Segun Akanni, Toronto, Canada 
A new perspective into the travails of the President of African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, was offered, yesterday, by a former Director General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), Professor Bola Akinterinwa, who described Adesina as a victim of colonial repression.
In a nutshell, Akinterinwa said the US wants Adesina out of AfDB because they believe he is not protecting their interest.
Adesina, a Nigerian, has been at the centre of allegations of impropriety at the Abidjan-based financial institution which have been a subject of inquiry by the Bank’s Ethics Committee.
The Committee cleared the AfDB chief but the United States Department of Treasury dismissed the verdict, calling for an independent investigation of the allegations against Adesina.
AfDB, a regional multilateral institution, is owned by African countries but the US is a major investor.
Nigerian and other African leaders have been rallying support for the AfDB chief who is completing his five-year-tenure but is entitled to another term.
The embattled Bank President had responded, point-by-point, to the 16 allegations made anonymously against him to the Ethics Committee.
Akinterimwa narrated the genesis of the travails of Adesina, saying it dates back to the tenure of another Nigeria, Dr. Olabisi Ogunjobi, as the AfDB Vice President, who opposed any form of colonial domination at the Bank.
“In international relations, allegations are political weapons used in disorganising opposition. With regards to Adesina’s re-election, US is a major investor at the AfDB, so in terms of votes, they have more to say than most African countries”, the former NIIA chief helmsman said.
Although former President Olusegun Obasanjo and President Muhammadu Buhari are among leaders backing Adesina’s re-election, the reason the West probably doesn’t want him is because US believes Adesina is not representing their interest.
