By Vincent Kalu, Lagos, Noah Ebije, Kaduna and Sola Ojo, Kaduna
Some Northern leaders have criticized Chief Ayo Adebanjo, leader of Afenifere, over his recent press statement calling for the restructuring of the country. The leaders who include Anthony Sani, immediate past Secretary General of Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), Yerima Shettima, President, Arewa Youth Consultative Forum and Prof. Usman Yusuf, former Chief Executive of National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), accused the nonagenarian of political mischief, noting that his statement was capable of promoting ethno-religious crisis in the country.
Chief Adebanjo had, in a press statement, entitled, “Let it be heard loud and clear”, stressed that, “Afenifere shall be leading the Yoruba nation to demand substantial restructuring, before any fraudulent elections might be held in 2023. The response of the Buharist regime to these equitable demands restructuring the country along federalist lines, in order to restore it to its roots and original agreements, shall go a long way in shaping the position of the Yoruba people in the future.”
It further noted: “Let it be heard loud and clear: Nigeria is not only negotiable, it is evidently dying. Gen. Yakubu Gowon (rtd) fought to keep Nigeria one. Is it for the Fulani to dominate other ethnic nationalities? Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo (rtd), said that Nigerian unity is non-negotiable. Is it for the Yorubas to be under Fulani domination?
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The statement further appealed to the sense of justice of some eminent Nigerians: “Your Eminence, Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar, Sultan of Sokoto; Gen. Abdusulami Abubakar (rtd); Bishop Kukah, can we have peace without equity and justice?”
In his reaction Sani advised Adebanjo to be civil when commenting on national issues, adding that democracy was not an avenue to call for war. “Chief Ayo Adebanjo has the right to air his views on issues of national importance and use multiparty democracy to pursue his passion,” he said. “Democracy is a contest of ideas and reasons and not a bull fight in a sumo ring. As someone who professes jaunty face of democratic values, the Chief knows how to use multiparty democracy to further his desires. But in doing so, he must note that in democracy, majority has its say and way while minority has only its say. That is why the whites in Oronia in South Africa have their say but not their way.”
He called on Adebanjo not only to return to his progressive politics of yesteryears, as elder statesman, but to also support his arguments and statements with facts. He said: “As a scion of Chief Awolowo who pursued progressive politics that has no place for circumstance of birth but content of character in the order of things, Chief Ayo Adebanjo would help the country more by not promoting cleavages of the nation of over 250 ethnic groups along ethnic and religious lines.
“More distressing is when he does not use fact-checks in support of his allegation of Fulanization. Most Nigerians would therefore be more confident of Chief Ayo Adebanjo’s submission as an elder statesman if he is able to let the nation know the distribution of access of national resources, namely appointment, projects and major contracts by ethnicity. This is because by his obsession with allegation of Fulanization does not make the situation so.”
Shettima who confessed to having tremendous respect for the elder statesman, “except for this approach”, cautioned him to tread carefully on the issue of restructuring, adding that it was not something that affects only Afenifere or South-West, but the entire county. He noted: “It is not about Afenifere. It is not about the South-West. We don’t need to shoot our feet before we get to the battle. Often this is where our leaders or political leaders do get it wrong. Nobody or a group of a few people can make a highland. It has to be seen as an inclusive project in Nigeria because everybody is a victim of this very system. Even in the South-West, Afenifere cannot be said to be speaking for all and this is the reality of things. When you begin to talk as if you are talking on behalf of the whole country then, it has a lot of suspicions.”
He asked: “Is the country doing fine? The answer is no. Do we need to change things so that at the end of the day we might do a different thing from what we have now? The answer is yes. It then means that the likes of him, the likes of me and others who believe in this idea must be seen to meet and discuss issues. You don’t make it sound as personal affairs because once there is suspicion, you don’t have the buy-in of others.”
Prof. Yusuf called on his fellow Northerners to ignore the press statement. “Ayo Adebanjo is a confused, bitter, frustrated, rambling and irrelevant old man at 93,” he said. “My people do not care about his message or the personality that delivered the message.”
But the National President of Middle Belt Forum (MBF), Dr. Bitrus Pogu, differed from others. According to him, the Middle Belt Forum and the Afenifere are on the same page with regard to the issue of restructuring, adding that it has to take place for the country to move forward.
He said: “The electoral bill which has been passed by the National Assembly and waiting for president’s ascent is part of restructuring. It has to take place for Nigeria to move forward and for agitations for separation and breakaway to stop. If Nigeria is restructured and everybody feels happy, and nobody is dominating the others, Nigeria would remain one, and reach the level of development it supposed.
“Go and read Gideon Orkar’s coup statement. He captured what is happening now very well – where a group is dominating this country; not only dominating, it has now unleashed terror on others. Everywhere you go, you hear Fulani herdsmen, bandits, Boko Haram. They are coming from the area Orkar wanted to excise out of Nigeria because of their domination.
“We believe that this government will do justice to restructure this country because without it, these separatist agitations will grow. Before, it was only in the Southeast and now it has come to Southwest, and you have NINAS coming out to talk on behalf of indigenous ethnic nationalities. All these agitations are coming up because Nigeria is not working.”