Tinubu’s ‘Godsons’ Causing Problems For His 2023 Presidential Ambition – Miyetti Allah

A factional body of Fulani herdsmen, Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, has accused South-West governors of creating problems for the rumoured presidential ambition of Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Recall that South-west had come up with various proposed solutions to end the constant killing of farmers by suspected Fulani herdsmen.

The governors under the aegis of the South-West Governors’ Forum chaired by Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, had prohibited open grazing, night grazing, under-age grazing, amongst others.

Leaders in the region had accused Tinubu, the national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), of refusing to speak up against the herdsmen crisis because of his presidential ambition.

But the former Lagos State governor broke his silence on the matter on March 13, 2021, where he urged state governments to convert unoccupied public lands to ranches for herdsmen.

Reacting in an interview with The Punch on Wednesday, Miyetti Allah’s spokesperson, Saleh Alhassan, praised the solution proposed by Tinubu.

He however pointed out that the country was not yet ready to embrace or implement “progressive solutions”.

Alhassan said, “I sympathise with him (Tinubu) because if he says more than what he is saying, they will say may be he is pushing for his presidential ambition. That is why he takes time before he even respond but I expected him to call all his political godsons —who are governors — that are causing this confusion to order. He should call them and say, ‘Hey, when I become president, I will solve this problem for us’ (and) not to create problem for him, for his ambition.”

When asked whether the farmers-herders crisis could affect the political ambition of Tinubu, Alhassan alleged, “When you have a group of people attacking citizens, does it translate to political love? When you have the supposed Amotekun joining militants to attack traders in Shasha (in Oyo State), burn their properties, does it give a good political value to whoever wants to get support from those people?”

He also said the crisis was being exaggerated to score political points, adding that the Fulani herders who are of the same ethnic stock as the President are not enjoying any special preference or benefits from the Buhari regime.