Afenifere explains why group prefers Jonathan to Buhari

The Publicity Secretary of the Yoruba Unity Forum (YUF) and chieftain of the Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, Dr Kunle Olajide, has explained why the group endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election.

He said Afenifere was impressed by his commitment to implement the recommendations of the 2014 National Conference.
Olajide, who served as the secretary of South-West delegation to the confab, noted that the recommendations of the Conference were in three groups, adding that Afenifere was concerned with the swift implementations of some of the recommendations which were within the powers of the president to implement.

 

He told Sunday Tribune that the group could not support the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), given his past records of victimising Yoruba leaders and divisive utterances.

This he said included his promise to see to the total implementation of Sharia on a nationwide basis.
He said Afenifere was particularly disturbed by Buhari’s opposition to the 2014 National Conference, which was convoked by President Jonathan in response to the yearning of Afenifere and other patriotic and forward-looking groups within the country.
Olajide stated that the current political system in the country compelled politicians to be corrupt, adding that Buhari’s mantra of anti-corruption in the face of the obvious systemic problems in the polity was not only uninformed but unfortunate, adding that the South-West geopolitical zone should be wary of supporting opponents of the country’s restructuring.

 

He said: “There is no way Nigeria can move forward without recourse to the recommendations of the National Conference and President Jonathan has shown commitment to implementing them.

 

“How can anyone expect Buhari and those who believed that we were okay the way we were as a nation to now turn around and implement the conference resolutions?” the Afenifere chieftain quipped.
Daily Post