Anayo Ezugwu 
Pan-Yoruba sociopolitical organisation, Afenifere leader, Pa Ayo Adebanjo, hassaid heisnowgood friends with ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo because of his desire to actualise Peter Obi’spresidentialambitionin 2023.
The elder stateman disclosed this in an interview with PUNCH. Adebanjo, who had endorsed Obi on Afenifere’s behalf, said he decided to join forces with Obasanjo the ex-Anambra State governor to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari for a better Nigeria. Adebanjo, Obasanjo and Obi last week paid a condolence visit to the family of the late Minister of Aviation Mbazulike Amaechi.
Obasanjo said during the visit: “What I believe and what I believe that Chief Ayo Adebanjo believes is not ethnic, sectional or religious, it is Nigeria and Nigerians. When I go out and people thank me, I say, ‘What are you thanking me for?’ and I tell them, ‘please, stop thanking me.
Why should you be thanking me?’ “I believe in equity, justice and one Nigeria. I have shed my blood for this country. I have gone to prison for this country, so what are you going to frighten or threaten me with?
The only thing that my senior brother (Adebanjo) hasn’t done is that he hasn’t shed his blood, but he has gone to prison. Let us leave it at that.”
Adebanjo, who had in the past criticised Obasanjo over some of his actions when he was President, told the PUNCH: “What unites us is Nigeria. All the time I disagreed with him, there was no personal issue. It was on this issue of Nigeria and we agree it should be better. We all agreed that Obi is the man.
“That is why we are friends. And that was what we made clear to the people of the East. It was the question of Nigeria and we were able to demonstrate the importance of Obi’s victory in the election. Even people who do not agree on things agree on this one.
“That is to show you that we elderly people are united in one thing: bring Nigeria together. We are not looking at the past; that will not help us now. What will help us is to amend all the evil things that the Muhammadu Buhari government has done. The man (Buhari) is telling us he has done his best when his best is the worst administration we have had in the past 20 years.”
Also, on his assessment of the campaigns so far, the nonagenarian said unlike the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate Bola Tinubu and that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar, only Obi has been having issue-based campaigns.
He said: “Not all of them have been having issuesbased (campaigns) and that is the truth, but Obi has been running issues-based campaigns. He has been very consistent about what he plans to do. Tinubu’s people have been abusing people, while Atiku’s people are also attacking them.”
