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Tag: Afenifere

  • Afenifere: Generals without troops

    Afenifere: Generals without troops

    There are good men in every land; the tree of life has many branches and roots; let not the topmost twig presume to think that it alone has sprung from the mother earth; we did not choose our races by ourselves; Jews, Muslims, Christians, all alike are men; let me hope I have found in you a man.”

    Jonathan Von Goethe

     

    Proverbial Adage

    Leaders are not those who ascribe leadership to themselves by whim and thus become unworthy impostors. Real leaders are those who are acknowledged as leaders by their followers and are willingly assisted by those followers to pilot the affairs of the people.

    A Yoruba proverbial adage which informs that “all sorts of knives surface on a day of an elephant’s death” may not be far from the truth after all. Politics in Nigeria today is like that proverbial elephant.

    It throws up all hidden agenda and exposes all clandestine moves by some dubious characters in the society. In other words, the satanic cloak under which some obscure, chameleonic politicians masquerade in a bid to benefit from Nigeria’s new political paradigm called ‘stomach infrastructure’ seems to have become an implacable calamity that devours the vestiges of peace in the land.

    The Yoruba Muslims of the current generation who were never privileged to witness the political and religious trauma to which their parents were subjected in the 1950s and 1960s in the old Western region, when Yoruba Muslims had not fully imbibed Western literacy, can still feel the impact of that trauma today.  They may however take advantage of today’s atrocious spectacle to view the religious cloaks of those years and use it to unmask some dubious characters who then masqueraded under those evil cloaks.

     

    The sun and the brook

    An Arab poet once observed thus in one of his poetic stanza: “…..It does not bother the sun that some blind people deny the existence of its rays just as it does not bother a brook that some herd boycotts its water”.

    If the above quotation is thoroughly analysed by men of literary prowess it would be discovered that the blind men who deny the existence of the sun rays are the ones to lose out in their animosity.

    Their refusal to recognise the rays of the sun can neither diminish the grandeur of the sun nor enable their blind eyes to see. Yet, they will suffer severely under the burning heat of the sun rays.

    Likewise, boycotting the brook water by some herd can never affect the brook in any way. If anything, it is the herd which boycotts the brook water that may end up dying of thirst.

     

    The parable of owl

    The similitude of the above analogy is like that of a self-adulated group in Yoruba land called AFENIFERE which, like an owl, cannot freely interact with credible, well-meaning Yoruba men and women on issues of substance. Like the owl which, by its own design, is essentially a bird of the night that cannot comfortably associate with other birds in the day, AFENIFERE is now a pariah group that can only arrogate leadership to itself on the pages of some pariah newspapers in its search for relevance. If we may ask, at what forum did the well known and globally acknowledged Yoruba leaders of thought appoint the so-called AFENIFERE to serve as the megaphone of the Yoruba tribe?

    Even if the group was ever appointed the megaphone for the Yoruba tribe does that confer leadership on it? When did Yoruba leadership become so cheap that any pariah group can rise from an obscure corner of the region to start claiming it on the pages of newspapers? The theory of stomach infrastructure which just crept into Nigeria’s political thesaurus has surely brought a new dimension to the cultural value in Yoruba land.

    For people who know the owl very wellwith its queer operation in the forest, the antics of the AFENIFERE political demagogues cannot be strange. Here are people of yesteryear who had spent their time and the time of their children as well as that of their grandchildren and are yet seeking to spend the time of their great grand children to their own benefits alone. At a time when vision rather than improvidence is the order of the day it is strange that this group’s deleterious political activities are still geared towards the search for any relevance even where relevance for them has become impossible.

    But what else can be said of a group that once claimed to be progressive but now turns round to become ultra-conservative?

     

    Living in the dark

    With some dead woods and half baked elements in Yoruba land as its members today, AFENIFERE is currently arrogating Yoruba leadership to itself and claiming to be the megaphone of that Nigerian major tribe as it once did unchallenged in the remote past. That group which still lives in the dark days of the primitive past seems to be too visionless to coin a contemporary name for itself other than that of its progenitor in the early 1950s. Thus, in its failure to keep pace with the modern reality, the group still believes that the situation of the 1950s is the same as that of today an indication that it has long outlived its time and its relevance.

    The group (AFENIFERE) was recently reported in the media to have told a particular presidential candidate in the forth coming general elections that Yoruba people had decided to give him their block voting. That report has not been denied. And that was not the first time the group has fraudulently made unsolicited claims on behalf of Yoruba people.

    Sometime early last year, the same group hijacked the Southwest presidential nomination to the national confab and put 15 of its members (all non-Muslims) on the list of that nomination to the exclusion of the entire Muslims in the region whose numerical strength cannot be underestimated.

    When, in reaction to that clandestine act, the Muslim Ummah of the South West of Nigeria (MUSWEN) wrote a memo to the National confab to put the records straight, the group quickly but deceptively wrote a letter to MUSWEN inviting the latter to a meeting of mutual understanding. But the meeting never came up as AFENIFERE began to play its usual chameleonic hide and seek game that is still on course till this moment.

     

    Evidence of ignorance

    What these people do not and may not know in a foreseeable future is that with the coming of Internet and social media the definition of literacy has tremendously changed from mere reading and writing of tales and fables to that of modern browsing and messaging through the Internet in the 21st century. And without such standard of literacy this time around any person who still claims to be literate is half-dead. However, it takes only the seeing to recognise the light and make the best use of it. Therefore, it cannot be a surprise that the members of this group are still snoring in their primordial bed while expecting others to be off like them.

    Even in Yoruba land where AFENIFERE is supposed to be based the group merely operates in a certain obscure corner of the region only to randomly roar out to impress its ignorant backers in Abuja through the pages of some obscure newspapers. But since the dance of a dragon fly on the surface of stream water can only be in mandatory rhythm of the drum beat beneath the water no one should expect the owl to come home to roost.

    Judged by the public utterances and conducts of its members, AFENIFERE has become a ridiculous paradox between yesterday’s fictitious dream and today’s disappointing nightmare. Had the members of the so-called AFENIFERE group known how much they have become a laughable stock in Nigeria today they would have probably reclined into their obsolete cloak and stopped behaving like the owl among birds.

    But how can they know when they can hardly realise that the trend of literacy which once gave them the opportunity to be relevant in the region has since changed when most of them cannot put their fingers on the computer let alone prying into the modern world of literacy through the Internet.

     

    Yoruba Muslims in the 21st Century

    To this so-called AFENIFERE group, the usefulness of the Muslim multitudes in the Western region does not transcend voting and clapping for the region’s ‘lotus eaters’ which it (AFENIFERE) typifies. Despite the glaring difference between the Muslims of the 1950s who were treated like slaves and those of the 21st century who are highly sophisticated in essence and substance the groups still pretends not to take note hence the ignorant wish to maintain the anachronistic status quo.

     

    Warning

    Let it be known to this self-elevated group that the antics of the yore with which the so-called AFENIFERE outsmarted and relegated Yoruba Muslims to the background in the past have gone with the irritating particles of the past. And any further attempt to want to continue such primitive antics to the detriment of Yoruba Muslims will be adequately resisted in letters and in law. We have paid our due in terms of tolerance, patience and endurance. Elasticity has its limit.

    No group of sheer opportunists that still ignorantly believes in the deception gimmicks of the past will be allowed anymore to ride roughshod over the Muslims of the Southwest. Enough is enough. Though the unofficial policy of ‘stomach infrastructure’ of this era seems to have taken away the once valued wisdom associated with old age there can be no substitution of light for darkness now.

     

    Conclusion

    Gone are the days when wisdom was genuinely attributed to old age because old age then personified experience. Today, from the experience of technology and its effect on the modern society, the human wisdom of the bicycle age seems to have been rendered anachronistic by that of the internet age. Like the rise of a modern building from the debris of the old, the Yoruba Muslims of this generation have come of age and can no longer be swept with the rubles of irrelevance into the refuse bin. We do not need a borrowed mouth to speak out when necessary and nobody has a right to speak for us without our mandate.

    As it takes two to tango it must also take a give-and-take relationship to ventilate a peaceful environment in a mufti-religious society. No group should assume any vain superiority over others and expect peace to thrive. To live side by side and cohabit in harmony, mutual respect must be in the front burner of our relationship.

  • Afenifere: Still consequential or now futile?

    In clarity, Afenifere, the Yoruba socio-political group is no longer what it used to be.  Once upon a time, it was a body respected and honoured by the people of the old Western Region. Its story has changed.

    Purposely in the early 1950s, the leadership of the Yoruba-based political party, the Action Group under the leadership of the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo established the forum tagged ‘Egbe Afenifere’ to tackle predicaments of the people. It was with a mission to inform and propagate the principles and ethics of the party to their people who neither speak nor understand foreign language.

    This group that loves its people for good discovered the good things that would transform their lives. Specifically, it revealed agenda that would make all school age children in the region to be enrolled in primary school at government expenses. It also guaranteed free medical expenses in the hospitals for all children from birth to the age of eighteen.

    All the concepts were materialized in genuineness and authentic faithfulness. To exhibit fundamental and comprehensive transformative thrust of the political party, schools for adults, plainly meaning ‘Ile Eko Awon Agba’ were established in the region to teach farmers, artisans, market women, among others to read and write; the goal being to eradicate illiteracy in the region within two decades. This was also based on the leadership’s believe that it would be intricate misruling a literate people with capacity to preserve their rights.

    Notwithstanding the opposition to Awolowo who was the party’s leader and to the Afenifere group by some political men in the region who distrusted them, dedication in sincerity made the implemented purpose to become fulfilled.

    Till today, in Southwest of Nigeria, there are still feasible products of the Egbe Afenifere agenda through the long-defunct Action Group. The policy set the party apart from other parties, not only in the region, but in all parts of the country. The Egbe Afenifere was not an all-inclusive sunshade for all political propensities in Yorubaland, it was an umbrella for those who pledged to its ethics and principles.

    The story has changed to the other side of progress and benefit to the people even as some of the present elders were supposed to be conscious of the reality of the established Afenifere. Once Pa Abraham Adesanya who later headed the group died, Egbe Afenifere became irrelevant and has continued to decline. Pathetically, it has now relegated itself to licking its wounds in a hushed bend of the Southwest – without influence and without impact on the people and the region as it used to be.

    That Afenifere was recently mobilized by Ondo State Governor Olusegun Mimiko to ally with President Goodluck Jonathan and endorse his ambition to remain in office is a clear indication of taking a wrong step at the right time. Definitely Afenifere’s  endorsement was not made on behalf of true Yoruba people that earnestly desire for change.

    Is it sensible to see an idle Afenifere justly speaking for a larger Yoruba populace? How many of those elders making pronouncements have ever been voted for in Yorubaland? What impact do they even have upon their local communities? Can they even win ward elections? Endorsement or no endorsement, nobody can enforce the neglected people on how to vote, who to vote for or not to vote for.

    Peoples Democratic Party has ruled for 16 years without moving Nigeria forward. It has proved itself a disgraceful party – of immense corruption and ineptitude. The leaders now move round to share public funds and resources just to inspire being voted for.  It is as if they are unaware that many Nigerians today remain unimpressed of the cluelessness and deceitfulness of the party and its leadership.

    Today’s Afenifere is surely out of value. Its claimed meaningless endorsement is claimed to enable him implement the recommendations of the 2014 National Conference. The conference that swallowed billions of national funds ended mid last year and nothing has been done of its report as if it has been a wasted effort. Will anybody still believe that President Jonathan will implement what he has been failing to do when he resumes office to cover the unrighteousness of his allies?

    What if he wants to implement as promised but again prove incompetent to do what Afenifere wants? Indeed, what has he really attained in Southwest region in the last 6 years that should make him reliable and dependable?

    Must it be because the Southwest woman he had wanted to install as Speaker of the House of Representatives failed is the reason why no other Yoruba people of value will be in position of power in the nation today? Or why should he be more loving to the Yorubas of non-integrity? Just imagine the likes of the Kashamus, Obanikoros, Omisores, Fayoses, Bode Georges who are his Yoruba allies. It is as if he is saying that those in criminalities and in self-interests are the best Yorubaland could offer.

    Many are still ready to vote for Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) today not for any perfection in him, but simply because he is considered as a better alternative to the ruling president that is desperate to resume office and continue to disastrously waste the goodness of the nation for a total of 10 years .

    There is no prominent Nigerian Jonathan and his campaign organisation has not stolen ‘endorsement’ from. He has been visiting all manner of churches, traditional rulers and communities which he had abandoned in his last six years in office. He adopted Ekiti State burdensome and tyrannical Governor Ayodele Fayose’s stomach infrastructures mentality by sharing rice and dumping the money he ought to use to be of promotion to life of the masses that are now in joblessness, poverty and developmental depression. We all learnt last week that PDP had to share foreign currencies to the oppressed Nigerians in the United Kingdom so that they can protest against Buhari who they confessed they have nothing against.

    That the so-called Afenifere is not supporting Buhari is not because those elders hate him. The truth is that they are just working to oppose Asiwaju Bola Tinubu who is a National Leader of Buhari’s main opposition party, the All Progressives Congress (APC). This is why I comply with the view of an earnest Yoruba leader, General Alani Akinrinade (rtd) who condemned the endorsement. He said: “if this old men that are shouting marginalization a few months ago, can sit today to endorse the same man that is marginalizing them, then their brains need medical examination.”

    Akinrinade observed that Prof. Yemi Osinbajo’s emergence as APC vice presidential candidate, an in-law to the Awolowo family, is enough to unite Yoruba to work for a common interest like Afenifere of old. He portrayed the endorsement of Jonathan, against the Buhari/Osinbajo ticket as a serious disservice to the Yoruba race. “How can these people be speaking for Yoruba, when they abandon their own son to celebrate a man that sees them as nothing for complete four years? He continues to deceive them with implementation of National Conference, as if that is where our future lies.”

    The retired General charged Yoruba youths to take their destiny in their hands, as the old men are not good role models. He depicted them as a group of sadist working unremittingly against Yoruba interest because of their hatred for a single man. He then counseled the scrapping Afenifere group to use their last days wisely since they will be answerable to God Almighty who created them one day.

    He is right in wisdom. Failing Afenifere leaders does not speak for the entire Yoruba race. They have become inconsequential set who cannot dictate for Yorubas who are still sensible.

  • Kasumu berates Mimiko over Afenifere endorsement of Jonathan

    President, Afonja Descendants’ Union, Ilorin, Kwara State, Alhaji Olola Kasumu, has berated the Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, for facilitating the endorsement of the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan by pan-Yoruba organisation, Afenifere and Oodua Peoples’ Congress (OPC).

    Kasumu also called on the national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to call to order the Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, over his incessant “death wish” for the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd).

    Speaking exclusively with The Nation in Ogbomoso, Kasunmu described as “laughable, idiotic and a mission in futility” the endorsement of Jonathan by Afenifere and OPC, since in his view, leaders of the two organisations lack the clout to convince people of the South West to vote for Jonathan.

    Describing leaders of the organisations as “unpopular kings without subjects,” Kasumu added, “It is unfortunate that the so-called leaders of these two groups have lost touch with the realities of the moment and have descended so low for a mess of porridge.

    “I am a one of the principal co-founders of the OPC and it is regrettable that the motives behind its formation had been ashamedly betrayed and derailed. Both Fasheun and Gani Adams are now running after pipeline contracts running into billions of naira. Is that how to fight the cause of Yoruba progress and development? What led to the split of Afenifere into two groups?”

     

  • Afenifere: Tragedy of a mouthpiece

    Afenifere: Tragedy of a mouthpiece

    The pan-Yoruba sociopolitical group, Afenifere has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan as its candidate for the re-scheduled March 28 presidential election. Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN examines the crises that made the Shepherd lose its flocks.  

    In 1951, the year of self-government in Western Nigeria, a political party, Action Group (AG) was born. The chiefs and elite who formed that party had specific objective – to embark on a radical and socioeconomic transformation of the defunct region, particularly in the areas of education, health and agriculture. But the leaders faced a dilemma. It was on how to inform and propagate the ideals and positions of the AG to a people, who neither spoke, nor understood English. So they came up with the name, ‘Egbe Afenifere’ (a group of well-wishers). On the party’s manifesto was free primary education and free medical service for all children below 18. The philosophy of making life more abundant for the people distinguished  the party.

    Today, there is a marked difference in the leadership of Afenifere from that of old. Rather than hold on to the philosophy and ideals of the founding fathers, the present day leaders of the group are after personal benefits. Unlike in the past, the group is wining and dining with elements and groups ideologically opposed to the group’s orientation. It has abandoned the role of a virile opposition as it is now in love with mainstream politics.

    Afenifere is a sociocultural and political group formed by the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo as a rallying point for the Yoruba people. A majority of the Yorubas see the pressure group as a legitimate force to serve their interests as well as maintain the waning influences of the Yorubaland in the federation. But the leadership  has jettisoned its position as a virile opposition bloc.

    Lost identity

    The group has lost its true identity as a consistent political organisation  that has always pitched its tent with  the side of the people. And since 2003, the group has been in a political wilderness. While the group supported the five Southwest governors of the defunct Alliance for Democracy (AD), it worked against the second-term ambition of former Lagos State Governor Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. In fact, the group encouraged the late Alhaji Ganiyu Dawodu to contest governorship election on the platform of Progressive Action Council (PAC) to split the AD votes in the state. Ironically, none of the AD governors, who enjoyed the Afenifere endorsement  survived the hurricane of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    In 2007, Afenifere floated the Democratic Peoples’ Alliance (DPA). The party adopted one of the aggrieved governorship aspirants of the  Action Congress (AC), Mr  jimi Agbaje as its candidate. But the old Afenifere warriors lacked the clout to win the election for Agbaje. He scored three per cent out of the total votes.

    Against all expectations, Afenifere, in 2012, struck a deal with the Labour Party (LP) to spite its members in the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN). Afenifere leaders took this decision despite the fact it had come to public knowledge that the LP had become an appendage of the PDP.

    Before, Afenifere leaders had visited President Goodluck Jonathan at  Aso Villa, Abuja on solidarity trips. One of such visits was to convey their approval for the proposed national conference. Curiously, a chieftain of Afenifere, Dr Femi Okurounmu, chaired the Presidential Advisory Committee on National Dialogue.

    Thus, it did not come to anyone as a surprise when Afenifere  under the leadership of Chief Reuben Fasoranti  adopted President Jonathan  as its presidential candidate for the  March 28, presidential poll. It has also directed all Yoruba sons and daughters to vote for PDP candidates. What baffles observers is how the group has changed its perception of the Jonathan administration which its leaders had earlier described as anti-Yoruba.

    Chief Olu Falae once accused the President of marginalising the Yoruba in the constitution of his cabinet. Falae specifically alleged that the President failed to appoint Yoruba into top most positions like the Senate presidency, House of Representatives speakership, Chief Justice of the Federation, Deputy Senate President, President Court of Appeal and Secretary to Government of the Federation. He noted that the absence of Yoruba in the power hierarchy was adversely affecting the zone. He also cited the sacking of eight General Managers of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), six of whom were Yoruba by the former Aviation Minister, Ms Stella Oduah.

    Okurounmu’s anger was on  the marginalisation of Yoruba by the Jonathan led-administration.

    He said: “We (Yoruba leaders) had met with Jonathan to complain about the marginalisation of the Yoruba, but he has not done anything about it. So, we have decided to pay him another visit. We have already made our intention known to the presidency. We are now waiting for the President to give us an appointment.

    “We have the details of the situation which we intend to present to the President. It is as if the Southwest has been excised from the country. If you look at all the top appointments in the country, it is not hard to see that Southwest has been marginalised in this administration.”

    However, following its declaration of support for President Jonathan, tongues have been wagging. Members of the group with dissenting opinion cast aspersion on Afenifere leadership. The aggrieved members have dissociated themselves from the Jonathan endorsement, alleging that the letter head of the Afenifere used was forged.

    A member who spoke on condition of anonymity accused the General Secretary of the Afenifere, Chief Seinde Arogbofa and the association’s spokesman, Yinka Odumakin, of taking a unilateral decision, which they said contradicted  the communique issued at the end of the group’s meeting. Further investigations revealed how the leadership kept the disagreeing members in abeyance until the President’s arrival in Akure, the Ondo State capital, when they suddenly read an address declaring unsolicited support for his re-election bid.

    The aggrieved member traced the intrigue to Chief Arogbofa, whose  younger brother, Brig-Gen Jones Arogbofa (rtd) is President Jonathan’s Chief of  Staff. The trade-off, according to the source, was to help the  younger Arogbofa. The Chief of Staff is keen on getting the Yoruba support his principal’s ambition.

    The source spoke further: “That was not what we agreed at our meeting.  We held a meeting and we agreed that we should not mention anybody’s name among the presidential candidates. We agreed that we should only talk about what each candidate stands for and then direct our people to vote for anyone that has approximated our position. In the communique we issued, we agreed to support any candidate who has demonstrated commitment to the implementation of the National Conference Report; who has will ensure devolution of power and reduce the cost of governance.

    “Later, we learned that the President was coming. But because they knew that some of us would oppose his adoption, they read the opposite of what we agreed on in their welcome address. Because his (Arogbofa) brother is the President’s Chief of Staff and he had probably promised to get Afenifere’s backing for the President, he just abandoned what we all agreed on and read a different position.

    Doctored identity

    “There is no doubt that Odumakin and the general secretary had doctored the communique because they had opposition in the meeting. They allowed all members present at the meeting to leave before they announced the adoption. Even the President did not asked for their support before they declared their support. All of us want to be rich but we must learn to do things with decorum.”

    Afenifere chieftain, Chief Ayo Adebanjo explained that the group endorsed the re-election bid of President Jonathan based on its conviction that he would implement the recommendations of the 2014 National Conference.

    With the endorsement of Jonathan, Afenifere has drawn the ire of the people in Southwest who considered it an affront on the sensibilities of the Yoruba people.

    Former Senate Minority leader,  Olorunnimbe Mamora  described the Afenifere endorsement of President Jonathan as an exercise in futility. According to him, Afenifere has no political influence on the Yoruba people and cannot decide for them which candidate they should vote for.

    Senator Mamora said no party or presidential candidate has exclusive right over the implementation of the National Conference Report. The report, he said, is a public document which would be implemented by whoever wins the presidency. True federalism and devolution of power as recommended by the conference are contained in All Progressives Congress (APC) manifesto, he said.

    The local chapter of Afenifere in Ekiti State has also dissociated itself from the  purported endorsement by the Fasoranti group. The state’s chairman, Chief Ibidapo Awojolu said: “We expected to have seen the commencement of the National Conference  recommendation by now. We have seen no evidence of President Jonathan ‘s plan to implement the recommendations.”

    Describing the Afenifere endorsement as needless and misdirected, the group contended:  “We Yorubas have suffered the most unprecedented neglect and marginalisation from Jonathan’s administration.

    “There is nothing to show for the electoral support Jonathan got from the Southwest during the 2011 presidential election,” Awojolu stated.

    Civil Rights activist Comrade Moshood Erubami  said:  “Most of those who constitute the Yoruba elders in the current move to pacify the Yoruba race to vote for a president that has marginalised us were enemies of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo during his lifetime and obviously, they have continued their hatred for the Yoruba leader after his death.

    “The frequent visits of these leaders to the seat of power and the toothy smile usually on their faces when coming out of Aso Rock says it all that they are not true Awoists. Most of the Afenifere leaders asking for Jonathan’s re-election  are those who felt betrayed by the consistent Awoists who populate the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    “We cannot therefore put the destinies of the Yoruba in the hands of the present flock of the Yoruba elders, who are friends of Jonathan, using crass opportunism to stay alive.  The task of restoring the Yoruba nation to its desirable height is too vital to be left in the hands of political jobbers. For real development to be achieved, these elders must first be rejected, displaced and replaced.

    “The truth is that this endorsement is dead on arrival. The Jonathan administration ought to be flaunting its achievements over the last six years it has been in government but there is nothing to market. He had opportunities to turn this country around but end up plundering our resources.”

    The Oodua Nation, an umbrella body of Yoruba nationals in the United States (U.S.) has advised the leaders of Afenifere to desist from frivolous endorsement of candidates and preserve the integrity of the race. The group through its chairman, Mr Samuel Ayodele said it became imperative to state that the endorsement of President Jonathan and his administration had done a colossal damage to the collective integrity of the Yorubas at home and in the Diaspora. The body urged the leaders to learn how to be liberal to all political parties, rather than dancing to the tune of a few cabals that are milking the nation dry.

    The Afenifere and the PDP’s calculation, according to analysts, is that if the President defeats the APC in the Southwest and secures 25 per cent in the Northwest and Northeast, he would win at the first ballot. In 2011, Jonathan polled 2, 786,410 votes in the Southwest. Former Afenifere scribe, Ayo Opadokun said the political setting that made people of Southwest to vote for Jonathan in 2011; irrespective of party affiliation, have changed.

    Opadokun said the political leadership of Southwest as at that time interacted with their colleague in government to give Jonathan solid votes in 2011, but that situation no longer exists today.

    He explained that the Southwest political leadership and those in government today are not on the same page with the President. Except things change, political leaders in Southwest and the President are not together. They have different political agenda. So, what happened in 2011 will not play out this time around, he said.

     Afenifere has a proud history. Under the leadership of the late Chief Adekunle Ajasin and Senator Abraham Adesanya, the group waged war against the military rule. The leaders of the group were harassed, molested, unjustly detained and exiled by the military. Yet, they stood their ground. The late Adesanya narrowly escaped assassination in the course of the struggle.

    Genesis of the cracks

    The cracks in the Afenifere fold began to manifest after the exit of the military from power. Shortly before the enthronement of democracy in 1999, the leaders were locked in protracted battle. The group was confronted by two crises. On one hand, the late Chief Bola Ige, the deputy leader of the group, parted ways with his colleagues because they rejected him at the presidential primaries which was organised at the D’ Rovans Hotel , Ibadan, where they picked Chief Olu Falae. Apparently to pay his colleagues back in their own coin, Ige joined the Federal Executive Council (FEC) under President Olusegun Obasanjo without consultation.  Also, the late Alhaji Dawodu and Tinubu parted ways in Lagos. The fight was over the control of party’s machinery. Efforts to mend fences through the proposed 60:40 formula recommended by a panel headed by Sir Olaniwun Ajayi failed. Dawodu was bitter. He left the AD for PAC. On the eve of the 2003 polls, he directed his supporters to vote for the PDP governorship candidate, the late Funsho Williams. Despite the gang-up, Tinubu won the election.

    It was distressing to Adesanya that he could not get Dawodu and Tinubu to agree. The leader was even accused of shielding Tinubu from the wrath of the group. When Adesanya took ill, and eventually died, a leadership crisis enveloped the group. Fasoranti was acting as the leader. But when he recognised Senator Mojisoluwa Akinfenwa as the AD National Chairman against his compatriot from Osun State, Chief Bisi Akande, the group split into two. The faction rejected Fasoranti’s leadership and pronounced Senator Ayo Fasanmi as the Deputy Leader.

    Since then, there has been clashes of ego and interests in Yorubaland. While Afenifere’s political influence nose-dived in the Southwest, the members of the Fasanmi’s faction emerged as dominant political establishment in the region. The likes of Tinubu, Otunba Niyi Adebayo, Fasanmi, Chief Olusegun Osoba, Otunba Olabiyi Durojaye, Olawale Osun, Governor Rauf Aregbesola  and Dr. Kayode Fayemi fought the liberation war in the Southwest, when they sent the PDP packing. Instead of forging unity, the Fasoranti and Fasanmi groups have continued to work at cross purposes.

    Falae recalled that the split in the group which started in the AD, later extended to the Afenifere. He said the AD governors felt aggrieved when Afenifere set up a committee headed by Prof Bolaji Akinyemi to assess their performance.

    “The purpose was to make sure that the governors delivered their electoral promises to the electorate.  The people in the region had voted for Afenifere and not the AD or an individual. All we were doing was to protect the legacy of the group,” he explained.

    Clash of interests

    He alleged that the governors also alienated the Afenifere in their second term calculation by deciding that the AD would not field a presidential candidate in 2003 without having consultation with him as the former candidate. “They entered into a deal with the then President Olusegun Obasanjo that they would support and campaign for his re-election in 2003, which they did. They (AD governors) lost, with the exemption of Tinubu. After the election that swept them out of power, they couldn’t come back to the fold,” Falae added.

    But Fasanmi had a contrary view. He blamed the crisis on the personal ambition of the leaders of the Fasoranti group.

    “We tried to mend fences at a stage, but the ambition of their members in the AD to the disintegration of the party and the Afenifere. Adesanya single-handedly picked Fasoranti as the acting leader when he had health challenges. I was elected Afenifere leader after Adesanya’s death”, Fasanmi said.

    To Afenifere leader in Lagos State, Chief Supo Sonibare, the problem of  Afenifere  has to do with the dynamics of having core leaders who are not in government and having governors who are effectively heads of government.

    Sonibare recalled that in the days  Chief Awolowo,  the sage wielded the power of the head of government and leader of the Afenifere simultaneously. When he was no longer the Premier, there was the aspiration of becoming the Prime Minister as the leader of the opposition then.

    “In the present day Afenifere, we have leaders who are not in government and governors who are heads of government. The leaders could only use moral persuasion and cannot compel any governor to do their bidding. That dichotomy of power brought about the discord and the split in Afenifere. The division was managed by Chief Adesanya. His successor, Chief Fasoranti presided over meetings without both factions of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) in attendance,” he said.

  • Afenifere and its wishful endorsement

    Considering the reckoning of the sophistication of Yoruba in the political evolution of Nigeria both at national and at international levels, it is pertinent that much is expected from any pan socio-political organisation that is set up as an umbrella body for the propagation and protection of the common interests of the Yoruba in all ramifications.  In this light, the Afenifere readily comes to mind.

    However, the recent pitching of tent with the ruling political party (PDP) for the February 2015 election by Afenifere has continued to be marred in a heated and an unending controversy, accusations and counter-accusations from the Yoruba.  While some people do not see anything wrong with the partisanship posture of the organization, other see the action of the group as an act of sell out which is at variance with the wishes of the majority of the Yoruba both at home and in Diaspora  who believe that it was high time the PDP was changed at the Federal level with the All Progressives Congress (APC) that is seen as the alternative party than can effectively tackle the two main problems facing Nigeria today as a country – insecurity and corruption.

    Going down the memory lane, if the views expressed by Chief Babatunde Oduwoye,  a former Alliance for Democracy Whip in the House of Representatives and a one-time Publicity Secretary of  a faction of Afenifere is anything to go by, then it can aptly be summarized that the protracted problem that is easily identifiable with Afenifere right from onset has been that of unnecessary endorsement of a political party against other political parties without a recourse to the diverse political interests and lack of balancing capability when it comes to taking a serious political decision as the one on endorsement of one out of the presidential contestants in the Feb 2015 election which is around the corner.

    Chief Oduwoye was asked if it wouldn’t be a better idea if a transformed Afenifere endorses credible and tested candidates that believe in its core values across all the political parties, he replied thus: “I agree with you and that is why I will say irrespective of the political party you belong to, if an individual is seen by its immediate community to be of good background, credible, resourceful and believes in Afenifere credo, such a candidate should be endorsed by Afenifere”.  Without mincing words, other socio-political associations in Nigeria outside Afenifere such as, Ohaneze-Indigbo, the Arewa Consultative Forum,  just to mention a few,  have a lot to learn from the stance of the like of Chief Oduoye on the enthronement of bad governance through prejudiced political interest and self-centeredness of the leadership of socio-political organizations in Nigeria.

     

    •Odunayo Joseph

    Mopa, Kogi State

  • More knocks for Afenifere leaders

    The Director of the Buhari/Osinbajo Campaign for Lagos Office, Abiodun Faleke, has taken a swipe at the Yoruba group, Afenifere, for endorsing President Goodluck Jonathan.

    He accused the leaders of speaking for themselves and not the Yoruba as a race.

    Faleke, who chairs the House of Representatives Committee on Anti-Corruption, Ethics and National Values, urged the leaders to pray that God rules in their affairs.

    Faleke said it was unfortunate that the Pa Reuben Fasoranti-led Afenifere endorsed the cPresident, who had branded them as ‘rascals’.

    According to him, next month’s general elections would be decided by Nigerians, who are ready to take their destinies in their own hands.

    “The leaders are day-dreaming to think they can help President Jonathan with mere endorsement. In anyway, who are such leaders to decide for the Yoruba? Can they ask God to govern their lives the way the President is directing the affairs of this country?

    “What is going on is beyond the APC and Buhari. It is a revolution in a different form. It is a train on a full speed. It is either you clear off from its path or the train sweeps you away.”

    Also, the Coalition of Oodua Self-Determination Groups (COSEG) has condemned the endorsement.

    The COSEG, in a statement by its Chairman, Dayo Ogunlana, said: “It is unbecoming of the Afenifere to come out to declare the support of the Yoruba for Jonathan in the forthcoming election. That declaration was a costly mistake. It was more than a slight on the rest of the Yoruba. It was most improper.

  • Benjamin Adekunle: the hero Nigeria does not deserve

    Benjamin Adekunle: the hero Nigeria does not deserve

    The death of Brigadier General Benjamin Adekunle provides a stark contrast between the great potentials of the past and the bleak future of the present. His death provides a timeline that shows two pictures: that Nigeria is not progressing due to its inability to preserve and replicate patriotism and that its life is ebbing away with every death of past heroes announced.

    Nigeria faced in 1967 the same internal threat to corporate existence it faced today, with few differences in semantics and prevailing circumstances. Then the threat was termed “secession” from down South but now it is called “insurgency” from up North. Then, Nigeria was neither as rich as it is today nor prepared for such high level combat, having only few trained personnel. Today, the country commands enormous resources and has a reputably strong army, as could be seen in its peacekeeping efforts.

    Yet, this insurgency has not only lasted more than the civil war, from all indications, it is getting stronger, while the army sinks deeper into controversies ranging from mutiny to protests. Adekunle’s death therefore begs the “why” question and it forces a conclusion that the labour of past heroes is being laid to waste, instead of being built upon.

    Adekunle’s heroism could be summed up by one saying that where there is a will, there will be a way. He took over an army command largely made up of volunteers who had no prior military training and turned them, within months, into brave soldiers with the most humane records. His attention to details could be seen when he renamed his command, officially called “Third Infantry Division”, to the “Third Marine Commando.”

    As a good manager of men and resources Benjamin Adekunle threw his soul, knowledge and body to the prosecution of the Nigerian civil war, leading the 3rd Marine Commando through the sea to rapidly capture the city of Port-Harcourt and the total liberation of the parts of eastern Nigeria that are now known as Rivers, Cross Rivers and Akwa-Ibom States respectively. This descendant of Ogbomoso warriors fearlessly fought side by side with his soldiers at the war front, sharing their pains and experiences.

    It is on record that Adekunle’s feat came with minimal loss of human lives, a testimony to his deft tactics. Many of those captured by his command were either absorbed into the Nigerian army or rehabilitated to take up other dignifying jobs. So, while the “Black Scorpion,” as he was fondly called, gave a tough posture in the media as someone who wants to kill all “enemies,” he was quietly rehabilitating them and winning them over, as revealed in recently published accounts of the civil war.

    If casualties recorded by his command’s onslaughts are compared with especially the one led by late General Murtala Mohammed, Adekunle instantly comes across as a thoroughbred officer and gentleman, a Nigerian Military nationalist and a Yoruba illustrious son, who gave the art of modern warfare in Africa a unique place in the history of humanity.

    His exploits in the Nigerian civil war put him in the elite class of military commanders who led from the front; legends such as General George S. Patton of the US Army in World War II, Field Marshall Erwin Rommel, the “Desert Fox” and the exceptional General (Later Field Marshall Viscount) William Joseph Slim, commander of the British Army in Burma in World War II. Audacious and unpretentious, Benjamin Adekunle was a commander’s commander in the best sense.

    Adekunle, according to historical accounts, was a product of Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the UK and he was commissionedas a 2nd Lieutenant on December, 1960. He served in Kasai Province of Congo with the 1st Battalion, Queen’s Own Regiment, been his first ONUC UN peace keeping duty. In 1962, Lt Adekunle became Aide-de-Camp to the governor of the eastern region, Sir Akanu Ibiam. As a Captain he was posted back to the Congo as Staff Captain (A) To the Nigerian Brigade HQ at Luluabourg under Brigadier B. Ogundipe. In 1964, Major Adekunle attended the Defence Services Staff College Wellington in India. He was appointed Adjutant General briefly in May 1965 to replace Lt. Col. Yakubu Gowon, who was proceeding on a course outside country. He later handed over the position to Lt. Col. James Pam and posted back to his old Battalion (1st Bn) in Enugu as a Company Commander. He later assumed command of the Lagos Garrison as a substantive Lt. Col.

    When the Nigerian Civil War broke out in July 1967, Adekunle was tasked to lead elements which included two new battalions (7th and 8th) – to conduct the historic sea borne assault on Bonny in the Bight of Benin on 26 July 1968 (carried out by Major Isaac Adaka Boro’s unit). This happened after the federal government gained confidence of most south western ethnic groups as a direct result of Biafran push to mid-west state and probe into Western region. Adekunle was promoted to Colonel after the Bonny landing.

    The 6th (under Major Jalo) and 8th (under Major Ochefu) battalions of the Lagos Garrison subsequently took part in operations to liberate the Midwest following the Biafran invasion of August 1967. The 7th (under Major Abubakar) stayed behind to hold Bonny. Because Major Jalo’s Unit was seconded to Lt. Col. Murtala Mohammed’s 2nd Division, Adekunle was left with only the 8th Battalion at Escravos. He, therefore, protested to Army HQ and got the Lagos garrison upgraded to Brigade status through the creation of the 31 and 32 Battalions (under Majors Aliyu and Hamman, respectively). This formation, combined with elements of the Lagos garrison along the eastern seaboard, was officially designated the 3 Infantry Division. However, Colonel Adekunle did not think the name was sensational enough nor did it project the nature of the unique terrain in which his men had to fight. Therefore, without formal approval from Army HQ, he renamed it the “3 Marine Commando (3MCDO).”

    The “Black Scorpion” was easily the most controversial, celebrated and mythologized figure. Benjamin “Adekunle’s boys in the Midwest seized Escravos, Burutu, Urhonigbe, Owa and Aladima. They captured Bomadi and Patani, Youngtown, Koko, Sapele, Ajagbodudu, Warri, Ughelli, Orerokpe, Umutu and Itagba”

    The name of Benjamin Adekunle will continue to resonate as a great son of Africa forever for the role he played in the contemporary history of Nigeria, feats that are lacking in the Nigerian Army today, a rare willpower that is sorely needed. One therefore wonders whether Nigeria deserves its heroes. Nigeria recorded great feats that were unmatched even in European countries in its early years.

    We will continue to miss him, as long as we are unable to produce men like him. it is in this regard that Afenifere Renewal Group (ARG) commiserate with the entire family of the late Brigadier General Benjamin Adesanya Maja Adekunle, the Soun Of Ogbomoso Oba Oladuni Oyewumi, the Oyo State Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, the good people of Oyo State and Nigerians in general on the loss of this illustrious son of Oduduwa and a national patriot of the highest order. He is gone, but his life is still with us as a lesson, as a fountain from which we can drink forever.

    Adieu! “The Black Scorpion”

     •Famoriyo is the Publicity Secretary of Afenifere Renewal Group (ARG).

  • Afenifere rejects creation of 30,000 additional polling units

    Afenifere rejects creation of 30,000 additional polling units

    THE pan-Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere, has rejected the creation of over 30,000 more polling units by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    Its position was contained in a statement issued at the end of a meeting in Akure, Ondo State’s residence of the group’s leader, Chief Reuben Fasoranti.

    Chieftains and members from Oyo, Ondo, Ogun, Osun, Ekiti and Lagos states were present at the meeting.

    Its Publicity Secretary, Yinka Odumakin, said the organisation was disturbed by the INEC’s action few months to the general elections.

    The distribution of the new polling units, Afenifere said, was disturbing and showed the determination of the INEC to sustain the permanent dominance of the North on election matters.

    The organisation decried the allocation of 21,000 polling units to the North while the South, including the populous Southwest, was allocated only 8,000 and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) 1,200.

    It condemned the allocation of 7,906 to the Northwest alone, 5,291 units to the war-ravaged Northeast whereas the Southeast was given 1,167 units and Southwest 4,160.

    The statement reads: “Afenifere hereby passes vote of no confidence in the ability of the Prof. Attahiru Jega-led INEC to conduct a free, fair and credible election, if those polling units are sustained.

    “We viewed the creation of the new units as attempts to create rigging of the election at the source.

    “The creation of polling units is a subject of the number of registered voters and not based on land mass or any geographical distribution.

    “We do not know any country in the world where electoral law is changed one year to the election. We reject the exercise in its entirety and INEC should cancel the new units,” Afenifere stated.

    On the National Conference, Afenifere hailed President Goodluck Jonathan for convening the conference.

    The meeting praised the performances of Yoruba delegates at the conference, advising that the recommendations of the conference should be subjected to a referendum, which would give birth to a new constitution.

    It urged Jonathan to implement the decision reached at the conference and make it a centenary legacy for Nigeria as Lord Lugard was being remembered for the amalgamation.

    The organisation advised leaders to go back to their states and ensure that committed members of the organisation emerge victorious in the election.

    The meeting, which was attended by leaders and members from the political divides, was the first to be held after the National Conference.

     

    Those present were Chief Olusegun Osoba, the Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, Minister of Police Affairs, Jelili Adesiyan and Senator Iyiola Omisore, Senator Gbenga Kaka, Olu Falae, Ayo Adebanjo and Prof. Akin Onigbinde.

  • Yuguda blasts ACF, Afenifere, Ohanaeze

    Yuguda blasts ACF, Afenifere, Ohanaeze

    . . . Alleges divisive comments by groups on confab, 2015 poll

    Bauchi State Governor, Mallam Isa Yuguda, has taken a swipe at the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), the Afenifere, Ohanaeze Ndigbo and other ethnic nationality groups in the country for what he described as their divisive tendencies.

    Yuguda accused the regional socio-cultural cum political interest groups of fanning the embers of disunity among the Nigerian people with their inflammatory statements about the polity and the nation’s leaders.

    The governor is particular miffed by the apparently combative posture of the groups on the upcoming National Conference and their parochial views on the Presidency in the run up to the 2015 general elections.

    Speaking with reporters in Bauchi at the weekend, Governor Yuguda cautioned the groups against setting the stage for political violence that could arise from their unguarded utterances.

    He said, “Some of these people who are old men of about 90 years appear to have lost focus. They are busy abusing one another and abusing leaders from different sections of the country.

    “Most of them were privileged individuals during their prime, but they have now turned around sowing divisions among the various groups in the country. It is high time they stopped instigating the peace loving people of the country against one another.”

    The governor called on the youth population to shun the divisive tendencies of the groups and challenged them to work towards bridging the gaping developmental gap in all facets of the economy.

    The youths, he said, must strive hard to harness the nation’s abundant human and material resources and to forge unity among the diverse groups for the progress of the country.

    Yuguda blamed what he termed the mercantile approach to power by some members of the political class, saying their actions were responsible for some of the woes besetting the country.

    According to him, “these politicians are busy competing for power just for the oil money. They see politics as an enterprise, with the sole purpose of making profit.

    “Instead of focusing on how best to serve their people and develop the economy, they see political power as a means of making money for their children, their grandchildren and their generation unborn.

    “It is high time they changed their perception if we want our country to grow and the media have a vital role to play in this self discovery campaign.”

     

  • Afenifere leader says Yoruba not opposed to conference

    Afenifere leader says Yoruba not opposed to conference

    The Chairman of the Afenifere Renewal Group, Hon. Wale Oshun, has said the leaders and people of Yorubaland in the southwest geo-political zone of the country are not opposed to the National Conference proposed by President Goodluck Jonathan, in spite of being wary of the motives behind the talk shop.

    Speaking on a Television programme during the week, Oshun, a former Chief Whip of the Federal House of Representatives, said the people of the region are ready to take up the gauntlet and see how best they can approach the conference that is billed to open soon.

    “Yorubas are wary of the motive behind this particular conference that has suddenly found favour in the eyes of the government. But we will take up the gauntlet and see what we can make of it. We will challenge those issues we are wary of. We are not opposed to discussing Nigeria. In fact, it is our desire that Nigerians should discuss the future of their nationhood.

    If at the end of the day it is discovered by all that it is a confederal system that will help the country, so be it. Whatever the people decides should be allowed to stay. This is why we are wary of the intentions of the promoters of this conference. Will the wishes of the people be reflected by this conference? That is the question we first want to ask,” he said.

    The former federal legislator explained that one issue that still needs to be critically examined is the role of ethnic nationalities in the proposed conference. According to him, any conference that fails to cater for the interest of the numerous ethnic groups in the country will not achieve the desired results.

    “On the issue of what roles should the ethnic nationalities play in the conference, the interesting thing is that those who gave little or no role to the ethnic nationalities would discover that the various groups and organisations they have called upon, would still be represented by people of Hausa, Ibo and Yoruba extractions. That is the plight of the ethnic nationalities.

    We will challenge such situations. We are not comfortable with a situation where the ethnic nationalities are not allowed to be represented. It is only when they are represented that their voices would be heard. Our stake here is that we want the country to be ruled in the proper way. And the way to go about this is to allow all stakeholders, irrespective of size, position or resources, to be part of the decision-making process.

    He also decried a situation where there are ‘no go areas’ in the discussion of the delegates at the proposed conference. In his opinion, all issues affecting the country should be put on the table at the talk shop for thorough discussion.

    “If, for instance, we can discuss all matters under the sun, there is no way we will not touch on certain issues. Take for instance, if the Niger Deltans say they want derivation and somebody from the north says no, don’t you think we will get to a point where we will need to agree on whether we want to continue together as one country and under what terms? That is not to say we will be discussing the breakup of Nigeria. If there is genuine belief in the conference by all, then we will all be ready to make concessions.

    “Unless there is an opportunity to discuss all issues, we will not be having a real conference. This is why we have even planned a programme to be held in Ibadan on the 12th of this month to further enlighten people about this conference,” he urged.

    Oshun also said the incessant call for restructuring by many components of the country is due to the difficult federal system the country is practicing currently. He advocated a change in the system.

    “Yes, there has been serious decline in our nationhood. That is why you have all these calls for restructuring. And we have this decline because we have a structure that is difficult to operate in our own kind of society. The kind of federalism we have here is difficult to operate. A federal system that is less centralised than what we have now would be easier to operate and this will help to eradicate suspicions. We must crave a system where every federating unit is allowed to pursue its own goals and development agenda at its own pace.

    “Boko Haram, militancy and other various types of unrest are consequences of the failure of the type of federal system we practice. Even in areas where you don’t have militancy or Boko Haram yet, for example in the southwest, you see other vices like kidnapping gaining ground. The bad thing about all these is that people are really agitated because they feel Boko Haram is a direct attack on Christians. But I feel it is not really about religion. I feel it is because we don’t really have a truly federal system. These people are just reacting in the wrong way to a bad system.

    “I feel if people believe they want to be under the dictates of the Sharia law, they should be able to take such decision the same way others who feel otherwise should be able to express their own choices too. It is only a truly federal system that can ensure this. We don’t have that here,” he said.

    The Afenifere leader argued that there is no truth in the assertion that it is difficult to change the current socio-political system being practiced in the country.

    “Look, there is nothing difficult about altering as difficult system. Even the amalgamation treaty that led to our emergence as a country is such that nothing about it is sacrosanct. It is such that if we all agree to stay together, good, but if we feel otherwise, then we should be able to discuss what we need to do to remain united. But if you say we cannot discuss these things for one reason or the other, then how do you deal with issues like Boko Haram and other such consequences of our bad system?

    “While urging a nationwide campaign against violence, Oshun also advised the various governments in the country to everything possible to prevent people from resorting to violence as a means of expressing their dissatisfaction with certain things.

    “When people resort to violence, it may be because they couldn’t find other means of expressing their grievances. This is one reason why we must discuss. If we don’t have violence in some parts of the country today, it is not assurance that it will not happen later. Unfortunately, when you have a mob action, it is difficult to control. We just must take care of those things that can lead to violence. There will be a time when people would want to say this is my right and I want to enforce it. It is just compulsory that we must continue to denounce violence. Also, we must do anything to forestall it,” he cautioned.

    Oshun also reiterated the call for free and fair elections as another way of eradicating violence in the country.

    “The truth of the matter here is that here in Nigeria, we go through elections but voting rarely reflects our desires as a people. Our votes rarely count. The result of this is loss of confidence in the system. If people are sure that their votes will effect the change they want, all they will do is to wait for four years and change what they don’t want with their votes whenever they are dissatisfied. If this is the situation, they will easily wait, but that has not been the situation. And when you have such a hopeless political situation, violence is usually a consequence,” he said.