Chief Ayo Adebanjo is one of the leading proponents of Restructuring. He has been advocating it for a while. A few weeks back, he told City People that the way things are going now, Buhari won’t be able to escape Restructuring.
“What we are telling Buhari is that going by the way he is running this country, it might break up. They are running it as if they want this country to break. He needs to Restructure We said lets Restructure, let us discuss the way this country is being run, you said Oh, We want to break up this country. The truth of the matter is that anybody opposed to Restructuring is the one who actually wants to break up the country”.
“Because you are running a Constitution that excludes other parts of the country and those in other part of the country are being oppressed, openly, and we are saying it. Look at all the positions he has filled. Look at all the security chiefs, where are they from? All from the North.”
“This is not right. He said he can put only those he trusts. How can you say that! So, those who voted for him from the South, you don’t trust them when you want to appoint people?”.
“It is not only Buhari I am angry with. I am angry with Tinubu, Akande and other Yoruba leaders in APC”.
“They say they are representing the Yorubas, yet the Yorubas are being removed and uprooted from key positions, from important places. All the nominees of Tinubu in this government he has sent them out. That is why I keep telling the Yorubas that these people are not representing your interest. What have they brought to us? They are doing Railway from Kaduna to Katsina to the other side. Of what economic value? We are too civilised. We are too enlightened for that. We have been fighting for the development of this country ever before he left school.”
“So, I am disappointed and disgruntled with all these people. It is so sad that we are still where we are. We have built a great country. We have had great opportunities. But some people deliberately want to frustrate us”.
“We need to do Restructuring. For the past one year or more, all the responsibile people in this country have been talking about Restructuring. Even Gen. Obasanjo who was opposed to Restructuring, he has now realised that Restructuring is the way forward.”
“Chief Afe Babalola does not take part in Politics. He now talks about Restructuring. IBB also says Restructuring, but Buhari is not saying anything, either Yes or No. He has just decided to keep quiet on us as if stupid people are talking. Why is he afraid of Restructuring?
“No one knows. What he does not know is that it is only Restructuring that keeps the country together. Meanwhile, you are attacking the Igbos that they want to separate and you are saying the Igbos can’t be President. And you want to keep the country together.”
“Some Yoruba are even attacking me on this, saying I am supporting the Igbos. But my question is: is it right?
“Is that the way to keep the country together? If you are in their position will you agree? Will you accept? You want us to come together, but they can’t be part of the highest position in the land. Is that good? That is why Restructuring is very important to silence the Separatists. If today he agrees to Restructure and we now have True Federalism, the type of federalism we had at Independence, which they often refer to when they want to be serious, Nigeria will be a better place.”
“All the various regions can develop at their own pace”.
“But when they are not serious, they will say what do they mean by Restructuring? They will now pretend as if they don’t know what Restructuring means. If they don’t know what Restructuring means, let’s Go Back To Independence Constitution. That is what it means.
“Even the VP, Osinbajo who took Obasanjo to court on the question of Local Government-Allocation when he was Attorney-General & Commissioner for Justice in Lagos State, now does not know what Restructuring means, meanwhile, he won the case at The Supreme Court. He now became the V.P. and he now doesn’t know what restructuring means. He now says what do I do?”
“And when I told him that myself and your father, we are followers of Chief Awolowo on the issue of Restructuring, which you were born into, he couldn’t answer me, he said, he didn’t understand me although he said those of us who are talking of restructuring, its because we have not been given jobs. The job we have had before he was born”.
“That is why I am also angry with Tinubu who has refused to talk about Restructuring. Till today have you heard Tinubu talking about Restructuring? Noo. But that is the basis for which he was elected. I have said it and he has not denied it”.
“I am angry with Chief Akande, Chief Osoba, Adebayo & Co. all the Yoruba leaders in APC. They are all keeping quiet. Now, they are not talking. They say things are okay. All the appointments loaded to the North as against the South is okay. Now, they want to take the land around the water which the Land Use Decree had given to the Governors. They want to go by the backdoor to amend it”.
“I have told Asiwaju. I have pleaded with him that for God’s sake, if you want to become President no one will stop you. Let us change this Constitution to Federalism. I have also told Tinubu that he and Buhari are deceiving themselves over this Presidential election thing. I have told Tinubu privately that Buhari won’t make him the next President. They have already said that. And I want to repeat it, that he should not nurse the ambition. I want to repeat this. If today they do primaries in APC, Tinubu can’t win the primaries for Presidency”.
Why do you think so?
“They have put all sorts of things on his way. They have put all sorts of people against him to stop him. They don’t want him. That is why they are battling him. He knows it”.
All those loyal to Buhari won’t support him. He knows it himself. They have divided his own followers already. It’s a big game going on. I have told him that already. They want to divide the Yorubas. They will keep giving them the impression that they will give it to them ooo. They are busy deceiving all of them. They won’t give it to a Yoruba man. And if you won’t give it to a Yoruba man, how can you say we should continue to be together under one united country by excluding one of the federating units. How can that be?”
