Presidency Replies Afenifere, Says Claim False
By Kolawole Ojebisi
The pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, has accused President Bola Tinubu of allegedly appointing persons of Yoruba extraction to key positions in his administration in a bid to “perpetrate Yoruba hegemony in his administration.”
The group said it would amount to sheer hypocrisy to condemn Fulani hegemony during former President Muhammad Buhari’s reign and “now keep mute in the face of Tinubu’s move to follow a similar pattern.”
Afenifere warned that the president’s bias and preference for Nigerians of Yoruba extraction in Federal appointments is outrageous.
The group made this known in a statement by its leader and the National Publicity Secretary, Ayo Adebanjo, and Justice Faleye, respectively, in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
It warned that the development could threaten inter-ethnic relationships and peaceful co-existence in Nigeria.
The socio-cultural group insisted that Tinubu should correct the situation which it described as an an anomaly.
The statement partly read, “We can never condone the outrageous bias by Tinubu to make Yorubas head of all arms of the criminal justice system (EFCC, DSS, Attorney-General and Chief Justice); the economy (Coordinating Minister of the economy, CBN, Finance, Blue Economy, Digital Economy, Trade, Industries and Investment, Bank of Industry, Solid Minerals); as well as the forces (army, police, customs, immigration, DSS).
“Afenifere can’t use several decades to fight against Fulani hegemony only to support Yoruba or any other hegemony. Afenifere bitterly complained that President Buhari’s northern hegemony can’t remain mute on ethnic hegemony, as being perpetrated by Tinubu.
“Buhari was accused of bias for the North, with three regions, not to talk of Tinubu bias not for the South, but a single ethnicity and single region. Our progenitor, Chief Obafemi Awolowo once threatened to curse anyone that tied Afenifere to Yoruba only.
“By the virtue of our name, Afenifere, meaning those that want good for all humans, and as omoluabi Yorubas, we won’t support any government that engages in undemocratic practices. Nor would we support a government whose first year pushed over 14 million people into poverty with anti-people policies.
“President Tinubu is no stranger to Afenifere, but having backed him into power in 1999, and witnessed his 24-year precedents in Lagos, it would have been wicked and morally irresponsible to support him into power as President.
“This was why the true Afenifere supported Peter Obi and was in-charge of his presidential campaign headed by Akin Osuntokun, an Afenifere chieftain.”
The appointment of Major General Olufemi Oluyede as Acting Chief of Army Staff, attacted backlash from many Nigerians on Social Media as some termed it as “Yoruba Osaro on of the Tinubu administration”.
The expression loosely connotes that the president favours Yoruba people over and above other ethnic group in appointments to positions in his administration.
Oluyede was appointed to stand in for General Tahoreed Lagbaja, Chief of Army Staff, who has been away from the country for medical attention over an undisclosed ailment.
Some Nigerian had argued that there were equally competent generals who could stand in for Lagbaja other than another person from the South West.
But the Presidency has denied the allegation that the current administration is favouring the South West at the expense of other regions in terms of appointments in the security sector.
In a post via X on Saturday, Special Adviser to the President on Public Communications and Orientation, Sunday Dare, shared a list of the heads of security agencies appointed by Tinubu.
According to the list, the North West has the highest appointees (eight), followed by the South West (five) and North Central (four).
North East has three appointees, according to the presidential aide’s list, while South South and South East have one each.
“Facts do not lie. Below we see laid bare the facts about the regional outlook of President Tinubu’s appointments within 20 security agencies. The label of him favouring Yorubas in the Security set up does not fit. Nigeria we hail thee!,” Dare captioned the post.
