Buhari Underperforming, There’s Need To Unite, Vote Him Out In 2019 —Adebanjo

Agency ReporterJune 24, 2018

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Former President Olusegun Obasanjo met and held closed-door meeting with Yoruba leaders at the Lekki residence of a chieftain of pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, on Saturday, with the agenda being how to rally the race to unite to be able to speak with one voice in the forthcoming general poll.

Rising from the meeting, which lasted about an hour, former President Obasanjo refused all entrieties to speak with journalists, but his host, Chief Adebanjo said the parley centred on the need for Yoruba race to resolve differences amongst itself, get united in order to move the country forward, while all attempts to establish dictatorial tendencies in Nigeria must be opposed and destroyed.

When asked if the meeting was about 2019, the Afenifere chieftain, while expressing the belief that its outcome would in a way lead to achieving some of the issues that the Yoruba had been clamouring on how best to move the country forward, said President Muhammadu Buhari was under-performing and, therefore, the common goal before the leaders was the need to get united and vote him out of office, in the next general election.

“Nothing more than the fact that Nigeria must move forward and all attempts to establish dictatorial tendencies in the country must be opposed and destroyed. There must be unity to destroy inequity,” he said.

“What is important is that we have our common goal. The man there is not doing the thing. Whatever form we can get to get rid of the bad baggage, the better,” Chief Adebanjo said.

He, however, dismissed suggestion that the Yoruba leaders already had a candidate in mind ahead 2019, insisting that what was uppermost their minds was the need to first settle all the differences between them and put on their thinking cap in order to get united against the battle ahead as the enemies were interested in dividing the Yoruba race.

“Not yet o, not yet at all. But we must agree first that any differences amongst ourselves must be settled. If you are not united, you can’t fight the battle. Our enemies are interested in dividing us and the Yoruba must put on their thinking cap,” he said.

Obasanjo and Adebanjo as well as some key Yoruba leaders are not known to be on speaking term, due to some differences on views they hold on how to move the country forward generally.

Other leaders, who joined Adebanjo to receive Obasanjo, who arrived the venue at 10:40am, include two former governors, Otunba Gbenga Daniel and Dr. Olusegun Mimiko; Prof. Banji Akintoye, Pastor Tunde Bakare, Chief Supo Shonibare, Dr. Tokunbo Awolowo-Dosunmu, Dr. Amos Akingba, Prof. Akin Mabogunje, Mr. Yinka Odumakin, among others.

The former president, who was coming right away from Ikoyi residence of former Deputy National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, was accompanied by personalities, including Chief Abraham Akanle, Chief Kenny Martins, Chief Joju Fadiaro, Dr. Femi Majekodunmi, Chief Gbolade Osinowo, Otunba Oyewole Fasawe, among others.

Senator Femi Okunrounmu, who came in thereafter, joined the meeting, which commenced immediately after exchange of pleasantries between Obasanjo and Adebanjo as well as other leaders.

Pastor Bakare, while responding to a question, said the fact that one is critic does not make such person enemy of the state or the nation.

According to him, what a critic does is calling people to come and reason together in order to move forward.

“Being a critic is not an enemy of the state or the nation. The thinker is the enemy of the mob. If you say I have been a critic of Chief Obasanjo, look at him now being a critic of Muhammadu Buhari too, yet he facilitated his coming in. Critic is not the same thing as criticism – it is let us reason together, things are not going the right way. That is all,” said the General Overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly.