Adebanjo Speaks on Tinubu’s visit to Fasoranti

Afenifere Chief Ayo Adebanjo, the leader of the pan-Yoruba group, has responded to Mr Bola Tinubu’s visit to Pa Reuben Fasoranti, a former leader of the organisation, stating the comments that followed it were an attempt to split the group.

The All Progressives Congress APC presidential’s candidate, Tinubu, paid a visit to Pa Fasoranti on Sunday in Akure, where the former governor of Lagos State received support.

However, Chief Adebanjo, who had previously backed Labour Party (LP) candidate Peter Obi, claimed that the recent action was intended to divide the group during his appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today.

“There is nothing going on other than an attempt to split Afenifere to which I will not be a party,” he said Monday.

“It is a conspiracy among those who want to see Afenifere divided. They have been on this plan for over a month, and my members came to me to alert me about it, and I said, ‘Don’t talk about it. It would be a diversion,” the Afenifere chieftain added. “All we want now is an election on issues.”

He claimed that Pa Fasoranti had phoned him to inform him of Tinubu’s intended visit. He claimed that although he encouraged the former Afenifere leader to do so, he was first reluctant to receive the APC candidate.

“I will tell you the story, and I won’t go further,” he said. “Pa Fasoranti phoned me on Friday that Tinubu had phoned him and that he wanted to come and see him, and he wanted to say no. I said no, don’t do that, and you are an elder statesman. If he wanted to see you, why not?”

Since the South East hasn’t produced a president since democracy was restored in 1999, Obi bases his support for the candidate on equitable ideals. He asserted that the South-East should take the lead now that the South-South and South-West had delivered the president.

“South-South has had its own, and I said it is remaining the South-East,” he noted.