Author: Naomitheboss

Ooni of Ife Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, speaks on Yoruba nation in his interview with Punch news

You know that is a very sensitive issue. What are the people agitating for? They are agitating for fairness; they are saying what is sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander. The best bet for us is to have one country, but when people are feeling otherwise, there must be reasons they are agitating. Fifteen to 20 years ago, was it like that? When Yoruba people were in power, were there agitations? There must be reasons and we all know the reason has to do with banditry and insecurity. Even in the north, some people are also kicking. What is important now is for us to adequately separate the grain from the chaff. I am not going to blame the agitators. There must be a reason why they are agitating. I will suggest we talk to them; let’s bring them on board, deliberate with them. Let’s debate. It is very important for us to debate and debate on our corporate existence, for things to be right. It is very critical. For me, that is my own approach. Even when you go to war, at the end of the day, you must sit down to negotiate. So, why not have the roundtable discussion now? Why not go through that route? Why must you go through hot agitation and try to destroy things? The best approach has always been the peaceful approach.

Yoruba Nation agitator, Chief Sunday Adeyemo, alias Sunday Igboho, made rude remarks about you and later apologised. Have you forgiven him?

This throne, you own the good, the bad and the ugly. You are a father to the good, the bad and the ugly. We are not leaving him. We have set up a lot of committees. Professionals are involved. They are on board for everything in Nigeria to be right ultimately and to look into his (Igboho’s) case. So, we are working very closely with all the relevant authorities to make sure that all is well.

It was in the news that you and the Olubadan sent a delegation to Cotonou, Benin Republic, where Igboho had been arrested and facing trial. What was its mission?

Everybody is worried, but for me, I believe more in positive energy than negative energy, so let’s just keep praying for our government. Let us keep praying for them (the leaders) to continue to do what is right and for us to continue to guide them as traditional rulers. Nobody is perfect, but when positive energy is there, there will be light at the end of the tunnel. It is a challenge for us all. Let us thank God that the economy is out of recession. Recent data revealed that we have grown more than five per cent in terms of our gross domestic product and the rate at which we have been having children is about six to four per cent but the economy was growing like 0.4 per cent; it is not adding up. But this time round, I think the agitation will continue to come down if the government focuses more on economic development. That will ensure even distribution of wealth. I know they are working on that, we have seen a positive response over the last six years.

Much has been and will continue to be written about the Taliban’s takeover of military and political power in what is now called the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. It is an emerging story that has left the world aghast at its sheer incredulity and the implications for Afghans, its neighbours and the whole world.

For sub-saharan Africa, particularly Nigeria which now finds itself buffeted by an unending war against insurgents in the northeast and religiously motivated cells of militias and bandits in the North West and Central, there could be explosive consequences as local jihadists could very well find motivation for their actions and be spurred onto even deadlier actions in pursuit of shared objectives with the Afghan Mujahideens.

There are serious concerns here. Religious fanaticism and extremism have been fingered as the culprit behind the Boko Haram insurgence and the general abhorrence of western-styled education even amongst a northern populace with neither affinity nor sympathy for insurgency. Misguided romanticism for fanatically conservative ethos in northern Nigeria could very well be fertile ground for even more extremist strains to be sown and spread. If it happens, if we lose the north to the seduction of extremism as represented by spectrums such as the Islamic State of West Africa (ISWAP) aka Boko Haram, Al-Qaeda and the Taliban, we would all be sorry.

What’s more, with increased ethno-religiously motivated killings in Jos, Kaduna and Benue state, Kano Hisbah’s nonplussed banning of mannequins and contemplation of banning female drivers; Boko Haram’s imposition of its own Governor in Borno state, hoisting of its flag in Shiroro, Niger state so dangerously close to the nation’s capital, Abuja and the guerrilla campaign of herdsmen and bandits whose murderous assault on innocent civilians remain unchecked, one fears that the Taliban ideology has pervaded and permeated the fringes of northern Nigeria than is sufficiently admitted or talked about. We must be wary!

The lesson for Nigeria from Afghanistan is therefore specific. No one will fight for our continuous independence outside of ourselves. This is our war and we can’t afford to lose. We must embrace our pluralism and work harder to achieve an integrated society amenable to constructive change and development. Taliban and Boko Haram represent the very opposite of progressive as seen in their objectification and relegation of women, abhorrence for science and innovation, and rather violent disposition against the right to thought, religion and assembly. Even Afghans know!

The videos and pictures out of Afghanistan reveal so much desperation. There is an uneven scramble for available conveyance out of Afghanistan by diplomats and indigenes alike. In one particular video, two young men are seen hanging onto the recoiling wheels of a plane that takes off into the air, they are then seen to lose their grip and fall to their deaths with their blood-spattered bodies on the sidewalk a befitting, if not sober, canvass of the despondency in Afghanistan today.

I recollect that when Libya fell, a proliferation of arms and jihadists found their way into Nigeria to join the so-called ‘holy war’ and stunted the imperative of a hitherto progressively successful war against Boko Haram. With Afghanistan’s fall to the Taliban, we must be even warier. They will hope to embolden local terrorists and the casualties would be the nation’s sovereignty and the freedom of you and I.

Indeed, if we let our country be consumed, we may never find our way back to nationhood. We are warned!

Pelumi Olajengbesi Esq., is a Legal Practitioner and the Principal Partner at LAW CORRIDOR, Abuja, Nigeria.
Lawcorridor@gmail.com.