Yoruba leaders meet in Ibadan, strategise on new political agenda

Yoruba leaders, yesterday, met in Ibadan, Oyo State capital to strategise on resetting a new agenda for the race.At the colloquium convened by a political movement, Yoruba Patriots Movement (YPM) were former national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Bisi Akande, Senator Femi Lanlehin, Dr. Yemi Farounbi, Dr. Frederich Fasehun, Dr. Doyin Okupe, Dr. Saka Balogun, Gen Raji Rasaki, Dr. Kunle Olajide and Senator Ayoade Adeseun, among others. Speakers restated call for the restructuring of the polity to reflect true federalism.

They also advocated the conduct of an all-inclusive Yoruba summit, where all Yoruba leaders would come together to deliberate on their future.

In his address, Dr. Olajide lamented the situation of things in the country and demanded a new order.Citing the increased cases of insurgency in the North East, religious crisis in the North West, herdsman invasion and secessionist agitation in the South East, as well as kidnapping and alleged marginalisation of the South West, Olajide said the existing order in the country is no longer acceptable to the citizens.

He said: “Everywhere around us, there is evidence of government failure, power generation for a population of 170million people is below 2000 megawatts, inflation rate is at an all-time high at 18 percent, while mass unemployment of able bodied youths is a time bomb waiting to explode. The state of the nation is simply and squarely unacceptable to the Yoruba nation.”

While calling for restructuring, Olajide said the YPM believes that each of the six zones of the country is abound with diverse resources, but are constrained by a dysfunctional federal structure and a perverse system of government, which encourages corruption.

He lamented that the current civilian dispensation midwifed by the military in 1999 imposed a quasi-federal constitution on the country. “The Yoruba nation suffered inevitable collateral damage from the twin evil of military intervention and oil boom, and military politics, characterised by politics without principles, ideology and character. Hence, the Colloquium is aimed at deliberating a new agenda for the Yoruba nation, starting from where we are today, where we want to be and how we want to get to where we want to be.”

On his part, Akande lamented that Yoruba Language is fast going into extinction and canvassed that teaching instructions across primary schools in Yoruba land should be done in Yoruba language.

Others at the meeting were Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State, who was represented by the Secretary to the state Government, Olalekan Alli, former Osun State SSG, Fatai Akinbade, former Chairmen of the Oyo State Primary Education Board (SUBEB) Dr. Busari Adebisi and Dr. Soji Adejumo, Dr. Adegboye Onigbinde and former president of the Central Council of Ibadan Indigenes (CCII) Bayo Oyero.