Afenifere leader Reuben Fasoranti dies at 100 in Ondo

Reuben Famuyide Fasoranti, leader of the pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation Afenifere, has died in Akure, Ondo State, at the age of 100. Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa confirmed the death on Tuesday, describing Fasoranti as a patriarch whose life was marked by service to Ondo State, Yorubaland and Nigeria. Taiwo Fasoranti, the Ondo State Secretary to the Government and one of the deceased’s sons, said his father died peacefully in his sleep in his room at about 4pm.

The family said the Reuben Fasoranti Foundation, established 10 years ago, would continue its work. President Bola Tinubu led the tributes, calling Fasoranti “a father, patriarch, elder statesman, and foremost Afenifere leader” and one of the last major figures of Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s progressive political tradition. Tinubu said Fasoranti’s century-long life represented integrity, discipline and commitment to both the Yoruba people and Nigeria’s unity.

Tinubu also recalled visiting Fasoranti in Akure in 2022 to tell him of his decision to seek the presidency. According to the president, Fasoranti told him he would become president during the elder’s lifetime. Tinubu said he had hoped Fasoranti would also live to witness his second term and the country’s economic progress.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo described Fasoranti as one of the remaining figures from a generation that helped lay the foundations of modern Nigeria. In a statement issued through his special assistant, Kehinde Akinyemi, Obasanjo said Fasoranti led Afenifere during a period of fragmentation and national uncertainty and served as a unifying presence. Obasanjo said Fasoranti opposed military dictatorship, endured threats to his life and remained committed to federalism, justice and equity.

Afenifere’s national publicity secretary, Jare Ajayi, similarly portrayed him as a humanist, philanthropist, patriot and courageous Yoruba leader whose career spanned the colonial era, independence, the Civil War, military rule and democratic government. Fasoranti was an educationist who established Omolere Nursery and Primary School, Akure High School and St Frances’ Academy in Igoba, Akure. He served as Ondo State commissioner for finance from 1979 to 1983 under the administration of the late governor Michael Adekunle Ajasin.

Governors Seyi Makinde of Oyo State and Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State also described his death as a major loss, particularly to the Yoruba nation and Nigeria’s democratic tradition.