The Secretary General of the Yoruba Council of Elders, Dr. Kunle Olajide, tells OLUFEMI ATOYEBI that the Yoruba will insist on actual federalism and restructuring as their fundamental schedule for the 2019 elections
The Yoruba made collection of efforts to sell their restructuring agenda in 2017. What is the replace on the issue now?
As a long way because the Yoruba kingdom is involved, what the cutting-edge Nigerian leaders are doing is taking a leap forward and 10 steps back. No a part of the usa has benefitted from it, besides a tiny minority who desires to maintain to feed fats from governmental largesse. It is a huge disgrace that the tiny political elite from the northern section of this usa to be unique does now not recognize that it has been losing a lot.
The North is the seat of insurgency in Nigeria and you could imagine how a lot money has been sunk into combating insecurity in the closing seven years. We still have horrible instances of suicide bombings notwithstanding the large sums being voted to fight the risk. The North is also a place inside the u . S . That has recorded the very best poverty fee, yet they nonetheless need that device to preserve.
To me, it is a paradox. I could have imagined that they would be inside the leading edge of agitation for proper federalism as a way to re-organise their lives in line with their personal priorities. But the tiny political leadership from the North wants to manipulate all the resources of Nigeria.
Are the Yoruba elders aware about the function that political celebration affiliations in their human beings play of their agitation for actual federalism?
Our role has not anything to do with political events. Our efforts up to now are throughout celebration strains. This can be visible in the Yoruba Summit which changed into held on September 7, 2017 on the Lekan Salami Stadium, Adamasingba, Ibadan. We had politicians from all political events, traditional rulers, artisans and so forth, all speaking with one voice.
It is inside the hobby of this nation that inside the first quarter of 2018, steps must be taken to make certain that we restructure Nigeria before the 2019 preferred elections.
But we additionally have some Yoruba leaders like Olusegun Obasanjo, who are not in help of restructuring.
Wherever you have extra than two or three humans, there’s certain to be one of a kind evaluations. That is why we’ve got democracy. The majority will constantly convey the day whilst the minority may have a say. In any case, what we want to do is to study the history of Nigeria. We need to find out how well the country became doing while we had real federal device of government and see whether or not we are doing better or worse now that we are practicing a unitary gadget of presidency.
Yoruba leaders had been inside the South-East in the 2nd week of January this year for the celebration of the overdue Aguiyi Ironsi and Adekunle Fajuyi. The South-South and the Middle Belt leaders additionally joined us there. We are not doing it in isolation. The agitation for restructuring and proper federalism will reach a crescendo in 2018 and it will be used because the primary problem for the 2019 elections. The British High Commissioner has said it will likely be the foremost trouble within the 2019 elections and I completely consider him.
What is the position of YCE at the proposed livestock colony by using the Federal Government?
We have made it abundantly clean at some stage in our first National Executive Council Meeting that we reject in totality, the status quo of farm animals colonies in Yoruba land. We haven’t any apology on that at all. The idea started two years ago as grazing reserves and when that was rejected, they came back with this concept of grazing colonies.
As some distance as we are concerned, there could be not anything like that. We went further to expatiate on the reality that cattle rearing remains an entirely personal commercial enterprise. There are entrepreneurs all over the world in farm animals rearing who invested in the business. They do now not want to be particularly pampered through the Federal Government.
Anybody who desires to pass into farm animals commercial enterprise will do his feasibility studies, and from that, continue to barter for land relying at the legal guidelines of the state he wants to coaching. You don’t simply wake up and tell them to present you land for herdsmen to rear their farm animals. No, that will in no way occur in Yoruba land.
We have had instances of Yoruba socio-cultural our bodies taking decisions while the governors went the alternative way in the past. Is the YCE running with the South-West nation governors in this and other subjects?
The country governors you seek advice from have been elected by using Yoruba humans. They will return sooner or later as ex-governors into the society that produced them. Will you ruin your own house knowing nicely that you will go back to the residence?
We are a part of the citizens that positioned them in authorities. As elders, we relate with the governors and let them understand what we’re doing and our role. But because they had been elected on the platform of political events and they are keeping places of work on that platform, we do no longer expect them to be as defiant like us who recognize the peoples’ feelings and what they need.
That is why we are saying it in the media and in public locations. If the governors have contrary views, they might have got in contact with us. Oyo State remaining week, via its Commissioner for Agriculture, rejected the Federal Government’s notion. Earlier, Ekiti and Osun states have additionally rejected the concept of cattle colonies. I am certain it is going to be the identical for the duration of the vicinity.
Another assault on Olu Falae’s farm become recorded this (ultimate) week. What are the Yoruba elders doing approximately it?
The assault is a direct attack on Yoruba land. They have hit one among our very own terrific leaders, coming barely few weeks after they kill greater than 70 human beings in Benue State. There is a clear sign that the u . S . Is underneath the siege of the Fulani herdsmen. This is a part of the cause we rejected the concept of cattle colonies because it appears that they need to colonise this u . S . A ..
Miyetti Allah turned into said to be pronouncing that God gave them Nigeria; so, the land belongs to them. We will allow them to know that it does now not belong to them.
What is YCE doing to ensure this?
We have a Yoruba Summit Group that’s the apex frame of all socio-cultural bodies in Yoruba land. We are sensitising our humans and talking to our traditional rulers to make certain that none of our land become invaded by these marauders. We are ready to look if the perpetrators of the Benue massacre can be apprehended. I am now not conscious that every person has been apprehended already. We are testing the sincerity of the Presidency and the neutrality of the security agencies in this trouble.
We suspect that there is probably complicity. The Inspector-General of Police became speakme from each sides of his mouth. He started out by means of saying that it (Benue massacre) changed into a communal clash. Then, he retracted the assertion and said we are being invaded by means of foreigners. As a ways as we are concerned, those are excuses that aren’t tenable. It is the responsibility of the Federal Government to shield our borders.
We had been hearing of this overseas invasion since 2016; that is 2018. What has the authorities accomplished approximately it? The ineptitude of the safety organizations in Nigeria is worrisome to YCE.
There are such a lot of agrarian regions in Yoruba land which are uncovered to those attackers. What function can the newly-set up Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yoruba land, Gani Adams, play in checkmating feasible assaults on those communities?
He has a primary function to play. In our congratulatory message to him, we told him that he was assuming workplace at an crucial length inside the history of Nigeria and Yoruba land. This is a time that we’re underneath siege; we can see the danger hanging over our heads. So. He has a primary duty to play and I am certain that because the generalissimo of Yoruba land, he’s able to gambling it to make sure that our borders are blanketed. We will no longer tolerate invasion.
Do you watched that the Oodua Peoples Congress, which Adams is main, may be deployed to carry out this obligation?
It isn’t simplest the OPC that we can use; there are so many other teenagers businesses that we will use on this circumstance. Adams needs to rally all the companies, inclusive of the YCE, conventional leaders and our politicians amongst others, to beat back the attackers.
In what shape will the intervention take?
It does not need to take the form of armed forces system. Don’t neglect that we’ve a robust tradition and fortuitously, the Aare has been outspoken approximately the protection of our subculture. If the government has demonstrated that it can’t shield us again, then we need to hotel to a degree of self-defence in a way that we apprehend. We will now not wait to be massacred via these (Fulani) human beings at night. It may be foolhardy to do so. This isn’t always the simplest time that the Fulanis have been trying to invade us. They have been stopped at some stage in the Jalumi War. Certain things came about then. It isn’t always for the media.
Do you accept as true with our governors in this be counted?
Governors come and go. We believe in their cooperation. We are depoliticising the South-West on this rely. Nobody will want to stigmatise his own family call for a pot of porridge. The invaders do no longer recognize which birthday party you belong to when they come.
Do you help Governor Ayodele Fayose’s deployment of hunters?
That is his know-how of protective his people while there’s no assist from Abuja. Our governors are toothless (bull dogs) with the policing machine we’ve got in Nigeria. We do not know the schedule of this government due to the fact all protection forces are below one tribe. Farmers must additionally come together and work with their hunters to guard their farms and lives. Restructuring is the best manner out.
Do you hyperlink this to 2019?
It is God’s way of alerting us to what is coming in 2019. Nobody must come right here and sing birthday party slogan to us here. You have to persuade us of your schedule on restructuring. This is what our relationship with all of us might be based on in 2019.