Voice Of Emancipation: Yoruba, It’s Time to Wake Up

By Kayode Emola

For the many Yoruba who can’t discern right from wrong or left from right, it’s time to clearly separate facts from fiction. Before the 1999 introduction of democracy to Nigeria, it was hailed as the panacea for development, the ingredient that would take Nigeria to the next level. 25 years of democracy later, over half the population of Nigeria lives in abject poverty. It is therefore high time we talked about our continuing as Nigerians.

It is plainly evident that Nigeria as a nation is heading nowhere meaningful. Still, my greatest frustration lies with the millions of Yoruba who cannot or will not open their eyes and see that it is over for the country. Many of them believe that one day Nigeria will solve all its problems and become a great nation; yet at the same time, believing that it is better for them personally to travel abroad for pastures green.

This is nothing short of hypocrisy at the highest level in fact, I would go so far as to call it cowardice in the face of the oppression present. For those who believe that Nigeria will one day become great, yet still harbour the idea of travelling abroad; or are currently living outside of Nigeria and not returning to build the country, you of all people are the most miserable.

Today, the people living in Ondo State will go out to validate the failed system the military government handed over in 1999. What they will not see is that the exercise of voting is a mirage that makes no difference either to their personal wellbeing or the good of the nation. And yet still they will believe in the slogans that have been spun by politicians for the sole purpose of deceiving the unsuspecting.

As Yoruba, we ought to look inward, and ask ourselves if we are truly enjoying being part of Nigeria. If not, then we must face the question of why are we silent about the hardship our people face. To paraphrase a popular vlogger, the politicians know that the people must go to bed with hope. It seems that successive governments previously have sowed the seed of hope to keep the people going, even as they knew that Nigeria will not get better.

However, the government under President Tinubu has not only perpetuated the citizens’ poverty but has also stolen their hope. Perhaps Tinubu’s decision to liberalise the country is the push needed to energise the Yoruba people towards the actualisation of Orile-ede Yoruba. If not, if even this can’t jolt them out of their reverie, then I can’t see anything that could shake these poverty-stricken Yoruba people from their die-hard belief that Nigeria will one day be a great nation.

It is now very obvious that when our sovereignty is actualised, we Yoruba will need to guard it jealously from the political hawks who ruined Nigeria. We need to make sure they do not transfer their corrupt way of governing Nigeria into the Yoruba country.

Therefore, it is time to begin planning in earnest what that new country will look like. We need to engage stakeholders throughout various levels of society to discuss how our new nation will function. These includes, though is not limited to, our traditional leaders, civil societies, artisans, various professionals and the general public.

We must now put immense pressure on President Tinubu and the current government to convene a sovereign national conference, so that the question of Nigeria can be answered once and for all. This should not be a conference that gags its participants into agreeing that Nigeria is indivisible, but one that allows each participating ethnic nationality the opportunity to decide their own future.

With that said, we must be aware of the nonchalant attitude displayed by the Nigerian government regarding nations’ quest for sovereignty. The Igbo people have decided to exit Nigeria by declaring their Biafra nation on 2nd December 2024, and will damn the consequences. If this happens, the instability caused will make Nigeria’s remaining as a country entirely untenable, under which circumstances we Yoruba people must be ready and uncompromising for our own exit.

The most sensible path that the Nigerian government could take would be that of peaceful dissolution; but the way things are currently heading, I don’t see that happening. Therefore, if and when the inevitable happens to Nigeria, every Yoruba person, both at home and in the diaspora, must be ready to obey the clarion call.

In so doing, we will show the international community that the Yoruba have affirmatively decided that we no longer wish to be perpetual slaves to those holding us to ransom. This moment is pivotal, the point at which we decide our future once and for all. Let us choose the road to freedom, so that we may truly look forward to building a viable nation that champions the rights and needs of the many, not just the political few.