A chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Bisi Akande, has said the #EndSARS protest of October 2020 was orchestrated to stop the emergence of President Bola Tinubu.

Akande said this when he appeared on the State of Affairs with Edmund Obilo podcast.

According to the former governor of Osun State, the protest, which many believed was against police brutality, was orchestrated by the Obidient movement.

He said, "#EndSARS was designed to be the end of Tinubu. Those behind the #EndSARS knew that that's what they were doing.

"The Obidients were behind the #EndSARS. It was manufactured in America and was brought in just to stop him.

"The Obidients came from America to do the #EndSARS and later became a movement to form a party. When they couldn't form a party, they joined whichever party.

"It was well-planned and organized with a lot of money from America."

On why Tinubu didn't see the movement coming, Akande said, "Not every ambush is detected."

He also stated that he doesn't know if the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, had anything to do with the #EndSARS protest, having received support from the Obidient movement.

On why he's not part of the Tinubu administration despite his effort to ensure its emergence, Akande said, “My goal originally was for a Yoruba man to become president, and my choice was Tinubu. After he won, I was happy and returned to my village in Ila, Osun State."

He revealed that Tinubu had reached out to him from France, expressing concern over his absence in Abuja.

“When he came back, I met him, and he said, ‘Baba, you asked me to run, I did, and became president, but now you (Akande) are running away.’

“It’s true! I went back to my village because I don’t want to be a minister or take any other thing” he explained.