The Sun News On-line/politics

Former Minister of Aviation, Chief Ebenezer Babatope has advised Chief Ayo Adebanjo to stop persecuting him and other acclaimed Awoists, for belonging to political parties different from his own.

Babatope who was reacting to the Afenifere chieftain labeling of some renown Awoists as political turn-coats on the occasion of his [Adebanjo’s] 80th birthday said the Afenifere stalwart should stop casting aspersions on other people because they belonged to political parties different from his own.

While saying that he would not like to join issues with Adebanjo because of his age, Babatope said Adebanjo should try to emulate Chief Awolowo’s political philosophy of politics without bitterness.
“Chief Adebanjo should imbibe politics of tolerance. Our leader, Chief Obafemi Awolowo during his life time preached politics of tolerance.

He never launched personal attacks on individuals. He was a true father to all. In his old age, what I expect Chief Adebanjo to be doing now is to engage in acts that will unite the political camp of Awoists,” he declared.
Babatope further spoke on the genesis of his romance with the late political sage.

Excerpts:-
How would you react to the recent controversy being generated by the interview granted by Chief Ayo Adebanjo on the occasion of his 80th birthday ceremony where he described some known Awoists as political turn-coats who have been jumping from one political party to the other. How would you react to his comments?
He is a Nigerian citizen, and has every right to his own opinion, but this doesn’t mean that the opinion expressed by the old man is right. For example, his definition of who an Awoist is, definitely doesn’t meet the realities of the moment. If a man was AD yesterday, and he becomes AC today, doesn’t mean that he has changed his toga as an Awoist.

So if we are to ask ourselves who an Awoist is, an Awoist is a man who believes in ideals and political philosophy of late Chief Obafemi Awolowo. An Awoist is a man who also is prepared to ensure that the politics of progressivism which Chief Obafemi Awolowo represents is what he also represent in his daily participation in Nigerian politics. An Awoist is also a man who ensures that discipline of life that Papa Awolowo brought not only into politics, but his own private life should also be emulated.
By and large, when you take all these things together you discover that an Awoist not only love Chief Obafemi Awolowo politically, he believes in his ideas. In fact, he wants to ensure that the discipline which the man introduced into politics is what he also believes in.

How can Adebanjo described some people as turn-coats? Turn coats for what? I read some of the interviews granted by Chief Adebanjo. Like I said earlier, the old man is entitled to his own opinions, but where these opinions don’t reflect the truth on the ground one can come out to say so.
For example, it is difficult for me, and for most of those who have been reacting to challenge Chief Adebanjo on a personal basis. We don’t do it in Yorubaland. We don’t do it in Africa, because there is respect for age. I must also confess that there is a fundamental reason why I have not joined issue with Chief Adebanjo.

In every interview he has been granting the press Chief Adebanjo descended heavily on me. I don’t know why, but I have always held him in high esteem. He has been playing a prominent role in Nigerian politics since the First Republic.
Apart from this, his son-in-law Dr. David Atte is a good friend of mine. This son-in-law was a member of Chief Cornelius Adebanjo’s cabinet when he was governor of Kwara State in 1983.
Apart from this, Dr. Atte is also a strong frontline Awoist. Today, he belongs to Peoples Democratic Party, PDP of which I am also a member, I don’t want to be saying things which can be seen as being disrespectful to him. But I want to advise Chief Adebanjo that as long as he is entitled to his own opinion, he should not project views which tend to destroy people.

If you are talking of betrayal of Awo’s ideal, the word betrayal is too deep and fundamental to be taken so lightly. For example, will you say Bisi Akande has become a political turn-coat because he left AD for AC? Who will say that? I know Akande, nobody can attack his moral and political standing. He is a very upright and ideological person. Because we have different political opinion doesn’t mean we now have to start attacking people or calling them names.
Even Adebanjo went to a ridiculous extent by saying that I was in PDP because of financial rewards. Honestly speaking, what Adebanjo has been saying saddens me. What kind of financial reward am I looking for? He should watch his utterances. Just like I said earlier, his own son-in-law is a strong Awoist, but also a member of PDP.

This is why I am saying that Adebanjo was wrong in his definition of who is a true Awoist. When Papa Awolowo was alive, he never went out of his way to attack individuals. The only time Papa issued a statement was on the verge of our moving into the 2nd republic in 1978.. But he didn’t attack them but only said they have wrong conception of him. I remember in 1979 when the defunct Unity Party of Nigeria UPN took the National Party of Nigeria NPN to court in 1979 over the presidential election.

When we got to the venue, Chief Richard Akinjide was the senior counsel for NPN, and Papa greeted him, but apparently he didn’t hear Papa very well, and Papa then pulled his suit to let him know he was greeting him.
He said: ‘Richard, good morning.’ I was very angry, and I now said Papa why did you do that? Why did you have to let him know you were greeting him?’. Papa then said I should not say because Akinjide belonged to a different political party, that he should not exchange greetings with him. He then advised me that I should play politics of tolerance.

At another time I issued a strong statement against General Olusegun Obasanjo. At that time, Obasanjo was very much against UPN leadership, when Papa saw me, he warned me and said I should be very careful. He added that if I am not very careful, that I would be provoking glands in my body to secreting dangerous hormones. He said I should not consider anybody my enemy even if I have disagreement with such a person. It was a big lesson to me. It was the first time I was learning that there are glands in the human body that secret hormones that can cause sickness. Papa never harboured any ill feelings against anybody’.
I believe our old men like Chief Ayo Adebanjo should learn from Awo’s political style. Everybody is bound to make mistakes at one point on the other, but when mistakes are made, corrections should be made not destroy but to build. I am alarmed by Adebanjo’s outburst.

I want to say categorically that all of us don’t need to belong to the same political party.
I am in PDP, while Osoba, Adesina are in AC.
It would be wrong for anyone that since we all don’t belong to the same political party, that we no longer believe in Chief Awolowo’s political ideals. As far as I am concerned, I will die an Awoist. Adebanjo is free to express any opinion he likes, and I will not go out of my way to destroy him.
So what you are saying is that you still remain a hard-core Awoist in spite of misconception or wrong claims by Pa Adebanjo?
I will remain a hardcore Awoist till I die. I will remain an Awoist because Papa Awolowo raised me from obscurity to political relevance and taught me the rudiments of life.