Pan-Yoruba group, Afenifere speaks on supporting agitation for Oduduwa Republic

Abagun Kole Omololu, the National Organising Secretary of Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere, has said once the group support the growing agitation for Oduduwa Republic, that will be the end of Nigeria.

Omololu stated this while speaking in an interview with The Punch.

When asked if there are any chances that the South-West will produce the next President in 2023, the Afenifere echelon said;

“When we talk about Afenifere, the heart of the South-West, we don’t care who becomes the President. We just want the best man to rule us, the one who loves this country so much; that is who we are. The most important thing in Nigeria right now is restructuring. We just pray that there will be 2023 the way things are going. A lot of young people, including Yoruba youths, don’t believe in Nigeria anymore. Many Yoruba now believe in the Oduduwa Republic. It’s because Afenifere has not spoken a word to support them; that is why there is still peace. The moment Nigeria makes the mistake of allowing Afenifere to speak in support of the agitation for the creation of the Oduduwa Republic, that is the end of Nigeria. We have been the only race in this country that has not questioned the corporate existence of Nigeria. We participate in making Nigeria a great nation. But the moment these Fulani bandits in power push us to the wall, that will be the end of Nigeria. We have been asking for the restructuring of the country, and we as elders know that if we make Nigeria work, it will be good for everybody. It will be the pride of the Black nation.”

Speaking on the issue of insecurity and non-state actors assuming the role of government in providing security to their people, Omololu said;

“It’s dangerous, but what can we do? There is an adage that says when you drive a goat to the wall, the goat will face you and fight back. This is what is happening, and I assure you, with the little I know about preparedness, we will secure the Yoruba nation. If today, six million able-bodies Yoruba youths come out to defend the Oduduwa nation, we will defend our land. This is not a war. It’s about defending our land. People are talking about Sunday Adeyemo, alias Igboho. But I tell you, there are hundreds of Sunday that people like us know. Look at the number of able and highly ready men under the Are Ona Kakanfo. They are ready to defend the Yoruba nation. So Nigeria as a nation should not believe we are all conquered. If temporarily you are occupying our bushes and we are allowing the law to take its course, when the law is weak and there is an absence of moral and political leadership, and you bring your cows to eat our crops, what do you think will happen? People will resort to self-help and fight to survive. It is rather unfortunate that the moral leadership in Aso Rock is dead. That we have a President in Abuja not bothered about what is happening is extremely frightening. As Prof Wole Soyinka said, we are here not just to live, but to live in dignity. What God and people like Awolowo planned for us is to live in dignity – not for a set of people to come from nowhere and attack our dignity and values. It’s unacceptable.”

On whether the South-West security outfit, Amotekun have been helpful in savaging the security challenges in the region, the statesman said;

“Amotekun is doing a fantastic job. Three days ago [Monday], I spoke with the commandant of the outfit in Oyo State, Colonel Olayanju Olayinka (retd). He was in a place called Ayete. He actually put one corps member on the phone for me to ask questions. The corps member said the place had been peaceful and everyone had been going about their business with peace of mind. Some mischievous people might be sending out videos that are fake trying to cause a commotion, but the Amotekun has been doing a great job. They are just not making noise about their achievements; powerful people don’t make noise anyway. They get the job done. The Federal Government doesn’t want the Amotekun, anyway. A lot of recruitments had just been carried out in the Oyo chapter. They are doing well. They are applying all the methods our forefathers applied to defend our land. Amotekun is here to stay and we should be reminded that the Yoruba nation can never be conquered. There had been plans to subjugate us since 1962, but it never happened. They caused unrest in our land, jailed one of our leaders, but at the end of the day, they were still the ones who released him.

He later became the minister of finance and helped them to stabilise Nigeria and win the war.”