IBADAN, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – The leaders of the apex Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, have agreed to resolve the crisis in the organization following the contentious endorsement of the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi and his All Progressives Congress counterpart, Bola Tinubu, by the two leaders of the association.
This comes despite claims by a former Senator representing Ogun East and Afenifere leader, Gbenga Kaka, that there was no crisis in the Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, describing it as mere disagreement.
Kaka, who was also a Deputy Governor of the State, said the issue between Fasoranti and Adebanjo was a matter of choices, adding that it would be resolved shortly.
He urged the public to disregard the information that there was a crisis in the Yoruba group.
He said: “There is no crisis in Afenifere; we should stop blowing or promoting unnecessary crises that are non-existent. People are bound to disagree and people are bound to have choices. So, I don’t know what you call a crisis; maybe you want to expatiate.
“Don’t we have beauty in plurality? If we are from the same mother and same father and we decided that we want to eat Eba and Amala, that won’t create any crisis.
“So, we are like a family and we are one. Mere differences should not be termed as crisis and by the grace of God, whatever misunderstanding there is, would be resolved. We are looking into it and it will be resolved. So, it’s nothing to blow (out of proportion).”
The Punch gathered on Thursday that a four-man committee comprising a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Olu Falae; Senator Femi Okurounmu; an ex-Minister of Communications, Chief Cornelius Adebayo and the Afenifere Secretary-General, Bashorun Sehinde Arogbofa would meet with the Afenifere leader, Pa Reuben Fasoranti and the acting leader of the group, Pa Ayo Adebanjo to resolve the rift.
The National Organizing Secretary of Afenifere, Kole Omololu confirmed the peace move to one of The Punch correspondents in a telephone interview in Lagos.
But while Omololu asserted that a reconciliation meeting would be held at Fasoranti’s residence in Akure, an Afenifere chieftain and former Lagos State Deputy Governor, Senator Kofoworola Bucknor-Akerele, said she was not aware of any meeting scheduled for Akure.
The schism in the socio-cultural association emerged when Adebanjo, one of the leaders of Afenifere, endorsed the LP presidential candidate, saying it was the turn of the South-East to rule the country.
He said: “It is only Peter Obi that can rule independently without the influence of these criminals in the government. Tinubu will only give continuity to Buhari’s incompetence. We know Peter Obi very well, that’s why we endorsed him. He will not disappoint Nigerians, let’s put tribal differences apart and vote the right leader in.”
After praying for the former Lagos State Governor, the nonagenarian reportedly declared that Tinubu would win the 2023 election.
Fasoranti said he remained the leader of Afenifere while dismissing the claim that the group had endorsed Peter Obi. but Adebanjo, who took over from the Afenifere leader in March 2021 criticized the visit.
Shedding light on the moves to address the differences between the two Yoruba elders, Omololu assured that the issues would soon be thrashed out, insisting that there was no crisis in the association.
He stated: “Baba never sacked the acting leader, Pa Adebanjo. The acting leader will still be the one calling the meeting and the meeting will still be held at the leader’s place.
“Consultation is the hallmark of Afenifere; all the leaders will still consult with each other. We have six leaders who make Afenifere, we call them the national leaders. They are at the peak; they are above the exco, they are above the caucus and the general meeting.
“If these six sit down and decide, that is the end. Anybody saying any other thing does not know Afenifere. These six will sit very soon and iron things out. Four of them were present in Akure, only two were absent.”
Speaking further on the situation, the Afenifere organizing secretary stated that Adebanjo would call a meeting of the group at his convenience as the leader of the association.
“There is no crisis to resolve in the first instance. The acting leader is the acting leader, he would call a meeting at his discretion. What the leader (Fasoranti) is saying is that the meeting will be held in Akure and he is not just saying it, that is just our tradition and also that is what every member wants.
“There is no crisis that one leader is holding onto one candidate or another leader endorsing another candidate. I think we should leave that to when people get to the polling booth, they know what to do. It is just for these leaders to give a moral direction.”