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…
