Afenifere endorsement: Can Tinubu correct all his unforced errors?
By Nnanke Harry Willie
In a July 2022 piece titled: The Tinubu Brand: Tragedy of Unforced Errors, I listed a couple of unforced errors committed by Ashiwaju Bola Tinubu that were inimical to the fulfillment of his presidential dreams. Shunning major Yoruba blocs was one of those errors.
I wrote: “For a celebrated strategist, it is curious that Bola Tinubu did not make peace with major Yoruba blocs before proceeding with his presidential campaign journey. In his first term as Lagos state governor, Tinubu broke ranks with Afenifere which played a critical role in his emergence as governor and ever since there has been no love lost between him and the organization. The smart thing to have done would have been to go back and make peace with the group but for inexplicable reasons, he didn’t. The same applies to the Odua Peoples’ Congress.”
It appears however that Tinubu is now working at correcting some of those unforced errors with his recent visit to Pa Reuben Fasoranti, the immediate past leader of Afenifere for his blessings and the blessings of the respected Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere.
The group had been emphatic on a principled support for Peter Obi of the Labour Party on account that the South East had yet to produce a president and that Peter Obi represents the embodiment of the ideals of the kind of person to take the coveted seat.
READ ALSO:https://brandeconomy.com.ng/the-tinubu-brand-tragedy-of-unforced-errors/
The Tinubu camp made matters worse for their principal when they went on to deride members of Afenifere and the group at large as being paper-weights and even mocked them as always endorsing losers! Tinubu’s efforts at reaching a rapprochement with Afenifere and enjoying their endorsement at this time clearly show that the endorsement of the group is not so worthless after all!
Recall that Afenifere leader, Pa Ayo Adebanjo, had endorsed the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Mr. Peter Obi. However, when Vanguard contacted the current Afenifere leader, Pa Ayo Adebanjo said he was not bothered about Tinubu meeting Pa Fasoranti, adding that the APC candidate will be ignoring his group at his peril.
Pa Adebanjo said: “Tinubu is a citizen and he has a right to meet with anybody and Fasoranti is also a senior citizen. I am not worried about the meeting. Tinubu is not in a position to ignore me, he will be ignoring my group at his peril. I don’t want to be diverted; if he ignores my group, it is at his own risk.”
It does appear as if Tinubu has a foot in the door of Afenifere already, he however seems to have the opportunity to complete the job by accepting the subtle invitation by the Afenifere leader.
READ ALSO:https://brandeconomy.com.ng/the-obi-brand-on-quicksand-or-solid-foundation/
Perhaps when Tinubu is done with this, he may then turn his sights on his second category of unforced errors which I had earlier captured thus: “The second category of unforced errors is not making peace with his erstwhile disciples such as Babatunde Fashola, Akinwunmi Ambode, Muiz Banire, Olorunnimbe Mamora, Rauf Aregbesola and a plethora of other star politicians from the South with whom had long fallen out in very avoidable ego slug fests.”
No wise politician goes into a political contest with too many enemies among members of his close circles. While they may not guarantee victory for the candidate, they could very easily contribute to his or her resounding defeat!
Nnanke Harry Willie is the Audacious Brand Champion
