He missed the early part of the tour due to commitments to a play he was working on. He had come back to tour with them again for the latest dates but something changed for him to leave now and them to release this statement...
Honestly I have been really wondering if their hearts are in it anymore. Rody has talked for a long time of somewhat being disinterested in heavy music (country ugh) and Arif has long been involved in other types of projects that didn't involve the type of music Protest has done. They've alluded to their lack of fire compared to the early albums due to being young and their social stances they had and I guess the music industy has jaded them (their last two albums have had lyrics regarding that).
They've had times before when the other members have left most recently Moe, and I think Tim might have had a stretch where he was out too? It's sad now that they have had such a strong show of support from the fans to get this last album out with the indiegogo kickstarter and they're slowly falling apart.
I actually was kind of disappointed in Volition. I've loved everything they did up till the latest. TO ME, there really just seemed to be something missing on the whole. Maybe it's just me viewing it from a stance that seems that they don't have the interest in the music they're performing? I'll try to come back to it again for sure and see what I think later.
The band is gonna miss Arif whether he's out full-time or just on the road....