Who succeeds Fasoranti as Afenifere Leader?

By Emmanuel Oladesu 

Deputy Editor, The Nation 

Nature abhors a vacuum. After the departure of Afenifere leader Pa Reuben Fasoranti, the next challenge is succession.

Barely a week after his demise, a succession crisis has hit the group. Oba Oladipo Olaitan, lawyer and deputy leader of Afenifere, has proclaimed himself leader, saying that his ascension to the vacant seat is automatic.

He likened his rise to leadership to the Ibadan traditional hierarchical succession, which makes either the Otun or Balogun to automatically assume the reins, following Olubadan’s death. 

The National Executive Committee, led by Oba Olu Falae, Olu of Ilu Aabo,  Akure, is taken aback. The committee is planning the burial of the departed leader, and succession is not yet on its front burner. 

But Olaitan, a former House of Representatives member, insisted that he had assumed full control, saying:”If there is a leader and a deputy, when the leader dies, the deputy takes over. There is no contest. It is natural and spontaneous. Once the leader dies, the deputy takes over. I was the deputy, and I took over.”

A source said Olaitan only assumed the leadership of a campaign in Afenifere that usually meets at the Lekki, Lagos residence of the former deputy/acting leader, the late Chief Ayo Opadokun. 

Prominent Afenifere chieftains, including Falae, Basorun Seinde Arogbofa, former national secretary, and others who held court at the Akure residence of the authentic leader, Fasoranti, are not aware of how Olaitan made himself leader. 

Other chieftains – Chief Bisi Akande, Aremo Olusegun Osoba, Prince Tajudeen Olusi, Gen. Alani Akinrinade, Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi, Bishop Ayo Ladigbolu, Chief Korede Duyile, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, Dr. Segun Mimiko and Chief Kole Omololu are yet to react.

Yoruba youths are aloof to the brewing succession crisis. Afenifere is the only socio- political group that does not have youths as members. Yoruba youths who associate with the organisation are unknown.

Unlike his predecessor, the late Senator Abraham Adesanya, the deceased leader did not name a successor before he passed on. 

But Adesanya, who took over from the former Ondo State Governor Adekunle Ajasin, announced Fasoranti as acting leader, shortly after he succumbed to illness. 

Under the acting leader, the meeting of the pan-Yoruba socio-political group was still held at the Ijebu Igbo residence of the Second Republic senator. 

When Adesanya died, the chieftains came together and made Fasoranti leader. Chief Ayo Adebanjo became the deputy leader. Fasoranti was also assisted by members of the executive council.

As he advanced in years, Fasoranti,  like his predecessor, also took ill. To assist him, he named Adebanjo as acting leader. But instead of continuing to hold the meetings at the Akure residence of the leader, Adebanjo hosted the meetings at his Lekki, Lagos residence. He uncritically confused his acting leadership with the overall leadership of the organisation. 

Fasoranti and Adebanjo were very old. Therefore, Olaitan Oladipo started to deputise for the duo. 

There was friction between the leader and the acting leader over the clash of styles. Fasoranti was very calm; Adebanjo was very combative.

The gulf seemed to widen following the decision of the acting leader to campaign for Oyo State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governor Seyi Makinde, and much later, for the then Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi. 

When a section of Afenifere, led by Adebanjo, went that route, without consultation and clearance from the leader, suspicion grew. 

Consequently, it appeared that Afenifere had broken into two, with the faction loyal to Adebanjo holding court in Lekki while other chieftains who constituted the majority continued to attend meetings in Akure. 

While Fasoranti was still alive, Adebanjo paraded himself as leader. Fasoranti kept his cool. He knew that Yoruba only recognised him, and not Adebanjo, as leader. 

However, leaders of other ethnic groups played a curious politics by relating with Adebanjo. Personal invitations extended to him were also uncritically confused with official invitations to the leader. 

To observers, 2023 was very challenging to Afenifere and Yoruba. While an Afenifere chieftain, Asiwaju Tinubu, was on the ballot, Acting Leader Adebanjo became Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate Peter Obi’s campaigner. 

Unfortunately, there was no meeting point between the Afenifere leadership and Adebanjo until he passed on. 

Following his passage, the Lekki group became weakened. Fasoranti carried on as leader until he died last week. 

Speaking on the succession plan, following Fasoranti’s death, Falae said the organisation would produce a new leader without a contest or internal struggle.

He described Afenifere as a self-perpetuating and self-regulating organisation, adding that its usually emerge through an established tradition rather than a battle for position.

The former Secretary to Military Government reflected on the succession pattern in post-Obafemi Awolowo era.

Falae recalled that he had approached former Ogun State Governor Bisi Onabanjo to inquire about the person that would lead the group.

He said Onabanjo ruled himself out due to ill-health, adding he also expressed reservations about his colleagues – Chief Bola Ige and Chief Lateef Jakande.

Falae said Onabanjo eventually identified the late Ajasin as the appropriate successor, stressing that leadership within the group always take a natural course

Yoruba, particularly Awo’s followers, accepted Ajasin, who was a year older than Awolowo, as the next leader. He was one of the founders of the Action Group (AG). He wrote the free education programme. He was also the last president of Egbe Omo Oduduwa 

Falae recalled that Ajasin was succeeded by Adesanya,  who later handed over to Fasoranti. He said he expected the same tradition to guide the emergence of Fasoranti’s successor.

Falae said: “I am sure a leader will emerge without any struggle. I am sure if you ask many Afenifere people, they will tell you who they think will be their next leader.

“The leadership chooses itself. It is obvious who the next leader will be. It is always so. And I hope and pray it will be so this time.”

Falae said he hoped that Afenifere would sustain its tradition of orderly leadership transition and preserve the unity of the organisation in post-Fasoranti era.

Many Afenifere chieftains dissociated themselves from Olaitan’s ‘unilateral’ declaration of himself as leader.

Arogbofa said:”I am not aware of the new leadership. Afenifere is still planning a befitting burial for Pa Fasoranti. The issue of leadership is not on the front burner. I am not aware of his leadership.”

The National Publicity Secretary, Jare Ajayi, said:”For now, we are not talking about leadership because we have not intermediate the remains of our leader. It will be inappropriate to talk about succession when we have not buried him. Afenifere will follow the procedure after the burial.”