bolaayenimo:
Temidayo Akinsuyi, Lagos

Two prominent lead­ers of pan-Yoruba so­cio-political organisa­tion, Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, and Aremo Olusegun Osoba, a former governor of Ogun State, on Thursday, traded words over the zoning of the 2023 presi­dency and whether or not the South-West should boycott the general elections.

While Adebanjo belonged to the Reuben Fasoranti-led faction of Afenifere, Osoba is a member of the faction led by the late Senator Ayo Fasanmi.

Osoba, who spoke with Daily Independent, said Ade­banjo’s position that the 2023 presidency should be zoned to the South-East is wrong as the statement was his personal opinion and not the general position of Yoruba leaders.

He said the Afenifere lead­er had no power to take uni­lateral decisions on such a sensitive matter without the input of other Yoruba leaders.

Osoba, who described Ade­banjo as a dictator, also said Adebanjo’s position that the South-West should boycott the 2023 presidential election due to the failure of the All Progressives Congress (AP­C)-led Federal Government to restructure the country was wrong.

According to him, while the Igbo have a right to contest for the position of the highest office in the land in 2023, the Yoruba and other Nigerians also have a right to do so.

Going down memory lane, Osoba challenged Adebanjo to tell the world where he got his boycott philosophy from, say­ing the late Obafemi Awolowo, whom Adebanjo claimed to be emulating, never support­ed the boycott of elections during his lifetime.

He said: “There are two is­sues that I disagree with Ade­banjo on. For example, in his own dictatorial way, he says he has now zoned the 2023 presidency to the Igbo.

“I want to query him – who is he to zone the Yoruba race out of the presidential race in 2023? Who is he?

“Where did we meet as Yoruba to say that we are ced­ing the presidency to the Igbo?

Awolowo will not behave like that. There will be a meeting where there will be consensus.

“Of course, the Igbo have a right to contest in 2023 just as I, as a Yoruba man, also have a right to contest.

“But he (Adebanjo) has unilaterally zoned it to the Igbo. That is part of his dicta­torial attitude. He is a dictator.

“Two, he says we must boy­cott the 2023 elections. Where did we sit down to decide that the Yoruba will boycott the 2023 elections?

“He doesn’t read history, even the history that he was part of. In 1964, he was then still in exile in Ghana.

The issue of boycott arose. The National Congress of Nigeria Citizens (NCNC) and Action Congress (AG) went into an alliance and formed the United Progressive Grand Alliance (UPGA).

“Overnight, they decid­ed to boycott the election. Awolowo, who was then in Calabar prison, sent a mes­sage that we should never boycott the election.

“He said boycott is not rec­ognised by law anywhere and that we will lose out.

“Of course, we boycotted and we lost out in the govern­ment that was formed in 1964.

“Our other wing of UPGA in the East refused to boycott and so we produced nobody in the National Assembly then. Awolowo has never been a supporter of boycotts.

“Adebanjo should give me an example of when Awolowo ever boycotted and where he (Adebanjo) got that philoso­phy from.

“I query him, where did we meet as Yoruba to say that we are going to boycott the 2023 election?

“Even if we boycott, other Yoruba will go into the race. The PDP Yoruba will contest, and so, who is the loser?

“If we are going to boycott, let it be that all of us sat down together, debated it, and ar­rived at a conclusion.

“There are two major is­sues that Adebanjo is preach­ing, which are unrealistic and which Awolowo would never have supported. Awolowo will never in his life support boy­cotts.”

On the way forward, Oso­ba, who said he had no person­al issues with Adebanjo, said there is a need for the Yoruba to bring in young people to have a conversation on the way forward while elders like him and Adebanjo take the back seat.

“I have no war with him as far as I am concerned. What is paramount to me is, let us stop using insulting, abusive languages and antagonising too many people.

“Let us find a way of bring­ing different opinions and views to the table. In a de­mocracy, let everybody have a say. As a journalist, that is my training.

“Ninety-five percent of what we journalists publish are opinions and views that we disagree with, but we will still go ahead and publish these views and leave the public to judge.

“That is our training. I don’t know what kind of training he has that he has no room for second opinion, third opinion or anything that does not agree with his own opinion.

“The way forward is, the Yoruba nation must come to­gether. All the young elements must be brought in. I’m at an advanced age of 81, he is 92. At this stage, young people like you should be in the forefront.

When contacted, Adebanjo said Osoba was speaking from a position of ignorance as the issue of the 2023 presidency is not a Yoruba affair.

“He is speaking from a po­sition of ignorance. The issue of the 2023 presidency is not a Yoruba issue, it is about na­tionalism. Presidency is not a Yoruba affair. That is what they don’t understand.

“We are talking of the rotation of the presidency. Osoba and his likes are so narrow-minded and unprin­cipled.

“It is not a question of whether Yoruba leaders sit down to discuss it or not. They are so parochial in their approach to issues.

“When we are talking of rotation of the presidency, the Yoruba have had it; the Fulani have had it; the Ijaw have had it, but the Igbo have not had it. Is that how to keep Nigeria to­gether? He should stop talking nonsense.”

https://www.independent.ng/2023-afenifere-leaders-fight-over-igbo-presidency-election-boycott/

orisa37:
ODUDUWA IS A BOND OF CHARACTER FOR THOSE IN THE REGION.

Igbochief001:
Anyone who supports zoning knows it's meant to be zoned to south east .... outside that there is nothing like zoning and every Nigerian has right to contest

It's hypocritical to call for presidency to be zoned to south but not south east

Awol1:


I thought you guys used to say Igbos are not united?

Now look at your Afenifere disgracing themselves and you are taking sides.

Let any Igbo man counter Ohaneze, if he won't be treated as an outcast.

Imagine there's even two factions of Afenifere

orisa37:





I AM NOT TAKING SIDE I AM TRYING TO EDUCATE BANJO AND OSOBA TO UNDERSTAND AWOLOWO'S AND OBASANJO'S LEGACIES AND QUEUE BEHIND BANJI AKINTOYE TO MOVE ODUDUWA YORUBA FORWARD.

orisa37:
BY THE WAY, WHY SHOULD THESE TWO PROMINENT YORUBAS DISAGREE ON IGBO MATTER?

THE IGBOS KNOW WHAT THEY'RE SEEKING FOR. OF ALL THAT AWO AND OBJ DID FOR THEM, HOW HAVE THEY APPRECIATED THEM?

IT'S ALWAYS IGBO AMAKA!!!

AllOfUsAtManna:
real afenifere (oyebanjo) vs yeroba Muslim version of afenifere

anything good in yeroba land has been factionized by yeroba Muslims.

afenifere
Amotekun
even yeroba Muslims have factions

3 factions of yeroba Muslims are

sensible ones
Tinubu's faction
HRM prof ishaq Akintola faction though he's the recognized Supreme leader of indigenous yeroba Muslims.

I'm done talking

Fleshly:
The yorubas are free to dream. Well 2023 is almost around the corner and we will know who emerges winner soon. Nothing can stop Igbo presidency, those with inner eyes can already see the realignment happening. The worst that may happen is that the presidency goes SS and it will still be someone from the Igbo tribe. This is QED!!