yemi Osinbajo speaks on Africa’s economic transformation". today.ng. 17 January 2018.
* We are in a democracy and there is a process by which things can be done and that process is the one where you bring forward amendments to the National Assembly and they will do whatever is considered useful in the circumstance.
** "Osinbajo Tells, CAN, Oyedepo, Others What To Do On CAMA". NaijaNews247.com. 28 August, 2020.

## See also

* Chuba Okadigbo
* Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu
* Nnamdi Azikiwe

## External links

* Yemi_Osinbajo on Twitter
* Yemi_Osinbajo on Facebook
* Yemi_Osinbajo Page on The Guardian Newspaper
* All News About Yemi Osinbajo on Naija News 247