An group of Yoruba elders under the Yoruba Unity Forum (YUF) name have after a meeting in Oyo State accused President Muhammadu Buhari of favouring the northerners over people in the south.
They made this statement at a press conference in Ibadan. The Rt. Rev. Emmanuel Bolanle Gbonigi who was the mouthpiece of the group said Buhari’s performance had been evaluated and the only conclusion that could be drawn was that the President has been unfair to the south.
The press conference had in attendance deputy, Archbishop Ayo Ladigbolu, Gbonigi’s vice chairman who also doubles as the Yoruba think tank Chairman, Senator Femi Okurounmu, a former minister, Prof. Tunde Adeniran, former Lagos State Deputy Governor, Kofoworola Bucknor Akerele , Bisi Sangodoyin, Mrs. Bolajoko Doherty and Chief Emmanuel Adelana among others.
There the President was accused of executing policies “clearly designed to favour a particular ethnic group which also happens to be his ethnic group.
“A glance at the table showing key appointments made so far underscores the extent of the marginalisation of the south. The summary of appointment shows that the North West which is the president’s zone has 26 positions or 44 percent of all appointments he made so far, North East has nine positions or 15 percent, North Central has six positions or 10 percent, South West has seven positions or 11. 8 percent, South South has eight positions or 13.56 percent and the South East three positions or five percent.
“This brings the total for the North to 41 positions or 69.5 percent while the South is left with 18 positions or 30.5 percent.’’ Gbonigi said.
“The last 365 days have indeed been momentous for Nigeria. While the president has made significant progress towards routing out the Boko Haram insurgents and restoring peace in the North East, centres of various other insurgencies have sprouted in other parts of the country, like the South South and the South East, not to mention the new terror posed by the rampaging Fulani herdsmen.
“These sectional insurgencies are bound to continue to arise from time to time with our present over- centralised, quasi-unitary structure of governance.
“This is why well-meaning, respectable Nigerians have agitated for decades and continue to agitate for a restructuring of the country to achieve true fiscal and political federalism and to enable each section to mobilise and develop its own resources.
“The president’s recent remarks therefore that he will consign the recommendations of the 2014 National Conference to the archives, and the present posture of his party against restructuring show that they are out of step with progressive thinking in the country.” he said.
The group also slammed the President’s frequent travels overseas and feel he should be at home more to deal with matters in his own backyard.
They also had a lot to say about the fuel price hike, stating that there should have been proper consultation with all stakeholders.
The YUF also condemned the actions of the Fulani Herdsmen and called for governors to pass laws that ban nomadic grazing and compel the use of Ranches.
With all this they concluded that Buhari indeed was favouring the north concluding, “Nigerians are shocked that a president who prided himself as belonging to no one and belonging to everyone will conceive a policy clearly designed to favour a particular ethnic group which also happens to be his ethnic group.”