Former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo has described the deadline of December given by President Muhammadu Buhari to Nigerian military to rout Boko Haram  as a mere motivation.

In an interview with newsmen at the Presidential Villa,  Abuja today, Obasanjo  said that the deadline was not cast on stones but merely to encourage them to crush the sect.

“The president must give a target. When you give somebody a target, you give him something to aspire to, giving him an objective. Target is not cast in stone.

“I believe that if you are talking of getting the upper hand, gradually, we are getting the upper hand.

“We are not there yet but we are getting close. And once we are getting the upper hand, we move on and do other things,’’ he said.

The former President said he also briefed President Buhari on his assignment as special envoy to Guinea Bissau.

“The last time we were able to resolve all the issues of getting a new Prime Minister. This time, we had also been able to resolve the issue of forming a government. If nothing intervenes, I believe between today and tomorrow, a new government will be in place in Guinea Bissau. They have been without government for almost two months” he said.