Nigeria’s government on Wednesday hit back at claims that President Muhammadu Buhari’s tenure had been a failure but refused to say if he would seek re-election.

Former president Olusegun Obasanjo on Tuesday called for Buhari to step down as he had a poor grasp of economics, foreign affairs and Nigeria’s complex internal politics.

The 75-year-old Buhari “needed a deserved rest”, his 80-year-old former military colleague suggested, and asking Nigerians to return him for four more years was “unrealistic”.

Nigerians go to the polls in February next year. Obasanjo’s intervention comes as political parties and candidates begin jostling for position in preparation for campaigning.

Obasanjo retains an influential role in Nigeria’s patronage politics and his criticisms have been seen as a possible way of bringing in contenders to challenge Buhari.

Information Minister Lai Mohammed dismissed the former leader’s criticisms, saying the administration had scored successes fighting corruption and the Boko Haram jihadist insurgency.

On the economy, too, he said the government was making “steady progress” and that “Nigerians will definitely get a new lease of life a short while from now”.