The recent attempted takeover of the Oyo State Secretariat by armed Yoruba Nation agitators marks a dangerous escalation in the movement for a separate Yoruba state.
This incident exposes a new twist within the broader secessionist movement, which includes groups like the Oduduwa Republic, Ilana Odua, and the Democratic Republic of Yoruba.
The gunfight between the invaders and security forces in Ibadan on April 13, 2024, shocked residents and stakeholders alike.
Fear gripped the city as people scrambled for safety.
The exchange of fire raises serious concerns about the activities of these groups and the planning behind the invasion.
‘ Death and Arrest’
Adewale Osifeso, spoke-person, Oyo state police command, noted that apprehended suspects had in their possession three pump action guns, 29 live cartridges, two expanded cartridges, 67 cutlasses, five bulletproof vests, and six pairs of boots. In addition, he said they also had in their possession 10 public address systems, three berets with Oodua insignia crafted on them, seven belts, 11 Oodua Nation camouflage uniforms, and one unregistered bus and three motorcycles.
Reports also confirmed the death of three agitators who were said to have been dressed in foreign military uniforms. Bode George, a PDP chieftain, said on Monday, 15th April 2024, that the group’s audacity should worry anyone. He noted that for the “agitators to carry their weapons in military uniforms, and (when) nobody stopped them on the road, you now see the urgent need for state police because they could not have been meeting somewhere if we are well organized like the state police.” His opinion was part of broader concerns around the intelligence gathering of the country’s security architecture. Perhaps it wasn’t just the audacity but the planning, logistics, and organization of the invasion that should have stunned peace-loving citizens, plus, the confidence with which they carried out the treasonable act.
“2021, the year of Sunday Igboho”
Flashback to the 2021 persistent farmers and herders’ clashes in the West and the seeming indifference of the Federal government under former President Muhammadu Buhari to nip the crisis in the bud. Buhari’s government negligence, on one part, led to the emergence of the likes of Sunday Adeyemo, aka Sunday Igboho, who championed the safety of the people of the region. Outspoken and boastful, Sunday Igboho’s foray into the Yoruba Nation agitation gave the movement the needed impetus. From the back-burner, Sunday Igboho’s intervention took the struggle to the frontline of public consciousness.
For instance, his messianic trip to Igangan, a community in the Ibarapa area of Oyo state, cemented his irredentist exploits. Latching onto the public sentiment and support, Sunday Igboho capitalized on the public discontent with Buhari’s government to lend credence to the agitation. In months that followed, the group’s bases grew in leaps and bounds, with rallies held in major cities. When Sunday Igboho called for the Yoruba Nation, the region was facing an existential threat: killer herders. And it was easy for him to rally influential figures in and outside the country to his course. But the attack on his residence by security operatives in Ibadan and his subsequent arrest in the Benin Republic set the movement back.
‘Hijacked Movement’
On Friday 12, 2024, a video clip surfaced on the internet with one Modupe Onitiri Abiola declaring herself the acting leader of the Yoruba Nation while proclaiming the sovereignty of the Yoruba Nation. Her proclamation was soon followed by the insurrectionists who invaded the state secretariat the following day, linking the duo in the treasonable felony. In the short video, Abiola, who described herself as one of Chief MKO Abiola’s widow, said Democratic Republic of Yoruba has come to stay. But in separate comments, both Sunday Igboho and Professor Banji Akintoye, another leader of the movement, have distanced themselves from the invasion.
“Invaders of the secretariat are followers of Onitiri, and they have come to take over the government in Yorubaland,” Prof. Akintoye said. “We in this struggle don’t act in that manner.” For Sunday Igboho, a disclaimer on his Instagram handle reads: I’ll implore the state government to do due diligence on the matter and figure out the identities of these impersonators and blackmailers. Afenifere, through its spokesperson Jare Ajayi, wondered how a person or group of persons think that invading a state house of assembly is equivalent to their creation of a federal republic.
Addressing root causes
Analysts suggest addressing the root causes of these agitations and curbing their excesses requires a multifaceted approach that combines political, economic, and social strategies.
Following the failed invasion in Ibadan, the proactive security measures implemented by Southwest governors are a positive step, but a long-term solution requires tackling the underlying grievances that fuel separatist movements.
