Yoruba leaders, elders apologise to Ooni of Ife on behalf of Sunday Igboho

Yoruba leaders and elders under the aegis of Yoruba World Assembly have tendered an apology to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi for what they described as the youthful exuberance displayed by the popular Yoruba youth activist, Mr. Sunday Adeyemo also known as Sunday Igboho.

The group promised the first-class monarch that such a conduct would never be heard of from the youth activist.

This is as they also call on the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi and Ooni Ogunwusi to convey a meeting of all traditional rulers and Yoruba children to give a direction and instruction on the line of action to save the race from its current challenge.

The Chairman, Governing Council, Elder Taiye Ayorinde tendered the public apology on behalf of Igboho on Thursday during an Emergency Youth International Summit which held at the Western hall, Parliamentary Buildings, Agodi Secretariat, Ibadan.

Ayorinde said “This meeting is the first of its kind. This is the first Yoruba Traditional Summit. We called all traditional worshippers from over.

“A retired CP came and told us how our traditional rulers and community leaders are contributing to the crisis by just selling our lands and or exchanging same for cows.

“What our son (Sunday Adeyemo that we call Sunday Igboho) is doing is because of his concern when it was obvious that many elderly and traditional rulers are busy selling lands for strangers killing our people and the thing has escalated into a crisis.

“We apologise, and I stand here as the Chairman, Yoruba World Assembly to apologise on behalf of Sunday Igboho for the exuberance that he showed when he talked to the Ooni of Ife in an unacceptable manner.

“Because of that, we apologise on his behalf that it won’t happen again. It is a childish exuberance and I believe that the Ooni Orisa that I know has forgiven him for the atrocities.”

Speaking on the essence of the programme, Ayorinde who is also the Baale of Ekotedo, Ibadan said the event is a follow up to the earlier traditional security summit which held on January 14.

“Today is an epoch-making day by the YWA. The first Yoruba traditional security summit came to be on January 14, 2021. We are not going to just be talking and talking alone. We will show action. Yorubas have always talked too much.

“This meeting is a clarion call to all Yorubas not to be passive. Not to sleep until everything is put right. This is a clarion to all the Obas to come together and speak with one voice, let us sit together. Let us speak together.

“The time has come for all our traditional rulers to call themselves together. We will gather all the religious leaders including our Bishops, our Imams and others to come together to jointly say it is enough. They can’t be killing our people and expect us to be quiet.

“After oil, the next treasure is agriculture. The things have gone so worse that they even invade farms and feed their cows. And the Nigerian President has shown the structure has been in the favour of the northerners, who are firmly in charge of all top positions and ensuring that the Yorubas are at the back.

“The system has subjugated the Yorubas who have been the best of the rest, we started as the best of everything in Nigeria and it is obvious they have relegated us.

“And now the Yoruba World Assembly (YWA) have risen up and we are saying we will not accept that anymore. I don’t want to give a catalogue of people that have been killed, including the daughter of Pa Fasoranti. And I don’t want to mention how many farms that have been destroyed.

“Enough is enough. The result of the activities of these criminals on our lands is not palatable and that is why we have decided that we will call all interest groups to sit down and discuss the strategy to be deployed.

“We will involve community leaders, elders, traditional rulers, kings and the time has come that we are sending you on an errand. Kabiyesis’ (kings), you all must come together to say enough is enough.

“And now that we have all agreed that enough is enough, we call on our father, the Iku Baba Yeye, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, the Alaafin of Oyo and the Spiritual leader of all Yorubas, the Oni’risa, Ooni of Ife to gather all of us together and instruct us on what to do and how to go about it.”

In his remarks, the Secretary-General/Chief Convener, Yoruba World Assembly (YWA) in supporting Sunday Igboho’s moves accused political leaders, religious leaders and traditional rulers in the region for their complacency in handling the various killings of the Yorubas by the criminal herders.

He identified five categories of individuals whom he said are the main causes of the issues which have degenerated in the region.

He identified: the rich people of the region, religious leaders, political leaders, elders and traditional rulers.

In their various remarks, stakeholders at the meeting express willingness to stand up against what they described as the oppression of the herders whom they said have been well accommodated and accepted in the region for many years.