Peter Obi: Anger in Tinubu's camp as Afenifere justifies Labour Party candidate's endorsement
- Chief Ayo Adebanjo has clarified that the decision to back the presidential aspiration of Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP)
- According to the acting leader of Afenifere, a Pan-Yoruba socio-political group, this support is in line with ideological and equitable principles of the group
- Recall that Tinubu had criticised the elder statesman over claims that Afenifere had endorsed Obi, insisting that is just an individual in Afenifere
Despite heavy criticism from the camp of the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, through Pa Ayo Adebanjo, has justified its decision to back the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, for the 2023 elections.
According to Adebanjo, the group's support of Obi was in line with ideological and equitable principles of the group, This Day Newspaper reports.
Read also
2023 presidency: Keyamo speaks on why Afenifere is backing Peter Obi, goes down memory lane
Source: Twitter
He said Afenifere will not compromise the principle of justice, equity and inclusiveness because Tinubu is a Yoruba man, Premium Times added.
Adebanjo stated:
PAY ATTENTION: Join Legit.ng Telegram channel! Never miss important updates!
“We cannot continue to demand that the Igbo people remain in Nigeria while we, at the same time, continue to brutally marginalise and exclude them from the power dynamics.
“Peter Obi is the person of Igbo extraction that Afenifere has decided to support and back; he is the man we trust to restructure the country back to federalism on the assumption of office.
“We will not compromise this principle of justice, equity and inclusiveness because one of our own, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, is a frontline candidate. It is on this same principle we condemn the Peoples Democratic Party for sponsoring Atiku Abubakar, a Northern Fulani Muslim to succeed General Muhammadu Buhari another Fulani Muslim.”
Olu Falae backs southeast, says Igbo should be Nigeria's next president
Meanwhile, in an unprecedented move, another Yoruba elder backed the southeast for Nigeria's presidency in 2023. According to Chief Olu Falae, a former minister of finance, the time has come for Igbos to produce the next president.
Falae said fair-minded Yoruba people will see the reason to support an Igbo presidency. He added that though in the past, Igbos had contested against Yorubas while other regions conceded, that does not mean they should not be voted this time around.
2023 campaigns: INEC sends important message to political parties, candidates
Meanwhile, a strong message has been sent to political parties ahead of the commencement of the 2023 electioneering campaigns. The message was sent by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
In the message, the electoral umpire warned the 18 registered political parties and politicians in the country to avoid hate speech, abusive language, and all actions capable of truncating the outcome of the election.
The warning was issued by INEC chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, at the ongoing two-day capacity-building workshop on the Commission’s Progresses, Innovations, Preparations for the 2023 General Elections and Critical Issues in the Electoral Act 2022 in Lagos.
Source: Legit.ng
