AFENIFERE, a Yoruba socio political Organisation last night endorsed
President Goodluck Jonathan for second term in office.
Publicity Secretary of the Organisation Yinka Odumakin said this in Akure
while briefing newsmen after a meeting President Jonathan held with the
leaders of the Organisation.
The meeting took place at the residence of the National Chairman of the
Organisation, Chief Reuben Fasoranti
President Jonathan was in the state as part of his state wide presidential
campaign to shore up support for his second term ambition.
Odumakin said that the leaders of the organisation decided to give their
support to the President because he “convoked the National Conference and
is ready to implement the report.
Odumakin said the group was convinced about the commitment of the
president to the National Confab and the implementation of the report .
Afenifere, he added “believed that the confab is the only thing that can
liberate the nation.
Odumakin said the president informed them at the meeting that Yoruba were
the one that were in the forefront of the clamour for the confab.
Also speaking, Ondo State Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko said what Afenifere
did was an unequivocal endorsement of the president.
Dr Mimiko said Afenifere expressed believe in the transformation agenda of
the president describing it as systematic and strategic for the
development of the nation.
The governor who was asked by the president to also speak with newsmen
said that the organisation believed that the President transformation
agenda was not a fluke.
Also speaking Chief Olu Falae corroborated the decision of the
Organisation saying that the president has shown commitment to lead the
nation out of slavery.
Meanwhile, the organisation at their meeting earlier said that if the
Independent National Electoral Commission INEC goes on to conduct the
Febuary 14 general election with almost 30million voters cards yet to
distributed, the result of the election will not be credible.
Also, the Organisation called on Nigerians not to vote for any candidate
who is not in support of the implementation of the National Conference
report.
Rising from an over four hour meeting in Akure, the Country home of their
Chairman Chief Reuben Fasoranti, they said that “as at today, over 15
million voters out of the one collected have not received their cards.
Its Publicity secretary Yinka Odumakin said ” This is 54 million. There
are 14 million voters cards that are yet to arrive the country. If we put
them together it is almost half of the total electorate that are yet to
collect their voter’s cards.
Odumakin while reading the Communique said “The assurance by the INEC
chairman that to distribute card day to the election is not reassuring. If
you have failed to do it before now, what is the assurance that he is
going to do it now?
“We want to warn that any election conducted on the basis of
disenfranchising almost half of the electorate, the outcome will not be
credible or acceptable.
According to him the “meeting viewed with seriousness the share
incompetence on the part of INEC, the INEC that wanted to create 30, 000
polling units few weeks to the election has yet to distribute almost 30
million voter’s cards.
” When you look at the table INEC has given, what they tell us is that in
each state, this is the PVC received hiding the total number of registered
voters.
“The constitution says election should hold not earlier than 150 days to
handover date and not later than 30 days. February 14 INEC has chosen, for
us may 29 is sacrosanct, there is no controversy over this.
” Within those days between February 14 and 30 days to May 29, INEC has a
window to make sure that most voters are not disenfranchised. If INEC is
able to give all registered voters their PVC before February 14, all well
and good
“On the 2015 general election, as far as Afenifere is concerned, the
presidential election is to decide between two options, freedom or
slavery.
” We have elected to choose freedom, freedom from bondage, internal
enslavement and internal colonialism that holds most Nigerians down under
the bastion of domination and we are convinced that the 2014 national
conference report has laid the basis for the proper restructuring of the
country.
“The most important change that Nigeria desire this time is restructural
change.
“The Change that ignores the restructuring of Nigeria is not a change.
Most of the issues that are confronting us, the issue insecurity,
corruption have their link with the faulty constitution that we have and
to change the constitution is the most important change that we need.
“Also, we want to warn in Yoruba land that we should be careful of those
who promise change and do not believe in the restructuring of Nigeria and
those who boycotted National Conference and described it as diversion.
Leaders that attended the meeting include governor Olusegun Mimiko of ondo
State, two former governors of Osun and Ogun state Iyiola Omisore and
Gbenga Daniel, Chief Ayo Adebanjo,
Sehinde Arogbofa, Chief Olu Falae, Supo Sonibare amonsgt other
“Afenifere believe that election is a democratic contest about party
programme and not about using terror to frighten them into submission that
the use of terror to demand for the mandate of the people must be
discouraged not to reward anybody that tries to terrorise them to access
power.
“The 2014 national conference has become a campaign issue. Anybody that
did not participate in it or does not believe in it does not love our
people.
“They want to drag them into slavery. With the report of 2014, we believe
we have crossed Jordan, we are yet to get to promise land but we should
not be sent to Egypt.