Afenifere backs Soyinka, says Buhari maintaining ‘civil silence’ on herders-farmers crisis

THE Yoruba sociocultural organisation, Afenifere, has backed Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka on his stance that the herdsmen crisis rocking the country could escalate into another civil war if the government doesn’t take action to address it.

The organisation called on members of the international community to show interest in what is happening in the country and intervene before it degenerates to full-blown war.

Afenifere National Publicity Secretary, Yinka Odumakin, made this known on Monday while featuring on Arise TV’s ‘The Morning Show’.

Soyinka had said, “We may enter a phase of serial skirmishes which may get more and more violent and develop – I hate to use the word – may develop into a civil war and a very untidy and messy one at that. That is my biggest fear.”

But when reacting to the question on whether Soyinka, by his comment, was beating drums of war, Odunmakin said,

“The Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, is (well-) known. You cannot say that he is beating the drum of war or he is an alarmist. People are painting the reality that is on the ground. If what is happening in the South-West today, let’s say some Yoruba boys had gone to do one per cent of that in the north, there would have been a war in this country by now.

“So, when Professor Wole Soyinka is warning President Buhari now that if you don’t speak up now, what is going on will lead to civil war, he is not just talking in vain.”

According to the Afenifere’s spokesman President Buhari was maintaining ‘civil silence’ over the heinous crimes committed by killer herders while the presidency continues to act as the mouthpiece of Fulani herdsmen.

“But the world and the international community should be interested in Nigeria at this moment and get Nigeria out of this mess.

“It is clear now that the possibility of internal solutions is getting limited, we don’t have an authority in leadership that can get us out of this mess. And the implication of a war in Nigeria for the rest of the world is very serious.

“Therefore, they should get on their feet now and begin to get interested in Nigeria to get us out of this mess that we are in,” he said.