Yoruba Assembly Urges Stronger Measures To Tackle Insurgency In Nigeria

The Yoruba Assembly, a coalition of several civil society and self-determination groups, has called on the government to sustain its push to promote peaceful coexistence and take tough measures to crush rising insecurity across the country.

The coalition made its view public at a summit that drew nearly 1,000 representatives from across the region.

The delegates said insecurity was a threat that might tear the country apart and prevent a peaceful election in 2027.

They urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to issue an Executive Order that would, within weeks, require states to recruit their own police to fight insurgency and terrorism, rather than wait the full 60 months for state police as recommended by the Inspector General of Police, Tunde Disu.

The Coalition made several demands at the summit tagged “Good Governance and the Crisis of Nationhood”, which was held in Lagos. Participants dissected the state of the nation, warning that any attempt at toppling democracy will be met with the Yoruba’s exit from Nigeria.

The coalition also reviewed the country’s security situation, warning that the delay in establishing state police is dangerous. The group said 60 months was too long for the creation of state police, given the urgent intervention needed to stem the tide of violence and terrorism.

The Guest Speaker, Prof Lai Olorode, called on Yoruba people to effect a dynamic shift in their attitude to politics, lamenting that most Yoruba people usually register but fail to come out to vote on voting day.

In the communique issued after the summit, the Yoruba Assembly warned against any Military Intervention in Nigeria, saying such a move is certain to throw Nigeria into turmoil. The gathering brought together close to 1,000 delegates drawn from the South West states, including Kogi and Kwara. Delegates also came from Delta and Edo States.

“We admit the challenges of democracy. Today, there are problems of insecurity, hunger, deprivation and economic downturn. These are historical challenges arising from years of misrule, totalitarianism, corruption, and moral decline, of which 27 years of military rule have mainly contributed to the afflictions of today. Military rule will never rule the Yoruba again.

“Any attempt to overthrow the current democratic experience will have terrible consequences for Nigeria. For us in Yorubaland, we shall exit the country instead of having military rule”, the communique issued at the end of the summit, signed by its leader, Hon Wale Osun, stated.

Osun appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to make sure the State Police is accepted by all Governors and implemented, so as to bring an end to the spate of insecurity in the country.

“We are surprised that the successor of former IGP Kayode Egbetokun, Tunde Disu, is proposing an implementation process that may ultimately frustrate the prospect of the full implementation of State Police, and all these to mind is consistent with the position of successive Inspector Generals of Police who in August 2012 had visited then President Jonathan and rallied against sub-national policing”.

The former House of Representatives Member, however, categorically stated that any attempt to subvert the constitutional doctrines and processes shall be resisted by the people of the South West.

Olurode said the Yoruba heritage is grounded in liberty, respect for dissent, tolerance of opposition, justice and equity. He said the political economy of any society should reflect the age-old cultural norms.