In commemoration of this year’s World Diabetes Day, former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo led a 15-minute walk covering over three metres inside his presidential library in Abeokuta on Thursday.
DAILY POST learnt that the purpose of the walk was to emphasise the importance of engaging in physical activity to combat the rising prevalence of diabetes.
Obasanjo, a diabetic patient of over 30 years, was joined in the walk by medical personnel, security operatives from the Police and Federal Road Safety Corps, as well as members of the National Youth Service Corps.
Executive Director of the Olusegun Obasanjo Foundation, Dr. Olalekan Makinde, stated that the former president, through the 15-minute walk, conveyed the message that Nigerians should adopt a healthy lifestyle, particularly physical activity, to prevent diabetes.
Makinde stated that Nigeria is one of the countries with the lowest life expectancy, attributing the cause to poverty and unhealthy living.
He stressed the need for Nigerians to regularly engage in physical exercise and avoid junk foods.
He said, *“Just like the almost 90-year-old former President Olusegun Obasanjo has just shown us with his about 15 minutes brisk walk covering over three metres, what we are just trying to tell Nigerians is that they must walk and engage in physical exercise to keep fit.
“Diabetes is one of the most impactful diseases that one can have due to sedentary and all kinds of unhealthy living. People are always in vehicles, sitting down for hours in offices with air conditioners, jumping from vehicles to okada.
“But we are saying that we must engage in physical exercise, we must avoid junk foods. Nigeria is one of the countries with the lowest life expectancy, and one of the things responsible for this aside from poverty is our unhealthy living. That is what our father, Baba Obasanjo at 90, is saying we must do away with.”*
In the same vein, Dr. Adedeji Otukoya, an endocrinologist from the Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, who participated in the walk, urged people to change their lifestyle and be prepared to occasionally abandon their cars to engage in physical activity.
According to Dr. Otukoya, Nigerians should prioritise walking and engaging in physical activity to strengthen their muscles, as the number of persons suffering from diabetes has increased largely due to unhealthy lifestyles.
Dr. Ihegboro Minachiso, Medical Officer in charge of the Medical Directorate of the Ogun State Police Command, emphasised the necessity of physical activity in maintaining a healthy lifestyle, saying, “Many of us will always pray that we do not want to die, but we will refuse to perform some of the things that are necessary to keep our health in shape, such as the three-metre dash that we just completed.”
