The pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, has raised alarm over what it described as a calculated plot to sabotage President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration by weaponising ethnic identity and inciting division across the country.
The group was reacting to recent revelations by Dr. Sandra Duru, who alleged that suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan admitted during a private conversation to a plan aimed at destabilising the Tinubu-led government by branding it a “Yoruba government” and mobilising opposition against his re-election.
In a strongly worded press statement signed by its National Organising Secretary, Abagun Kole Omololu, Afenifere rejected the ethnic framing of the administration, calling it “a vile act of tribal opportunism and sedition.”
The group insisted that Tinubu’s presidency is the product of democratic consensus, not ethnic entitlement.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government is not a Yoruba government. It is a Nigerian government,” Afenifere stated. “To label this administration as ‘Yoruba’ and weaponise that label as grounds for sabotage is not only dishonest, but a dangerous attempt to derail our democracy.”
Citing past administrations, the group noted that no ethnic coalition was formed to deny President Muhammadu Buhari a second term on account of his Fulani heritage, and the same democratic principle must apply to Tinubu’s tenure.
Afenifere lauded Dr. Duru for her “uncommon courage” in bringing the alleged conspiracy to light and urged Nigerians to resist efforts aimed at dividing the nation along ethnic lines.
The group also condemned what it described as a “campaign of calumny” against Senate President Godswill Akpabio, whom it said is being unjustly targeted for cooperating with President Tinubu.
“Politics has its place,” the group noted, “but it must never trespass the boundaries of human decency.”
Furthermore, Afenifere criticized the alleged internationalisation of fabricated domestic issues, describing it as an act of self-sabotage motivated by personal ambition.
“Nigeria is not a personal or tribal empire,” the group declared. “Our nation will not bow to tribal blackmail. It will not bend to invented narratives. And it will not break under the weight of conspiracy.”
Afenifere called on Nigerians to remain vigilant and united in defence of democracy, justice, and constitutional order.
