I consider it a rare privilege for a humble me to convey my burning thoughts titled as above to this august gathering. In a way, I make bold to say it represents a fair thought of an undiluted young African mind- undiluted because for a Prince who grew under the arms of an aged grandmother who never inserted a foreign dictum in any discourse; who was brought up in Olufon of Ifon Palace environment by parents and grandparents who are/were unflinching Africans; who was exposed early enough to Europeans curriculum in a Christian primary school, and by peer group, formally learnt the basics of Arabic/Islamic fundamentals; who after all these seemingly parallel ideologies had conflicted in his head, the coast is clear, and he has come to self realization that first of all, we are Africans, a human equal to if not above others in the faculty of reasoning, capacity, ability, possibility and self esteem.
Who later in life, in search of self identity, not by personal experience, he had known the pains brought about by European and other world regional contacts with Africans, the pains and woes of slave trade, the evil of colonialism, and the inhuman nature of current neo-colonialism which we have now, as personal experiences. End to slave trade was brought about majorly by external campaign while independence was gained by pan-Africanists like Kwame Nkruma, Nnamdi Azikwe, Chief Obafemi Awolowo Sir Tafawa Balewa, Julius Nyere and Robert Mugabe etc. Through their sweats and blood, we only gained “political” independence and we celebrated. Have we actually gained political independence? Time will tell. If our forefathers had fought for political independence, what about economic independence? What about social independence? What about religious independence? What about national independence? What about cultural independence? All these question marks are the contents of what is currently being described by me as NEO-COLONIALISM. Were they selfish to have fought the “political independence” so that they could take the baton of rulership from the European colonial masters and got satisfied when that happened or they just did their bit and left the rest for us new generation of Africans? Whichever it is, it is now the duty of us young contemporary Africans to pick up the gauntlet and free ourselves from enslaving brainwash of foreigners whose relationship with us is prompted by their egoist and self serving tendencies.
I challenge every young Africans here, are you a proud African? Are you ready to be addressed as a pan-Africanist? If your answer is in the affirmative, I am so sorry to tell you that we are starting almost too late to pick up the challenges our forefathers left for us to carry on their legacies! I said this because Africa is already crushed!! She is crushed under the weight of Europe, America, Arabia, Asia and what we parade now is a comatose mother Africa. Where is Africa among the committee of nations? Africans fought World Wars for France but are they honoured? No! In United Nation arrangement, where is the place of Africa? Naught! What is written about Africa is hunger, diseases, and wars. A continent described as the most blessed land, now plagued by starvation, poverty and wars? The question is: who plundered Africa? What caused the wars? If not the maturity of Yoruba elders in Nigeria in 1993, that preferred intellectual war through National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) to wars of tanks and guns, only heaven knows how many Yoruba people would have died in the struggle to assert their pride as a people.
Now, Africa is in disarray! From Somalia, to Mali, Ivory Coast, Northern Nigeria, South-South of Nigeria, Serria Leone, Togo, Kenya, Central African Republic there is no peace! We have at home lost our cultural identities, unity of purpose and pride among the committees of nations. Now we need CHANGE, we need to reverse this ugly trend plaguing our land. We need peace and love. We need to fight neo-colonialism- because all these conflicts are brought about by either drive to control economic power desire to spread foreign religion through violent dogmas and indoctrination. We young Africans, home and in the Diasporas need to start this movement of NEO-PAN-AFRICANISM to attain total freedom and earn respect which we deserve home and abroad.
I have no apology for being so bias being a Yoruba Prince of Ifon when I say Yoruba nation is the light of Africa. Yoruba is a nation of people as you all know but entrapped in the geographical delineation called Nigeria where it became intricate for it to exonerate herself and plan her future freely. Yorubas are a people like other Africans who suffered from slave trade most, and indeed whose developments- political, economical, military, and territorial advancement were thwarted by colonialism. The European Berlin conference of 1888 dismember Yoruba nation into different states to satisfy their own (European) political and economic selfish need. Some of us are now in Nigeria, some in Benin Republic, some in Togo, even as far as Ghana! Some of us are transported to Carribeans, Americas, and Europe. But one thing, Yoruba do not die. In these entire continents or countries where Yorubas found themselves, they retain their identity, culture, faith, and pride unlike some other tribes of Africa who have dissolved into European societies (I am not being derisive. Indeed, I am so sad about this).
“You will begin to see a lot more activities on the regional integration agenda. The governors have made a formal declaration on the commencement of the process of integration. We will now begin to see development along the line.”
Explaining that all the governors in the South West, including Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State, were expected at the meeting, he said, “all the governors in the South West belong to the council of the Dawn Commission.
“All the governors were invited but you can’t really say why a particular governor was absent. Some of those who came must have made a lot of sacrifices. We expect that the Ondo State governor would be there at the next meeting slated for August."
“I don’t want us to look at it as a Yoruba thing, but as a development taking place in the Western part of Nigeria because we need the strength of everybody. The development of our states is not going to be by the Yoruba alone."
“Primarily, the Yoruba people inhabit the place called western Nigeria but we are trying to annex the strength and capability of everybody, including foreign investors to enjoy the development framework that we put together.”
“Also, we want to build regional co-operation on cultural development, education, health, rail transportation, governance and institution, security and all facets of development that are critical to the region”.
In the Health Sub-sector, apart from the hospitals upgrade, refurbishing and restructure programme which could best be tagged O’Hospitals, we still have specific ones like the free drugs and consumables (O’Drugs) and the O’Ambulance scheme. Further still in this sub-sector, we have several series of free eye examination and treatment and other free examination and surgery treatments, either by the State Government itself or the Oranmiyan Worldwide and/or other private Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) that are positively disposed to the populist, good gestures of the incumbent administration which are based at home or abroad.
We need to pause a little here to draw attention to these programmes listed above and others well conceptualized and executed by the incumbent administration; not only in terms of their multiple nature, but for their overall benefits to the entire people of the state. It is not questionable; neither is it contestable therefore that an administration which dispenses dividends of democracy of these multifarious sorts to its people means well for their welfare, good life, improvement, prosperity and overall well-being.
The major towns so affected are Osogbo, the state capital, Ikirun and Ila Orangun in the Osun Central Senatorial District; Ile Ife and Ilesa in the Osun West (Ife/Ijesa) Senatorial District; and Iwo, Ede, Ejigbo and Ikire in the Osun West Senatorial District. For Osogbo, being the state capital, however, the intervention is going to be based on two city centres. The efforts made so far shall soon be the focus of our searchlights.
My humble advice for our leaders is just that we should not be distracted from our development agenda by the Nigerian complex colonial structure where the rest members of the federation had refused to heed our calls to negotiation table to discuss our way forward in a sovereign national conference. They are the ones crying most. The South-South cries for resource control, South East cries against marginalization, the North wants to practice Sharia. Who is afraid of the conference? We should maintain our focus and pursue our agenda the best way it will safeguard our future. Our region enjoys a lot of goodwill in the international community; we have Yoruba nationals as citizens of all regions of the world. Our regional integration should not down play importance international friendships. I will suggest appointment of Regional Ambassadors to major power blocks of the world. All we want is the development and best lives for our people, security of our future within the Nigerian context and as a pace setter for the rest of Africa.
No doubt, Yorubas possess finest Muslims in this country such as our amiable Ogbeni, Arisekola Alao, Latee Adegbite to mention but few. They are pious, dedicated, fully educated in the Islamic ways but not violent. Our parents should give us closer looks so that dangerous extreme doctrines are not implanted into our young people. The entire Yoruba people should not forget how Ilorin founded by Yoruba Generalisimo Afonja became Fulani Emirate notwithstanding it is on our side of River Niger. We must as ever, not allow violence or terrorism into our midst. We should continue to be good example to the rest of Africa at home and in the diasporas.
We must also as a matter of urgency attend to a crop of inter-communal skirmishes being recorded here and there in Yoruba land. The ones that readily come to mind is Offa & Erin-Ile clashes, Ifon-Ilobu clashes, Ife-Modakeke clashes as far as I can rememeber. One common factor in all these are claims to ownership of land. In all cases mentioned, a community is usually land strapped, needs more space for expansion. The neighbouring communities will not be ready to give up some space obviously because of manner of approach of the former when water needs to finds it level rather than solicit from the latter. The latter will always fail to understand the pressure of the former. The Ifon-Ilobu example is pathetic and makes me feel sad. Ifon and Ilobu are one and the same. Colonial government policies and few elite drifted them apart. Ilobu Asake is full of good people. This Asake is a daughter of an Olufon Olaojo married to Iregba and gave birth to Ayonu the father of Ilobus, and Olufon is without any argument from time immemorial the natural father of all inhabitants of Orolu land before our people from Erin Ile came during Fulani invasion of Yoruba land. No doubt we are the same. How come both of us relate better with Erin Osun with marked dialect than ourselves? One wonders why Ifon people will not be ready to release some land to Ilobu. Ilobu is already land strapped from the narrow Ojutu Bridge where Orolu land ended and Okini in Egbedore Local Government starts, in Ifon end, as soon as you get to Elentere stream, no more space, on the other side; Erin-Osun has bounded them. I know Ifon people are ready to surrender some land but there must be positive acknowledgment from our good people of Ilobu. It is embarrassing to all of us young elites from Ifon and Ilobu that we do not have at least one joint social club that binds us together where we can discuss the development of our area. We should stop antagonism of each other’s developmental efforts. The same thing goes to Offa-Erin people as well as other areas of Yoruba and indeed entire Africa where senseless conflicts are killing people.
As young person, I have engaged in discussions with my age mates some of whom are under some wrong impression that our locality comprising of Irepodun & Orolu local governments are not parts of Urban Renewal Programs of the Osun state because the governor has the impression that the people did not vote for him. I want to state here categorically that this is not so. As stated by Mr. Niyi in his serials I above quoted, the nine communities chosen are the headquarters of federal constituencies. I agreed with our people that though, while urban renewal is targeted to these Constituency’s headquarters, other factors should be considered such as populations. Irepodun Local government consisting Ilobu and Erin Osun is approximately of 119, 000 people while Orolu Local government consisting Ifon, Owode, Idi Iroko, Molufon, Ologele has approximately 103, 000 people according to National Census of 2006. These two local governments are so contiguous so that their population is by now almost if not more than 250, 000 people altogether. They form a big city and market in Osun state. We urge the state government to incorporate Oroluland into the urban centres that need renewals.
We understand that the federal road that passes through our land- Osogbo –Ifon-Ogbomoso Road that all of us passed through to get here is in sorry state. We all know that the Federal Government is not going to do anything about it. We therefore urge our state government to use her creative style of concession to tackle this problem of our people. This is another major road to link Oyo state to Osun state. It is the road that facilitates exchange of farm produce between Oyo and Osun states. We urge the state government to help us on this.
The short notice invitation I have to prepare this talk makes all I have been saying a mere introductory to other parts of the title I have chosen for myself. Bye and
Large, Yoruba people,Yorubaland has become a good example to the rest of Africa in our search for retention of self pride, progress, and maintenance of our virtues.
Afro-Europeans or Afro-Americans take delight and pride whenever they come in contact with systematic ways by which Yoruba cultural heritage is preserved across the Atlantic. The Yorubas once described by Leo Frobenious, a German explorer and archeologist who visited Ife in the Western Region of Nigeria in 1910 when he discovered several beautiful terra-cotta heads and the remarkable brass head of the goddess Olokun while writing in his VOICE OF AFRICA in 1913 as:
“…This Yoruba, I assert, is Atlantis, the home of POSEIDON’s posterity….the land of a people of whom Solon declared: ‘they had even extended their Lordship over Egypt and Tyrrhene’.”
While I know that this assertion does not appear based on proved facts but provoked by joyous exuberance at the wonderful discovery. We should not flattered by it but regard it as a theory which needs to be subjected to the severest test.
While we are a proud people as this, those of us in Nigeria incontrovertibly most populous Yoruba people in a state. We are well above 40million people here, just like every other nation of Africa (talking about people not states created by colonial master without due regards for historical/cultural links or differences among different people) have found ourselves in very many situation of provocation caused by marginalization, insults, and theft of our heritage, inter tribal suspicions and all sorts of provocation, but in all these situations, we have averted wars! The last time Yoruba went to war was when the traditional Africans from northern African who had been influenced and conquered by Arabs sought to take over Yoruba land and establish their Islamic emirates in 17th Century by removing Yoruba political orders. Yoruba warriors, particularly from Ibadan resisted them squarely and gallantly. That is for another forum. Though patriotic Yorubas formed Odua People’s Congress that was battle ready to prove we are not cowards, yet wisdom prevailed.
With all these difficulties, Yorubas have refused to toll the route of violent secessionist moves that has caused havoc in many part of Africa but rather another intellectual path by embarking on a development agenda for our people within the Nigeria context. This is very creative and worthy of emulation. No wonder other regions of Nigeria are quick to follow our example. We young Yorubas are proud of our leaders in politics and our socio-cultural organizations- Afenifere and the Afenifere Renewal group. The idea of bringing Yoruba people together from their different states in Nigeria under a Regional Integration Program is a lofty idea all of us are proud of. In the synopsis of the objective of the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (D.A.W.N) reproduced below, one would appreciate the foresight of our leaders. On September 23, 2010 at the Cultural Centre in Ibadan, the Afenifere Renewal Group, in collaboration with other key Yoruba stakeholders, convened the Yoruba Development Agenda Summit.
The Summit was an opportunity for the Yoruba nation to reset and present a fresh agenda for values-based leadership that would rally the people towards the change that we all desired. It also provided a fresh impetus for kick-starting the process of building a new momentum for engaging and mobilizing the Yoruba people in the Homeland and in the Diaspora, and for harnessing the inherent capacity of every individual and group.
Some excerpts from the Communiqué published at the end of the Summit state inter alia…
“Therefore we the Yoruba people gathered at the Summit, having resolved to work with other nationalities within the framework of the Nigerian federation even with its operational imperfections hereby resolve as follows:
That we adopt the Yoruba Agenda, published in 1994, in its entirety.
That the Yoruba Agenda shall continue to be the basis upon which we prospect for the attainment of the collective political aspirations of all Yoruba people.
That we shall continue to collaborate with other nationalities to foster unity and expand the political scope of the Federal republic of Nigeria with a view to maximising the benefits for every citizen and enhance national pride and cohesion, (without prejudice to the overall interest of Yoruba people);
That we demand a drastic improvement in the Integrity of the Electoral Process.
That as the 2011 General Elections draw closer, we call on our people to participate fully in the ongoing electoral process and ensure that their votes not only count but insist on being seen to be counted.
We call on the INEC and all other stakeholders to ensure that the votes as expressed at the polls are reflected in the outcome of the election.
We UNEQUIVOCALLY declare that the Yoruba nation will REJECT any imposition of undemocratic candidate(s) on the people in every part of Yorubaland.
That Yoruba electorate must rise up as one nation under one God, and ensure the emergence of political office holders who will truly serve the people, and espouse the ‘Omoluabi’ ethics and values true to our heritage as a people.
That we reiterate the call for a drastic reduction in the size and cost of government at all levels to free more resources for the provision of essential infrastructure and more conducive environment for the citizens.
To this end we reiterate the call for more transparency, accountability and True Federalism, in public administration to enable the constituent parts of the country develop at their own pace, and in accordance with their God-given potentials and capabilities, guided by the peculiarities of their history, cultural norms and inclinations.
We the Yoruba yearn for further and accelerated development of our nation to preserve and develop our national identity and culture and promote our economic progress and prosperity as an ethnic nationality.
We call for immediate steps towards a Regional Cooperation and Integration among the States in Yorubaland to boost socio-economic development.
That it has become imperative more than ever before for a composite Yoruba Development Agenda that will drive and guide this process.
The above take us to the issue of purposeful governance and wise choice by Yoruba people of their political leaders. It is common place that the party politics in Nigeria are two ideological sides often referred to as- Progressives and the Conservatives. The two political ideologies have evolved in different political party names as Nigeria democratic processes evolve. It is worthy of note that Yorubas have always been massively ruled by Progressive parties usually formed by Yoruba leaders, which party will control states in Yoruba land….and such party howbeit called progressive by all Nigerians will still be termed “regional/tribal party” or “not having national spread” in other words, Yorubas are progressives, conscious of their common heritage and have unity of purpose. The so called Conservatves are those parties, usually one at a time in every political dispensation will rule majority part of Nigeria except Yorubaland. They are usually in control of Federal government. The Yorubas are therefore seen as opposition (progressives). Yorubas and their progressive parties bring ideas which will put an end to all evils befalling Nigeria, the central government will always oppose it.
Yorubas dominantly put an end to military rules even when it involved sacrificing one of their most illustrious son MKO Abiola. Yorubas has been calling for sovereign national conference where all tribal societies in Nigeria will be able to discuss the basis of their relationships as fellow countrymen with mutual suspicion and distrust, Yorubas have been calling for establishment of state police as against federal police that is corrupt and ineffective as it were to deal with crimes in nooks and corner of all of our societies- the federal government will always oppose this.
The experience our region and people had with the conservatives between years 2003-2011 is not palatable. It was our darkest year since I was born. Our resources were wasted by governments in all Yoruba states produced by political parties without vision, very corrupt, and without purpose. We should recall Yorubas did not voluntarily voted for them, but in a bid to support our own former President Olusegun Obasanjo presented by the so called conservative party, our state governors’ mandate was stolen with the connivance of Electoral Commission and the almighty federal police appointed by the almighty federal conservative government.
It took another intellectual war and judicial processes, not violence, for our region to come back to its traditional progressive tracks. I am very sure, in a free and fair electoral environment, the war torn People’s Democratic Party (PDP) will never have any incursion into Yoruba land again not now, or in any near or even distant future. They have no plans for us.
No sooner had our progressive leaders came to power, than they began to actualize our regional development agenda by setting up a Joint Commission for our regional development Agenda. Reported in the Nigerian Tribune of 25th July 2013:
“The Director-General, Dawn Commission, Dipo Famakinwa, said, “what the governors have done today is to inaugurate the Dawn Commission, which would midwife the process of ensuring that the regional integration agenda of the South-West states begins to get attraction."
“You will begin to see a lot more activities on the regional integration agenda. The governors have made a formal declaration on the commencement of the process of integration. We will now begin to see development along the line.”
Explaining that all the governors in the South West, including Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State, were expected at the meeting, he said, “all the governors in the South West belong to the council of the Dawn Commission.
“All the governors were invited but you can’t really say why a particular governor was absent. Some of those who came must have made a lot of sacrifices. We expect that the Ondo State governor would be there at the next meeting slated for August."
“I don’t want us to look at it as a Yoruba thing, but as a development taking place in the Western part of Nigeria because we need the strength of everybody. The development of our states is not going to be by the Yoruba alone."
“Primarily, the Yoruba people inhabit the place called western Nigeria but we are trying to annex the strength and capability of everybody, including foreign investors to enjoy the development framework that we put together.”
“Also, we want to build regional co-operation on cultural development, education, health, rail transportation, governance and institution, security and all facets of development that are critical to the region”.
While this is a pace setting developmental move to advance the cause of Yoruba people, I urge all other African tribe people emulate the Yoruba example by eschewing violence and unreasonable fratricidal wars. While federal government headed by power hungry President is still busy in party politics of how to return to office in the year 2015 and in the process torn his political party into pieces, the good work of our South-Western political leaders speak for them. I was reading Mr. Niyi Olasinde’s serial(III) on Aregbesola’s Urban Renewal Programme in the state of Osun just as it is happening in other states of Yorubaland where our progressive leaders are setting pace for development. He summarized as much as he could, the ongoing achievements of the Government of the state of Osun under Governor Rauf Adesoji Aregbesola thus:
“In all other parts of the state too, work is going on undisturbed, as the administration brings out new projects, schemes and programmes with each passing day. In the list of “O” programmes and projects alone, the list is becoming endless continually. We have the Osun Youth Empowerment Programme (OYES), O’Clean, O’Clean Plus, O’Meal O’REAP and O’Cab. In the education sector alone, we have O’SCHOOLS, O’Uniform, O’Meal, O’Calisthenics, O’Children (Oodua World Children’s Day Programme) and most recently O’Tree (Tree of Life – Igi Iye) and O’Song. All these are in addition to the entire Free, Qualitative and Functional Education package of the administration. In the agricultural sub-sector, apart from the Osun Rural Enterprise and Agricultural Project (O’REAP project) and the broad-based and long-standing OSADEP, Fadama and others, there are other specific prolific and viable programmes and projects which are a brainchild of the incumbent administration. Some of these are the O’Beef, O’Fish and O’Honey programmes.
In the Health Sub-sector, apart from the hospitals upgrade, refurbishing and restructure programme which could best be tagged O’Hospitals, we still have specific ones like the free drugs and consumables (O’Drugs) and the O’Ambulance scheme. Further still in this sub-sector, we have several series of free eye examination and treatment and other free examination and surgery treatments, either by the State Government itself or the Oranmiyan Worldwide and/or other private Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) that are positively disposed to the populist, good gestures of the incumbent administration which are based at home or abroad.
For economy of time and space, other “O” programmes and projects of this administration that easily come to mind include O’TOURS, Osun Walk To Live Programme, Osun Sanitation and Osun Waste Disposal Programme. Others are the Osun Roads Maintenance, Osun Elders Care (O’Elders) programmes and the ongoing rehabilitation programme for special needs people, beggars, destitute and street vagabonds in the state. This list does not contain the whole package; it only bares the ones that most easily come to mind.
We need to pause a little here to draw attention to these programmes listed above and others well conceptualized and executed by the incumbent administration; not only in terms of their multiple nature, but for their overall benefits to the entire people of the state. It is not questionable; neither is it contestable therefore that an administration which dispenses dividends of democracy of these multifarious sorts to its people means well for their welfare, good life, improvement, prosperity and overall well-being.
We have, time and time again, and most recently, in our last edition, emphasized the activities of the incumbent administration in massive road construction throughout the length and breadth of the state. In our most recent editions, we brought it to the fore that all over the nooks and crannies of the State of Osun, roads of various grades, shades, shapes, calibres and degrees of usefulness have, and still continue to spring up under the massive road reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts of the Government Unusual of Ogbeni Rauf Adesoji Aregbesola. These roads, formerly sponsored and financed through the broad road project of the Government of the State on the one hand; and the World Bank/Federal Government-assisted Rural Access Mobility Project (RAMP) have gone so far that most of them are already being put to use, while those that are still under construction are now nearing completion stage; ready for official commissioning.
The recent trend today is that the Government Unusual of Ogbeni Rauf Adesoji Aregbesola has introduced the innovative intervention effort called the State of Osun Urban Renewal Programme. The programme has as its purview of activities the beautification, development and reconstruction of city centres of nine major towns in the state, selected on the basis of their centrality to and being the headquarters of the nine federal constituencies in the state.
The major towns so affected are Osogbo, the state capital, Ikirun and Ila Orangun in the Osun Central Senatorial District; Ile Ife and Ilesa in the Osun West (Ife/Ijesa) Senatorial District; and Iwo, Ede, Ejigbo and Ikire in the Osun West Senatorial District. For Osogbo, being the state capital, however, the intervention is going to be based on two city centres. The efforts made so far shall soon be the focus of our searchlights.
On another pedestal, there are other road projects subsisting in the state today that are sponsored through the auspices of the local government administration. In the State of Osun of today, there are thirty (30) such substantive local governments; with one more additional Ife East Local Area Office, with headquarters at Modakeke. The implication of this is that if there is yearly construction of 10-kilometre road per council per year in the state, the state must yearly have a total of three-hundred and ten (310) kilometres of rural roads fully constructed. In three years, come February 2014, these rural roads must have multiplied to at least nine-hundred and thirty (930) kilometres! This indeed is a great revolution, compared to the helpless situation of standstill and stagnated growth and development met on ground by the incumbent administration upon its assumption of office in late 2010.”
As for me, I would commend Mr. Niyi for much he could remember, I will add establishment of Farm Ranches, Cloth Factory, IT Company for phone manufacturing. The list is endless as he posited. We young Osun men and women are watching and we appreciate all these. It is not a paper campaign but rather, a physical thing. It is amusing then when the destructive conservative that plundered Yoruba land criticized Osun government under the progressive. You may want to know what their criticism is- They say Aregbesola has turned Osun state into a construction site! I laugh out loud!
My humble advice for our leaders is just that we should not be distracted from our development agenda by the Nigerian complex colonial structure where the rest members of the federation had refused to heed our calls to negotiation table to discuss our way forward in a sovereign national conference. They are the ones crying most. The South-South cries for resource control, South East cries against marginalization, the North wants to practice Sharia. Who is afraid of the conference? We should maintain our focus and pursue our agenda the best way it will safeguard our future. Our region enjoys a lot of goodwill in the international community; we have Yoruba nationals as citizens of all regions of the world. Our regional integration should not down play importance international friendships. I will suggest appointment of Regional Ambassadors to major power blocks of the world. All we want is the development and best lives for our people, security of our future within the Nigerian context and as a pace setter for the rest of Africa.
I will also like to enjoin our leaders to take the issue of security of lives and properties more serious than they currently take it. Our safety in the hands of the Federal Police is not assuring. The Nigerian military trying as they could has not been able to successfully fully curtail terror groups that envelopes, let me say, the entire Nigeria and prevalent kidnapping syndicates that plague South East and South-South. Yoruba land seems to be the safest place in Nigeria- our beloved South-West part of Nigeria. This is a risk. We should put vigilante groups in place under state laws with relative small arms necessary for them to assist federal police in protecting us. I do not think this is unconstitutional under the Nigerian constitutional framework if individuals possess guns with license. This becomes necessary as a result of awakening call made by my brother Femi Fani-kayode in Ife on 24th September 2013 in a gathering of this nature. He gave Bosnians experience in the former Yugoslavian state.
No doubt, Yorubas possess finest Muslims in this country such as our amiable Ogbeni, Arisekola Alao, Latee Adegbite to mention but few. They are pious, dedicated, fully educated in the Islamic ways but not violent. Our parents should give us closer looks so that dangerous extreme doctrines are not implanted into our young people. The entire Yoruba people should not forget how Ilorin founded by Yoruba Generalisimo Afonja became Fulani Emirate notwithstanding it is on our side of River Niger. We must as ever, not allow violence or terrorism into our midst. We should continue to be good example to the rest of Africa at home and in the diasporas.
I would like to add, without keeping any grudge against all Moslims and Christian faithfuls in our midst who are by no means in the majority today, that our cultural traditions should not be denigrated or relegated to the background in the course of pursuing the Jewish and Arabic traditions we have imbibed. We should follow the example of Ogbeni who emphasizes equality and cultural identity by making Ifa studies part of our school curricula so that our young ones would know who they are- proud Yoruba people. The first time in Nigeria public holiday will be declared for traditional religion festival notwithstanding he is a pious Moslim who will not joke with his faith. Yorubas are accommodating. Look at all palaces in Yoruba land, they are surrounded by Shrines, Mosques, and Churches. Everyone conducts their worship without clashes. That is Yoruba virtues we must maintain.
We must also as a matter of urgency attend to a crop of inter-communal skirmishes being recorded here and there in Yoruba land. The ones that readily come to mind is Offa & Erin-Ile clashes, Ifon-Ilobu clashes, Ife-Modakeke clashes as far as I can rememeber. One common factor in all these are claims to ownership of land. In all cases mentioned, a community is usually land strapped, needs more space for expansion. The neighbouring communities will not be ready to give up some space obviously because of manner of approach of the former when water needs to finds it level rather than solicit from the latter. The latter will always fail to understand the pressure of the former. The Ifon-Ilobu example is pathetic and makes me feel sad. Ifon and Ilobu are one and the same. Colonial government policies and few elite drifted them apart. Ilobu Asake is full of good people. This Asake is a daughter of an Olufon Olaojo married to Iregba and gave birth to Ayonu the father of Ilobus, and Olufon is without any argument from time immemorial the natural father of all inhabitants of Orolu land before our people from Erin Ile came during Fulani invasion of Yoruba land. No doubt we are the same. How come both of us relate better with Erin Osun with marked dialect than ourselves? One wonders why Ifon people will not be ready to release some land to Ilobu. Ilobu is already land strapped from the narrow Ojutu Bridge where Orolu land ended and Okini in Egbedore Local Government starts, in Ifon end, as soon as you get to Elentere stream, no more space, on the other side; Erin-Osun has bounded them. I know Ifon people are ready to surrender some land but there must be positive acknowledgment from our good people of Ilobu. It is embarrassing to all of us young elites from Ifon and Ilobu that we do not have at least one joint social club that binds us together where we can discuss the development of our area. We should stop antagonism of each other’s developmental efforts. The same thing goes to Offa-Erin people as well as other areas of Yoruba and indeed entire Africa where senseless conflicts are killing people.
As we tackle the inter communal clashes, I urge all the state governments in the entire Yoruba land to quickly and amicably resolve inter-state boundary disputes especially between Oyo and Osun state in Orolu Local Government of Osun stateand Suurulere Local Government of Oyo state and other areas. This should be given adequate priority to fast track the success of our Regional Integration.
As young person, I have engaged in discussions with my age mates some of whom are under some wrong impression that our locality comprising of Irepodun & Orolu local governments are not parts of Urban Renewal Programs of the Osun state because the governor has the impression that the people did not vote for him. I want to state here categorically that this is not so. As stated by Mr. Niyi in his serials I above quoted, the nine communities chosen are the headquarters of federal constituencies. I agreed with our people that though, while urban renewal is targeted to these Constituency’s headquarters, other factors should be considered such as populations. Irepodun Local government consisting Ilobu and Erin Osun is approximately of 119, 000 people while Orolu Local government consisting Ifon, Owode, Idi Iroko, Molufon, Ologele has approximately 103, 000 people according to National Census of 2006. These two local governments are so contiguous so that their population is by now almost if not more than 250, 000 people altogether. They form a big city and market in Osun state. We urge the state government to incorporate Oroluland into the urban centres that need renewals.
Some would even say Orolu local government has not produced any top government functionary in the executive council of the state or as heads of parastatals because of the role played by some political characters in the governorship election! Not only did the governor win in Orolu Local government, at least, not less than 10 people were imprisoned by People’s Democratic Party for supporting the progressive party we are traditionally known for. In fact, the fight to regain mandate, I remember a friend of mine, Lawal Kamil who was part of the witnesses that stood to tell the truth. Orolu people will always go the way of the rest of progressive Yoruba people. We shall always vote for good leadership as canvassed by Afenifere Renewal Group. In fact, not only the people of Ifon, Orolu kingdom but also the royalty. Holding this event in the palace event ground testify to the community support to the overall cause of Yoruba people.
We understand that the federal road that passes through our land- Osogbo –Ifon-Ogbomoso Road that all of us passed through to get here is in sorry state. We all know that the Federal Government is not going to do anything about it. We therefore urge our state government to use her creative style of concession to tackle this problem of our people. This is another major road to link Oyo state to Osun state. It is the road that facilitates exchange of farm produce between Oyo and Osun states. We urge the state government to help us on this.
The short notice invitation I have to prepare this talk makes all I have been saying a mere introductory to other parts of the title I have chosen for myself. Bye and
Large, Yoruba people,Yorubaland has become a good example to the rest of Africa in our search for retention of self pride, progress, and maintenance of our virtues.
For the sake of your time, I have to stress that for the so called plunderers, corrupt leader found in the conservative party People’s Democratic Party, there is no vacancy in any political office in Yoruba land. Our Yoruba political leaders needs no campaign. Their works will campaign for them. Yorubas from Osun state will prove this in the coming election into the office of governor of Osun state in the year 2014. They are dead and buried in our dark past.
I appreciate the opportunity given to me by De Raufs Volunteer Group to express these views that I know represent the views of majority of my people.
Prince Ademola Oyedokun is a lawyer, a poet, a politician, and a Yoruba cultural traditionalist) this Text is a Speech delivered to DE RAUFS Group at Olufon of Ifon Palace Open Field (GBAGEDE) on 28th September 2013
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