By Harry Awurumibe, Editor Abuja Bureau
A prominent member of Pan-Yoruba Socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere and Lagos Lawyer, Dele Farotimi has cleared doubts over the endorsement of Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi by the body.
Speaking on AIT breakfast programme ‘Kakaaki’ monitored in Abuja on Friday, on the furore over Afenifere’s double endorsement of the presidential candidates of LP and All Progressives Congress (APC),
Farotimi described the purported second endorsement as a none issue.
Farotimi who is the Spokesman, Obi-Datti Presidential Campaign Organisation, argued that Afenifere did not endorse any other candidate aside from Peter Obi, adding that there has not been another endorsement by Afenifere.
Said he: “I stand to be corrected that Afenifere has endorsed another presidential candidate aside Labour Party candidate Mr. Peter Obi. Those who converged in Akure last weekend have not been able to attend Afenifere meeting for several years”.
Speaking further Farotimi said: “It breaks my heart to see some persons of Yoruba origin working so hard to divide Afenifere. It is so sad that some people will go out of the way to drag a 96-year old Pa Rueben Fasoranti into what he does not want to do at his age”.
According to him what happened in Akure have its implications because it does not speak well of those who want to destroy Afenifere, stressing that Afenifere represents the truth.
“To start with, Afenifere endorsed Mr. Peter Obi based on equity and justice. Also, Afenifere chose to support Obi because record of Labour Party mirrors that of Action Group (AG) of late Pa Obafemi Awolowo. We are Omoluabi, which means rigteousness”, Farotimi insists.
He however argued that those trying to divide Afenifere have already failed because the leadership of Pa Ayo Adebanjo is not under threat by anyone as he remains Afenifere’s leader after Pa Fasoranti handed over to him over two years.
Prompt News Online recalls that there have been claim and counter claims that Afenifere again endorsed the APC presidential candidate in Akure last weekend after it had last September endorsed the LP presidential candidate.
However, it has been discovered that another socio-political group called “Conscience of Yoruba Nation (COYN)” led by the duo of Dare Babarinsa and Otunba Kole Omololu actually summoned the meeting of Sunday, October 30, 2022 at Chief Fasoranti Country Home in Akure.
Meanwhile, the claims that it was Afenifere that met in Akure to endorse the APC presidential candidate has pitched Pa Fasoranti and Pa Adebanjo against each other.