• Seeks UK’s intervention
From Magnus Eze, Abuja
The United Kingdom chapter of the Pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders in the South-West of reneging on their promise of restructuring during the campaigns for the 2015 general elections.
The group, in a communiqué after its strategic meeting in London at the weekend, also expressed worry over the drumbeats of disintegration, confusion, apprehension and uncertainty that have engulfed the country in recent times.
It said the best way to nip the looming dangers in the country in the bud is immediate implementation of the recommendations of 2014 National Conference. It added that it will approach the UK government to prevail on the Nigerian government, to give consideration to ethnic agitations, by restructuring the country.
The group also appealed to the Archbishop of Canterbury to prevail on President Muhammadu Buhari, whom they described as his close friend, to restructure Nigeria before the 2019 general elections. Part of the communiqué issued by Babatunde Shinaba (Chairman) and Kayode Ajayi (General Secretary), read: “The meeting resolved to appeal to the government of United Kingdom to use its traditional and cultural relationship with Nigeria to appeal to the Federal Government not to expose the country to an unimaginable disaster of immense proportion by not listening to the frustrations of the various ethnic nationalities in Nigeria. “The meeting observed that the Nigeria, as presently constituted is not realising her God-given potential in the comity of nations because of the fraudulent Constitution of 1999.
“The Afenifere UK also reiterates that the UK authorities cannot afford not to intervene in the Nigerian situation and stall government’s intransigence against restructuring, because if Nigeria government continues its opposition to restructuring and allows irrationality and madness to envelope the citizens, the destination of most displaced Nigerians would be the UK, as many Nigerians are resilient to walk across the Sahara, swim across the Mediterranean and ferry themselves across the English channels.”
Afenifere further said it was scandalised by the level of ethnic mistrust and antagonism currently on display in Nigeria, as typified by the anarchical proclamation of Arewa youths in their Kaduna declaration, which issued quit notice from the North to fellow Nigerians of Igbo extraction.