Afenidere : Fasoranti, Adebanjo’s factions clash over Supreme Court verdict

The Afenifere faction led by Pa Reuben Fasoranti has criticised Pa Ayo Adebanjo’s for their stance on the recent Supreme Court ruling that upheld President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the previous presidential election.

Adebanjo’s supporters reportedly held a meeting and released a statement condemning the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold Tinubu’s election yesterday in Ogbo Ijebu, Ogun State.

A communique from the Adebanjo faction was disseminated by Chief Sola Ebiseni, its secretary general: “Unfortunately, by the Supreme Court’s decision, the electoral reforms achieved through the agitations of Nigerians for quality control through technological devices and the billions of naira spent on the infrastructures in that regards is now wasted.”

The Fasoranti group, which backed and endorsed Tinubu in the run-up to the presidential election on February 25, criticised the Adebanjo group, stating that its comments did not reflect the viewpoint of Afenifere.

In the run-up to the election, the Yoruba community split along partisan lines, with Adebanjo supporting Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi on the basis that the presidency should belong to the South-East and Fasoranti staunchly supporting Tinubu as the superior choice.

According to a statement released by Fasoranti’s Organising Secretary Kole Omololu, the opposing side’s claims are “far from the truth about Afenifere’s leadership position on the matter.”

Let it be known that Afenifere leader, Chief Fasoranti, and other Afenifere leaders were not aware of, nor did they sanction, this odious news statement, nor do they support the seditious conduct it may herald.

The Fasoranti faction remarked, “It is merely an unfortunate misadventure of some Labour Party elements within the Afenifere fold who would rather drag the body’s reputation in the mud to achieve whatever sinister and seditious end they might have concocted.”

Omololu stated that Fasoranti had congratulated Tinubu on the election victory and also showed sympathy with him when the Supreme Court affirmed his election.

So, he said, it was malicious to have a “preposterous attack on the judiciary by intemperate elements within the fold, fanning the embers of national discords with political motives, using the name of Afenifere.”

However, according to Omololu, Adebanjo was still the group’s acting leader in accordance with the natural and traditional order of Afenifere, and as such, he should have unreservedly deferred to Fasoranti on any subject.

“To do otherwise is to tread such ignoble path in national discourse as this unfortunate release reveals,” he said.

The last gathering in Ogbo Ijebu did not discuss or deliberate to attack the judiciary, contrary to what the General Secretary’s remarks implied. The Afenifere leaders would like to issue a challenge to Chief Ebiseni, asking him to provide the public with the authentic record of discussions from the aforementioned meeting in order to establish its agreement with the statement he so issued.

The Supreme Court’s ruling has put an end to the pretence of political manoeuvring, and Afenifere feels it is time for genuine government rather than just talk. To achieve a better Nigeria and a wealthy nation with viable federating units, we anticipate strong governance from the federal, state, and local governments and stand ready to provide constructive feedback, advise, and criticism.