Afenifere, the Yoruba socio-political organisation, has suspended
two of its national officers for issuing an “unauthorised statement” against
Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu.
The affected officers are Jare Ajayi, the national publicity
secretary, and Abagun Kole Omololu, national organising secretary.
The organisation issued the directive in a communiqué
released at the end of its monthly general meeting, on Tuesday.
The communiqué was signed by Ayo Adebanjo, Afenifere leader,
and Sola Ebiseni, secretary-general.
BACKGROUND
Last Saturday, Iwuanyanwu, chairman of the council of
elders, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, said there is no fight between the Igbo and Yoruba
people in the country.
He added that those destroying Igbo properties in Lagos were
“political rascals”.
“And I want to tell
those in Lagos to realise that there is no war between us and Yorubas. Yorubas
are with us. There are just political rascals, and we’re going to handle them,”
Iwuanyawu had said.
However, Iwuanyanwu’s comment elicited harsh reactions on
and off social media as some people claimed that the “political rascals”
comment was directed at the Yoruba people.
Reacting to Iwuanyanwu’s comment, Omololu, in a statement
released on behalf of Afenifere, condemned the Ohanaeze leader, adding that the
Yoruba socio-political group will reach out to Ohanaeze Ndigbo to seek
clarification.
‘WE DIDN’T ISSUE THE
STATEMENT’
In the communiqué, Afenifere distanced the group from the
statement against Iwuanyanwu, adding that analysis of the video taken during
the meeting in Anambra showed that the Ohanaeze leader “condemned the
shenanigans of some political rascals”.
“We condemn in the strongest terms, the campaigns of calumny
and acts of ethnic violence deployed by some politicians and their hired
criminal gangs in several parts of the federation during the gubernatorial
election, particularly Lagos state where the election was made to appear like
an inter-ethnic war between the Yoruba and Igbo which greatly led to voters’
suppression and other forms of deliberate disenfranchisement through
brigandage,” the communiqué reads.
“We received a message credited to Chief Emmanuel
Iwunayanwun in a viral video alleging indictment of the Yoruba as political
rascals on account of ethnic violence deployed by politicians of the ruling
party in Lagos State.
“On the analysis of the video and information at the
disposal of Afenifere by people at the Anambra State gathering, we are
convinced that Chief Iwunayanwun rightly asserted that the Yoruba and Igbo were
not at war and truly condemned the shenanigans of some political rascals.
“Flowing from the
above, Afenifere state that it never issued any statement and dissociate the
organisation from any such statement against Chief Iwunayanwun.
“We observed the uncouth activities and unauthorised
statements in its name and the constant denigration of the organisation, by
Jare Ajayi, the national publicity secretary, and Abagun Kole Omololu, the
national organising secretary.
“After due consideration
of the unending embarrassing conduct of the two officers, the meeting resolved
that they be and are hereby removed immediately from their respective offices
and their membership be suspended sine die pending further decisions after
their appearance before and recommendations by the disciplinary committee.”
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