Buhari not better Fulani than Sardauna – Ayo Adebanjo

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…Says only restructuring can prevent anarchy

Afenifere leader, elder statesman, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, has warned that anarchy looms over Nigeria if the constitution is not changed ‘to a truly federal system, where all the federating units will be autonomous, and the functions of the federal government will be confined to what is its duty.

‘President Muhammadu Buhari is supposed to restructure the country back to true federalism, which Sardauna adopted before our independence, and I have challenged him that he is not more clever, he is not more intelligent, he is not more knowledgeable, he is not better exposed and he is not a better Fulani than Sardauna, why should he be opposed to that?’ Chief Ayo Adebanjo said

The Afenifere leader in an interview with the Sun lamented that: ‘anarchy has taken over the country. We must return the country to true federalism, where the regions should be autonomous, and let everybody be ruled according to the dictate of his place, then, this culture of autocracy and authority over everybody would be stopped. It is because of this culture of autocracy that the president doesn’t want to do anything to change the constitution.

He also said that Afenifere and himself campaigned for President Muhammadu in 2011 because he was going to carry out restructuring if elected. He promised restructuring while Pastor Tunde Bakare was his running mate ‘Restructuring is in the fourth paragraph of APC manifesto under which they are running this government; they have not denied this. Which one has he done? And you want me to believe whatever he says

He went on to say that since the president doesn’t want to go back to a constitution Nigerians agreed on at independence he challenged him and he has not denied: ‘I said why should he hesitate to go back to the constitution we had at independence, which was approved by Azikiwe, Awolowo and Sardauna, and I said, he can never be more intelligent, more educated than Sardauna, and he has not told us why he would not go back to that constitution.

He said: ‘State police, local government police and other things that give the region autonomy that will make the governors more effective than being the lame duck governors, where the security will be better, the economy will be better and other programmes will be better than centralising the government in one hand, and using it to terrorise people will be addressed with true federal system.

‘So, what is the problem, if he is serious about keeping this country together in unity, in peace? Let’s restructure and go back to true federalism and every other thing is just going round the clock. That is where I am; that since it has turned this way, let this country break and let everybody go to his place and have peace. I have told the president to go back to the interview I had with Vanguard before he was elected and I have been vindicated in all that I said in the interview.

‘I don’t discus people who want to bring dictatorship through the back door. Change this constitution to true federalism, so that everybody would decide whether it is five years, six years, and seven years in his region. The tenure elongation is an attempt to bring third term through the back door; thank God the House of Representatives killed it on arrival.

‘You see, that is why I blame the pressmen, the Fourth Estate of the Realm. All these things said about Buhari before his election, you pressmen ought to be bringing them out and see how they are coming to pass. I have even said that how can anybody ask me to believe Buhari now, and I gave my reasons.

‘Afenifere and myself, we campaigned for him in 2011 because he said he was going to carry out restructuring if elected.

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