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Yoruba Leader Writes Buhari, Seeks Talks Over Emergence Of Yoruba Nation

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BREAKING: Nigeria's Debt Hits N42.84 Trillion

President Muhammadu Buhari has been urged to pave the way for a direct negotiation towards the realization of Yoruba nation’s self-determination and the establishment of sovereign nation-state.

The appeal was made by the leader of the Yoruba Self-Determination Struggle, Professor Banji Akintoye .

According to a letter by Akintoye, under the name of a United States of America-based Foundation called Yoruba Self-Determination Movement (YSDM), on behalf of the Yoruba people, he said that the movement wants the Nigerian government to set up a negotiation team that will meet and dialogue with Yoruba nation’s representatives not later than Friday September 30, 2022.

Akintoye said that this process became necessary considering the false hope of unity promoted by the British colonial officials and imposed on all at Independence has not been achievable in the past sixty years of Independence.

The letter reads: “Rather, not only has unity proved impossible to achieve, outright anarchy has taken over.

“We Yoruba therefore seek to discontinue our association with Nigeria, and to do so in an orderly and peaceful manner.

“Because we are an ancient civilization with solid modern achievements in education today, and a people with an old tradition of accepting and interacting smoothly and productively with various peoples throughout our history, we can live harmoniously with ethnic and cultural diversity in the same country.

READ ALSO: Sunday Igboho’s Methods Of Agitating For Yoruba Nation Wrong – Gani Adams

“But we have painfully concluded that sustained attacks by one ethnic group on us and other ethnic groups in the same country, and a plan of conquest and subjugation by one ethnic group against the other groups in the same country, represent a conclusive negation of the existence and legitimacy of Nigeria.

“We can no longer bear the pain and indignity of living in constant fear and mourning, like a conquered and subjugated people, in our homeland.

“We have been attacked by heavily armed marauders and militias, who have been invading our homeland for many years from the Northern part of the country of Nigeria to which we belong.

“These marauders have relentlessly killed our people, destroying farms and villages, raping and killing our women, kidnapping our people, and extorting large amounts of money for ransom.

“There are no official numbers for our Yoruba people who have been violently killed in these atrocities (because the government shows no real concern about the killings), but a rough estimate of 29, 000 is now generally circulating among us, an estimate which many of our people believe to be too low. (It is important that even the Sultan of Sokoto has once said that the killings across the country are being under-reported). These atrocities have forced an estimated majority of our farmers to abandon farming altogether a development that is now pulling our nation down into a devastating famine, and into unimaginable poverty.

“Meanwhile, in what we Yoruba believe to be the preparation for this final Fulani aggression in our Yoruba homeland part of Nigeria, tens of thousands of heavily armed Fulani mujaheedin, reinforced by Boko Haram, ISWAP, Al Qaida and Al Shabaab terrorists, have occupied countless locations in our Yoruba forests and are being supplied there with food and weapons by air from hidden sources in Northern Nigeria.

“Mr. President, we therefore dutifully draw your attention to the fact that since we launched our agitation for our Yoruba nation’s self-determination in the year 2019, we have unfailingly pursued the agitation through peaceful means. Our people have established over one hundred self-determination organizations, each solemnly committed to contributing in peaceful and law-abiding ways to our self-determination agitation.

“The Yoruba Self-Determination Movement (YSDM) respectfully writes this letter to you for and on behalf of the indigenous Yoruba people of the southwest of Nigeria, inclusive of the Yoruba citizens of the six states of the Yoruba southwest zone (Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun and Oyo States ) and the Yoruba citizens of parts of Kogi, Kwara and Delta States, all south of the Middle Niger River in Nigeria.

“The Yoruba Self-Determination Movement is a movement comprising well over one hundred Yoruba Self-Determination organizations based at home in the Yoruba homeland in Nigeria and abroad in most countries of the world. The Yoruba Self-Determination Movement collaborates the said many Yoruba Self-Determination organizations in the highest services of the Yoruba Self-Determination agitation and struggle.

“Mr President, the Yoruba Self-Determination Movement now serves you notice of the decision of the Yoruba people to assert their right to self-determination, which right of self-determination is an inalienable and unquestionable right of every indigenous nation in the world, and which right is enshrined in many international instruments that provide for the system of order of the modern world.

Upon asserting this right of self-determination, we Yoruba nation shall be free to determine our political status, pursue our economic, social and cultural development according to policies chosen independently by us, and to live under the government independently chosen and ordered by us.”

READ  ALSO: Akeredolu Dissociates Himself From Pro- Yoruba Nation Rally In Akure

Reacting to the letter, a member of the popular umbrella and apex body of Yoruba Self-Determination Group, Ilana Omo Oodua, IOO, who spoke to Vanguard in confidence from her base in United Kingdom, accused Akintoye of selling out the organization and struggle to some Yoruba Elites who are mostly in Diaspora and trying to use IOO as a political business.

The source said: “First, the organization we all know as the umbrella body, or call it an apex body for this struggle regardless of what anyone feels is Ilana Omo Oodua. We have individual members and affiliated groups which Akintoye is the leader. We still held our general meeting last Saturday. Ilana Omo Oodua mobilized and galvanized individuals and organizations to make the Yoruba Nation agitation popular all over the world till now but Baba Akintoye chose to use the name of a US- based NGO owned by some Yoruba Elites to write a letter to Nigerian Government and not Ilana Omo Oodua whose name is already a threat to the Owners of Nigeria.

“YSDM is a registered foundation in America owned by five people and nowhere an AGM was conducted by Yoruba Self-Determination organizations to appoint the directors of the organization to warrant it being described as the Umbrella body of Yoruba Self-Determination Organizations. Ilana Omo Oodua worked with other individuals and organizations to get to where we are so why throw us out to be used for business and negotiation with President Buhari because he was made the Chairman of a foundation where he’s not even a Director?

“Second thing is that in the letter, Baba Akintoye, after serving Buhari a notice that the Yoruba people want to exercise their rights to self-determination and justified it, is now demanding a negotiation meeting? Wow. Who does that? How do you request a negotiation from someone that is oppressing you and has immense advantage over you in terms of power, arms, sovereignty, money and everything?

“What does Akintoye have outside 5 million online petitions that warrant him demanding a negotiation or worthy of being negotiated with outside his media noise? Buhari should be the one to reach out to us for negotiation, not Akintoye asking for a negotiation. What Akintoye did was against the run of play. When Buratai visited Sunday Igboho in Benin prison for negotiation, he did not write the Nigerian Government for a negotiation, they came and Igboho turned them down. That is what is called a fighter and activist.

“The fact is Akintoye merely wants to meet Buhari and Tinubu for a political business meeting and he knew that cannot be achieved under Ilana Omo Oodua hence he shifted to the organization of his fellow elites whom he has sold us to. For instance, his Deputy in YSDM is a former Commissioner and Governorship aspirant in Ondo-State, Banji Ayiloge. For the first time in this struggle, Professor Banji Akintoye described himself as a former Nigerian Senator to Buhari. Baba wants to do business and get his due from the Nigerian Government. This is about 2023 electoral game. I will talk more in future.

“Lastly, Baba Akintoye said in his letter that no referendum, because five million people have signed an online petition. I am of the opinion that Baba is inviting the Nigerian Government to clampdown on the agitators at home because all the proponents of this no referendum campaign are not based in Nigeria. Baba Akintoye himself, his wife, all his children and that of Banji Ayiloge are not based in Nigeria. So they have nothing to lose. I appeal to my Yoruba people to give themselves brain.”

 

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For The Record

Acceptance Speech For Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award By Canadian Association Of African Studies

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By Toyin Falola

I am grateful to Mr. President, the Vice-President, the Past President, the Director, the Board Members, and all the members of the Canadian Association of African Studies (CAAS). Having been conferred with the Distinguished Africanist Award by the African Studies Association in 2011, I never expected that another one would follow by yet another global preeminent academic association.

I stand before you at this honorable time, emotionally touched by your generosity towards me and greatly inspired by your rare gesture of recognizing the little I have contributed to knowledge production and the rejuvenation of African epistemic traditions. The decision to acknowledge me, perhaps unknown to you, rekindles in me the spirit of continued dedication, for it reveals that the ability to make changes is unrestricted by age or location, especially when the soul is involved. Meanwhile, change is necessary for sustainable and transcendental transformation; without change, ideas would die of exhaustion, creativity would cease to be itself, and productivity would be sabotaged in the process. 

Mr. President, it was within the foundational philosophy of this noble Association to promote the study of Africa in Canada and the world. Over the years, CAAS has done so as a moral and ideological responsibility, thereby contributing to African-Canada relations. That philosophy has yielded substantial results and that we are here today to produce rounds of knowledge affirms the sanctity of this togetherness. When I contributed my tiny quota to your goals by way of once organizing a conference for you, giving two Keynote Addresses, serving on the Joel Gregory Book Prize, and evaluating manuscripts for your preeminent journal, I never knew that a day like this would come. I feel most humbled and grateful, and with limitless appreciation for the confidence you have reposed in me and an unalloyed dedication to honor your belief in me, I accept the Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award from CAAS. 

Distinguished scholars and members of the audience, I am now in the circle of remarkable intellectuals whom you have acknowledged for similar outstanding contributions and performances in their various fields, and I feel the burden of greater responsibility on me. Of a truth, I am an individual culturally reified in a philosophical paradigm of the Yorùbá whose axiomatic saying “Yin’ni, yin’ni, kẹ́ni ó ṣe òmíràn,” which loosely translates as a repeated shower of gratitude is a clarion call to do more, or to whom much is given, much is expected. This has often placed on me the moral burden to expand whatever it is I am recognized for doing. I am aware that it is not within the moral circumference of any culture in the world to publicly award evil, and that presupposes that my contributions to knowledge, which have been recognized, are expected to be multiplied. By virtue of my age, such consistency may be conflicted by nature, but that does undermine the reality that the manifestation of knowledge contribution is fluid and flexible. This means that even if creating a network of knowledge transmission through my books, lectures, listservs, and workshops experiences would decline, age cannot take away from me mentorship to our coming generations of Africans, assisting the academic fledglings to grow, and providing a friendly atmosphere to intending academics. 

Mr. President, if we have collectively learned anything from the beautiful development experienced recently as a human family, it would be that the place of knowledge cannot be overemphasized in transforming and sustaining human society. Although this understanding should not elude anyone, we should not be ignorant that knowledge production, distribution, use, and reformation can never be as innocent as we have been made to understand it. This deduction finds its strength in the fact that if it is true that knowledge production is devoid of strange politics, this distinguished body, the Canadian Association of African Studies, would not have been birthed in the first place. However, the awareness that knowledge engagements available in the diasporic environment, especially in Canada, are potentially hostile and hegemonic necessitated an association such as this. CAAS is irrevocably committed to the advancement and upsurge of knowledge so that the epistemic traditions and foundations of Africans here would escape the compromise that the environment proposes. We have both a moral and ideological responsibility to rescue African Studies epistemically because this place has a glistering history that must never be undermined―glistering because the strength and struggles of the displaced Indigenous people have produced stellar results that today’s reality of Africans here has drawn from. Essentially, you and I owe ourselves the right to develop and build a civilization that reflects our thinking. 

Ladies and gentlemen, have you not established methodologies in developing and nurturing this Association with which information is sourced and education transferred? Have you failed to raise intellectually vibrant Africans leading in several areas of their careers with excellent and exceptional impact? Have you not created a healthy academic atmosphere where knowledge about critical issues related to Africa has been consistently shared? Mr. President, within the time of establishment, you have, as a collective, harmonized the ideas of outstanding contributors to this project to drive policies and services of immense significance to the various areas of existence. Through the persistent insistence of CAAS, the Canadian Journal of African Studies (CJAS) was created. Who among us here would deny the overwhelming contributions of the journal to African academics? Is it not a journal that provides the platform and motivation for academia who have showcased brilliance and excellence in their research engagements? Have you not also created an opportunity for government representatives, leaders, non-governmental organizations, activists, and non-state actors, among others, to draw on knowledge for policies that drive critical development?

Distinguished scholars, colleagues, and friends, you have, in good dispositions, facilitated the meteoric growth of intellectualism from the beginning of our engagement, and that tradition has continued regardless of different challenges, which your dedication has helped you to overcome. How else can we reiterate the importance of CAAS to the survival of the African identity in the diaspora environment if not through the enumeration of the great things you have done as a people and as an Association? CAAS has stood up for numerous Africans who have witnessed various forms of dreadful challenges because of the color of their skin. The Association has committed itself to issues of development within the Federation to emphasize how its members are concerned about rapid progress for the generality of Canadians. The number of conferences organized by CAAS continues to grow admirably, through which they offer fresh opportunities for scholars across the globe who have brilliant ideas to share with the world, especially by looking at issues from the lens of Africa and Africans. CAAS has always taken on fundamental matters that require urgent attention, and in the spirit of humanitarian compassion, you have executed projects that bring invaluable additions to the human world. That underscores your values as a people and your commitment to making meaningful changes in the global environment. You have enlarged our desire to promote ideas that would bring rapid changes to the human world through the programs, events, and platforms you have created within the time of your existence as an association for scholarship and human flourishing. 

Mr. President, your decision to honor me with the Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award is a form of affirmation by you and the members of the Association to ensure that individuals like me have a continued focus on enhancing a brighter future for the African diaspora. Although I am the recipient of that award, the inspiration it would encourage will not fall on my shoulders alone, for I am confident that those who are available here today will feel that sense of commitment and seriousness, as I do, to issues that would benefit Africa and the world generally. Therefore, this honor is for us all! I am inclined to think this way because I know that the human spirit wants to be triggered by the external motivation to perform the magic already wired in them or that they are naturally capable of.

The continually evolving world, ladies and gentlemen, demands that we also reposition ourselves and understand more deeply the sense of responsibility we owe the generations of Africans to come. We must not forget that it is important that we continue to interrogate ideas produced by our forebears, for they can be more relevant in the modern world than we imagine. Ideas are the result of human mental energy put to use in the course of refining the thoughts in the mind. All we need is to intensify our research trade and ensure that we introduce ideas for the benefit of humankind. 

I am most grateful to you all for the well-intentioned recognition accorded to me, leading to this exemplary award. It is mind-blowing and, at the same time, humbling, to say the least. Africa will continue to find its footing, and we will never cease to take the world by surprise.

Thank you.

May 31, 2023.

 

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BREAKING: Tinubu Appoints Gbajabiamila Chief Of Staff

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Senator Withdraws Support For Tinubu Over Choice Of Muslim Running Mate
President Bola Tinubu

President Bola Tinubu on Thursday announced outgoing Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, as his Chief of Staff.

Tinubu introduced Gbajabiamila as the new chief of staff at the meeting between the President and the nation’s security chiefs currently holding at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Thursday morning.

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Toyin Falola Honoured In Canada For Contribution To African Studies

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Prof. Toyin Falola

The Canadian Association of African Studies (CAAS) has awarded United States-based Nigerian professor of history Toyin Falola the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award for Contribution to African Studies .

In a letter announcing the award, CAAS told Prof. Falola that it recognized his exceptional contributions, unwavering dedication, and profound impact on the field of African Studies in Canada and beyond.

The CAAS Lifetime Achievement Award for Contribution to African Studies recognizes senior scholars who have been engaged actively as CAAS stalwarts and have retired or nearing retirement. The requirements are (1) a lifetime of sound scholarship; (2) accomplishments  (research, teaching and mentoring awards, etc.) and (3) involvement in the activities of CAAS.

The letter said: “Your achievements as a renowned historian and an esteemed member of the academic community meet all these criteria at an extremely high level.Throughout your illustrious career, you have made significant contributions to the advancement of African Studies, leaving an indelible mark on the discipline. Your pioneering research, insightful publications, and dedication to mentoring a new generation of scholars have significantly enriched our understanding of Africa’s history, culture, and society. Your  profound influence extends beyond research and publications. You have been actively engaged in the academic community, serving as a keynote speaker at CAAS conferences (as we can witness at this year’s conference) and co-organizing the successful CAAS conference at York University in 1991. Your tireless efforts in reviewing scholarly works for the Canadian Journal of African Studies and your longstanding role on the editorial board of the Harriet Tubman Series on the African Diaspora at York University further demonstrate your commitment to advancing the field.

“In addition to your invaluable contributions to CAAS, your impact on the Canadian academic landscape is remarkable. As an external examiner at esteemed Canadian universities, including the University of Toronto, York University, Dalhousie, Trent University, and Queens University, you have played an integral role in shaping the academic rigor and quality of African Studies programs across the country. Moreover, your mentoring of Africanist scholars based in Canada has nurtured and inspired a new generation of researchers and intellectuals. In that regard, you have supervised more than 100 Master’s and Doctoral dissertations in your areas of specialization. Your noteworthy achievements have garnered global recognition and acclaim. You have been the recipient of numerous prestigious awards, including the 2011 Distinguished Africanist Award from the African Studies Association (ASA) and an impressive tally of over 40-lifetime awards from various countries. With 16 honorary doctorates  documented in your vita, you stand as a true luminary in the field. Recently, on Tuesday, October 11, 2022, at State House, Abuja, Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari conferred on you, one of the nation’s oldest and highest merit honors, the Member of the Order of the Niger (MON). This is proof of the degree of recognition that you have enjoyed in your homeland.

“On behalf of the Canadian Association of African Studies, I extend our deep congratulations to you on this well-deserved honor. Your exceptional contributions, unwavering commitment, and outstanding achievements serve as an inspiration to all Africanists and scholars in related fields in Canada and globally.”

The letter added: “Please note that the award will be formally announced at the CAAS Annual General Meeting on Wednesday, May 31, 2023, at 5:00 pm. The venue for the meeting is Founders College, FC 152, York University, and the event will be in a Hybrid format. More information will be provided to enable you to invite family and friends to witness the award ceremony segment of the AGM.” The letter was signed by Nduka Otiono, PhD.

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