The Arewa New Agenda, on Thursday, attacked the leader of Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, saying the nonagenarian may be suffering from memory loss due to old age.
The organisation was reacting to Adebanjo’s comments that the North would not vote for the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu.
The ANA advised Adebanjo to stop taking advantage of Yoruba culture of respect to pursue “myopic, narrow-minded and selfish political vendetta.”
Adebanjo had, in Abeokuta, Ogun State recently said northerners were deceiving Tinubu and would not vote for him.
But the Convener/Leader of ANA, Senator Ahmad MoAllahyidi, during a dress conference in Abuja, described Adebanjo’s comment as a product of mischief.
The text of the speech was titled, ‘The North is a cultured North of democracy: A response to Chief Ayo Adebanjo.’
MoAllahyidi said, “We wish to state that probably because of his age, as elder statesman, his memory has started to fail him. When has he become a spokesman for the North? For his information, the North has never failed to keep to its promise; when the North makes a covenant, the North keeps to it.
“The North is the strongest ally of Asiwaju in the contest for the 2023 primaries in the same manner that the South-West was ally for the victory of the APC in the last two election cycles.”
In reaction, Adebanjo told our correspondent that he stood by his comment and was not surprised by what ANA said.
He said, “Yes, I said so that northerners will not vote for Tinubu. Why should you be surprised by what they said? Do you expect them to enjoy what I have said when that is what they are doing? You wait till after the election and see what is going to happen.
“I don’t expect them to confirm what I have said; we know what they are doing. Even before now, I have told Tinubu that they are just deceiving him. Buhari’s school of thought in the North don’t want to leave the government, I repeat it.
“Northern governors of the APC extraction led the charge for power shift from the North to the South; something the like of Pa Ayo were unable to do simply because to made a covenant and keep to it is a mark of integrity which in short supply here.”
