South West leaders to hold rally on restructuring September 7

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Mr Yinka Odumakin (Afenifere Spokesman)

South West leaders met in Lagos on Sunday to unfold plans for an upcoming Yoruba “Grand Rally on Restructuring”.

Addressing newsmen after the meeting, the Chairman, Organising Committee for the Rally, Dr Kunle Olajide, said that the rally, scheduled to hold in Ibadan on Sept. 7, would be a one-agenda-congress on restructuring.

“This endeavour has to do with Nigeria and the aim is for a united Nigeria. “The all-inclusive summit of the Yoruba people will have more than 100 Yoruba groups that will declare their stand on the need to restructure Nigeria.

“Yoruba leaders at home and abroad and organised groups, students, artisans, past and current elected public officials across the political spectrum will be converging in Ibadan to appraise the issue of restructuring and fashion out a workable way out of the quagmire the country is presently in,” he said.

The meeting, which held at the Protea Hotel, Ikeja, saw key leaders from the zone, such as Pa Reuben Afosoranti, Chief Ayo Adebanjo and Chief Amos Akingba in attendance.

Also at the meeting were Chief Supo Sonibare (Afenifere Chairman, Lagos), Mr Yinka Odumakin (Afenifere Spokesman), and Prof. Banji Akintoye, among many others.

Olajide said that although the South West governors and all Yoruba would be at the meeting, the gathering would be a non-political one.

According to him, Nigeria is drifting dangerously and there is need for those at the helm of affairs to listen to the yearnings of the people and do the needful to maintain unity and peace.

“We are meeting to take a crucial decision on Nigeria. We are going through a very difficult phase. “So patriots have to rise up and find lasting solutions to the difficulties we are experiencing,” he added.

Olajide further said that legal luminary, Chief Afe Babalola, would chair and direct the rally. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the rally would be coming a few weeks after the Nigerian Senate voted against amending the 1999 constitution to accommodate restructuring that would devolve more powers to the states.