The Publicity Secretary of the Yoruba Summit Group, Mogaji Gboyega Adejumo, speaks with Imoleayo Oyedeyi on burning national issues, especially the calls for secession by some ethnic nationalities, including some Yoruba groups and the growing insecurity in the country.
There have been agitations for self-determination by some ethnic nationalities in the country over the increasing and unchecked onslaught of herdsmen, with even some Yoruba groups calling for secession. Do you agree with those rooting for secession?
Well, I don’t think anyone is talking about secession and I believe we shouldn’t be talking about the word ‘secession’. I think what people are talking about is self-determination which is chiefly a universal law. It is something that has been with humanity over a long time. When people decide that it is no longer tenable to belong to an association, perhaps even a country, and we have such a charter as established in the African Union and United Nations and we have five organs of the UN that deal with the indigenous people who want to exist on their own. The word ‘secession’ is not in any way related to what the Yoruba want because what they want is to be out of the Nigerian union. And we are not fighting. All we want is self-determination. In 1957 and 1959, Chief Awolowo pushed for the insertion of the clause to allow each federating unit or region that wants to exit the union leave freely in the constitution. But unfortunately, the North and the East said voted against it, while the West voted yes. If it had been two against one, perhaps if either of the East and North had said yes, we won’t be talking about it because it would have been established even through law. And there are countries in the world that still have such clauses inserted in their constitutions.
In 1962, we had only 75 countries all over the world, but now, we have about 156. And this simply means that people have explored the eventual possibilities of having to break up and go their separate ways. So is there anything different between what the Yoruba people are trying to do and what the people of Czechoslovakia and India did? So nobody should accuse anyone or talk to us about secession because it is about self-determination which is what the Yoruba want. We want to be able to determine our future, existence and where we want to be. We want to live in dignity and not to be killed as if our lives don’t matter. We don’t want to live with people who believe that the life of a cow is more important than a human life. We just want to be. And before the British came, we were a nation of no fewer than 10 million people. Why then will it now be a problem for us to become a nation now that we are over 60 million?
The central message is that we don’t want to be part of the Nigerian union anymore that does not give respect and dignity to the Yoruba, but instead treats us as second class citizens. Meanwhile, science and anthropology have proven that the Yoruba evolved here and did not come from anywhere. There are bones of our ancestors at Iho-Eleru near Akure at a place called Isarun. The University of Birmingham representatives came there and discovered it to have the same DNA as modern Yoruba. And these bones have been dated for 15,000 years. So we have evidence in the whole of West Africa to show that we are the oldest people living in this part of the world. But if by accidents, some foreigners came and decided to lump us together, that is not an act of God. That the British came is not an act of God because it was a political machination which we believe is not working and dignifying right now. So we want out; we want to be our own people and we are competent to do that because we have the numbers, territory and resources.
So what basically differentiates the word ‘secession’ from ‹self-determination› that you said the Yoruba are agitating for?
I will tell you what the difference is, but those who just want to create chaos are perhaps making it look as if what the Yoruba want is war. And then, they will use the word ‘secession’ which means one is trying to force itself out of the country. But we are not doing anything by force or planning to exit Nigeria forcefully. When we sat down at a London conference in 1953 what was agreed to what was meant to be a federal structure. It was at the conference that federalism was born. And then there was the 1946 constitution that was unitary and the people revolted. A lot of protests were staged and the British had to call us. And in the meeting, it was even the Northerners that first said that they wanted to go and that they didn’t want to be part of us.
But amazingly it was the same people who wanted to opt out of the country then, the Northerners that are now accusing the Yoruba of trying to forcefully leave. And that is hypocrisy. What we are saying is very simple: it is either we go back to the 1963 template for a united Nigeria or we do what happened between 1957 and 1959 when those that wanted to be part of Nigeria were subjected to a referendum where the Northern Cameroon opted to stay with Nigeria while the Southern Cameroon said they didn’t want to be part of Nigeria. So, like those days, let us have an internationally conducted referendum and ask the Yoruba whether they want to stay or not. If it comes out that the majority want to stay, then we remain, but it must be under a kind of arrangement that will still give dignity, equality and equity to the Yoruba. That is, all of us will be living together as one Nigeria, not a segment of us will be having some kind of personal entitlement, or that about 97 per cent of appointments will be going to one zone alone and all the military formations will have to be concentrated in this same zone.
For instance, look at the port at Apapa in Lagos that generates 67.7 per cent of non-oil revenue, yet, the Yoruba do not even get up to five per cent of this revenue despite the port being situated in their region. The Yoruba generate 53 per cent of the GDP, but what do we get back? The inequality must stop. Even if we will have to stay together, let there be a referendum to ask the Yoruba whether they truly want to stay or not. That is different from saying somebody is going for secession because all we want is self-determination. We know there are steps to be taken to achieve this. Let us take these necessary steps. Nobody wants a war. Besides, it is so laughable that any time we make calls for self-determination, what the President Buhari government will be talking about is war. But we are not talking about that, but a process. And then, nobody should look at the problem as if it is about a gun and every solution is a bullet. But that is not the way it works.
Some top Yoruba leaders, including governors in the South-West states, are divided when it comes to the agitation for Oduduwa Republic. Some of them have even spoken publicly against it. Only recently, the APC national leader, Senator Bola Tinubu, disclaimed the self-determination notion when he said both the Yoruba and Fulani are one. What do you make of all of these?
Firstly, I don’t know where Tinubu got this idea that the Yoruba and the Fulani are one from. Was Alimi, the man that caused Ilorin to be ceded to the Fulani, the same with the Yoruba when he killed Afonja by subterfuge? As a result, Kwara State and its capital Ilorin and even Lokoja are now in the North. Why should this be when these places are dominated by Yoruba-speaking people? In Kwara, we have 16 local governments, 12 of them are dominated by Yoruba. In Kogi, we have five local governments populated by the Yoruba. So what is Tinubu talking about? Come to think of it, if the Yoruba and the Fulani are one, how come they sent [Chief Obafemi] Awolowo to jail for three years? And even in 1983 when the Northern elders said that they were having a pact with Chief Awolowo, at the end of the day, did they support Awolowo?
let’s even look at June 12 that brought out Bola Tinubu himself. I don’t know what he thought the Yoruba people were. Remember it was the same Tinubu that once said that he does not believe in one Nigeria. But now, he is saying we are one with those that are killing us, kidnapping our relatives and destroying our crops and farmlands. Besides, I don’t think the man knows exactly what he has set in motion because if he does, he will realise that the greatest injury anyone can do to himself is to self-excoriate. He has just described what people will remember him for the rest of their lives as the most sacrilegious statements to be made against the Yoruba. So because he wants to be President, he has to insult all of us?
And to the other part of the question, we know that there are people all over Yoruba land who generate their income and fulfill their expectations through government. But to me, it is only people like this whose service is towards the government and not to Yorubaland that will say they want to remain in Nigeria because they want to protect their source of income and livelihood. But do we reckon with them? No! One thing about we, the Yoruba, is that we respect people a lot but, at the same time, we won’t take insults from them. We know the real Yoruba people and leaders from those that parade themselves as one. In fact, nobody calls himself a leader. It is the people that will make you a leader. When Awolowo was made the leader in March, 1967, he didn’t know it was going to happen. Those who will call you a leader would have first seen what it is about you that epitomises leadership.
With the apparent divisions among leading Yoruba activists and their governors, do you think self-determination dream of the Yoruba nation can be realised?
Well, there is no way the governors can be part of the movement. When people even begin to suggest that the governors ought to be part of it, I used to wonder how that can be possible, because firstly there is a subsisting 1999 constitution which remains the most obnoxious, stupid and inhuman documents ever written on earth. But the governors have all sworn to this constitution. This makes it impossible for them to go against it. In fact, by doing that, they will be going against the law which I won’t expect them to do.
And then, with the stupid arrangement and structure that we have, what power does the governor have? For instance, the governor is addressed as the chief security officer of his state. But can he even instruct the commissioner of police in his state to carry out certain orders without the CP first seeking the approval of the Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) and the Inspector General of Police (IGP)? Yet he is a governor! Secondly, can he even order the GOC of the military in his state to do something? Obviously No! But it is not like that where we borrowed this federalism we are practising from. This is because every state in the United State of America has its own army called the militia.
In order words, the governor of each state has his own army different from the USA army. Then, they have three layers of policing. Two are for the governor and one for the federal government. They have the county for the local government which is under the governor and they have the state police which are still under the governor. The other one is the FBI which is federal. So when you are talking about a governor, talk about the one in the US, not the one in Nigeria who is highly incapacitated as he does not have any power.
And then in each of the states in the US, 65 per cent of the generated revenue goes to the state government, 15 per cent to the local government while the rest 20 per cent goes to the federal government. But it is the reverse here in Nigeria because every state in the country now goes to Abuja every month to collect money. Meanwhile, the South-West provides 70 per cent of the Value Added Taxes (VAT) generated nationwide. But how much is being given back to the states in the region? So our governors are very disadvantaged.
But I must say that despite finding themselves within this shoddy arrangement, the governors are doing very well. Look at the governor of Oyo State, for instance, who employed 1,500 operatives for Amotekun. And I don’t think the total number of Amotekun operatives employed by other states in the region is up to what the Oyo governor has employed. And then, take a look at what he has been doing in the area of security, holding meetings with the traditional rulers and supporting even non-state actors in the fight against banditry. In fact, we should be able to thank our governors for the work they are doing. I know the governors cannot come out openly to say that they support the Oduduwa nations, but I can tell you that when the matter reaches the global stage beyond the Nigerian law, the governors will back Oduduwa. Mark my word.
In your words a few minutes back, you said that the 1999 constitution remains one of the most irresponsible documents ever written. How do you mean, Sir?
Well, I will tell you why. Firstly, it is because the constitution is skewed towards the North and does not give dignity to any other region in the country. Also, it does not respect human values or give the rest of the regions what they want. According to the World Bank, Lagos has about 21 million people. But it was given to only 20 Local governments. And the government uses this in all the calculations that they do. But then, we have a Kano that had only two LGAs as of 1970 when Lagos had four. And by the time Lagos had eight, Kano had only four. Now, they have broken Jigawa out of Kano and between the two states, they have about 80 local governments. Yet, Lagos still remains 20. You now want us to go to the National Assembly with our own 20 representatives to be debating a new constitution with 80 representatives that the old Kano now has. Isn’t that evil? What exactly is the population of Lagos that will still remain on 20 LGAs? You see, there are too many evils in the 1999 constitution. And they have been saying they want to amend it. Amend what please? It is a useless document. For instance, if a tyre has about 100 punctures, will you still take it to a vulcaniser or you change it completely? We don’t need that stupid constitution that doesn’t give other ethnic groups the rights to live as they ought to do.
Before the clamour for what you described as self-determination became deafening, there had been calls for restructuring. But now if you are to choose between restructuring the country and self-determination, which one will you prefer?
Well, as the publicity secretary of the Yoruba Summit Group (YSG), which in 2017 came up with the Ibadan declaration that posited that it is either Nigeria restructures or bursts. At that meeting in Ibadan, all the state governors including the vice-president were represented. It was Sam Akintola who raised the motion and we all agreed on restructuring. But since then, nothing has happened. Nobody has listened to us or even commended our efforts. But as we said that day, there would come a time that the federal government would have to beg us with the same restructuring that we asked of them then but we won’t listen. Now the time is approaching. Don’t forget that the same YSG in July last year also cried out that as another October 1st comes, if the federal government did not restructure the country, the Yoruba will have no other option but to seek the future of their race and patrimony through self-determination. And that is what we are doing now. We have left restructuring behind. And we didn’t just do it; we have given the government enough time to retrace its steps. But they have always thought that they can ignore us. But nobody does this and succeeds.
But if the Yoruba are to proceed on the self-determination agenda, do you think the region has all it takes to stand independently and survive?
Yes, we have everything we need in terms of the capacity and capabilities to run a modern state. We have always had these things. Malaysia one time came here to take our seedlings and from it they make permole which we call palm oil. Go to southern Israel. Their weather resembles that of Yoruba land. In fact, the whole state of Israel is just about the size of Oyo State. When you get to the Israel, you will even see some of Awolowo’s portraits and other Yoruba symbols there. And then, if you go to places like Russia, you will see states that broke up from the USSR have developed themselves. Some of them are even smaller than Ekiti State. But now, we are talking about Yoruba which covers about six states and has solid minerals as well as human capital development rated number one in Africa. Go anywhere in the world and see who remains the best doctors and engineers. You will find out that they are Yoruba. So we have the capacity. And don’t forget that before the oyinbos came, we had our own domestic democracy which was not different from what they have in Greece or Rome. We have the Alaafin, the Oyomesi and the professionally constituted judiciary-the Ogbonis. What else is it about democracy that we can say we don’t have? But then when we have a situation in which our women, children and father cannot go to the farm, we have to rise up for them.
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