Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Wednesday, disclosed that all the brouhaha emanating from South Western Nigeria is nothing but a demand for the devolution of power from the centre to the constituents.
Obasanjo stated this yesterday when he received in audience leaders of the Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) at his Penthouse residence located within the precinct of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
The elder statesman said he had studied the agitations of the various groups in the region, particularly the youths and declared that such devolution of power which was being demanded by those groups was not too much of a thing for them to ask.
Led by their new chairman, Chief Ajibade Oyekan, YCE pleaded with Obasanjo to work for the growth and development of the region, with emphasis on youths’ reorientation, agriculture, Yoruba agitation and culture among other issues.
But responding to the YCE’s plea, Obasanjo said it just dawned on him that what those agitators wanted was simply “devolution of power.”
He however warned that youth development and education without required skills to provide for empowerment and employment would not bring the desired results.
He also called for truthfulness, sincerity, unity, decency, diligence and bluntness on issues at all times on matters of the region and nation.
“These youth we are talking about have education, but they have no skills. And, education without skills in this age and time is nothing. This skill is what we know as ise owo (handwork) and they are also talking about the Internet Age. If we fail to give them these skills and we are blaming them, that will not be right.
“An individual is planning to bring 30 young persons today. They called them “Area Boys (girls). I was impressed, because these people are used by politicians and if we have individuals doing this, such a person deserves support in whatever form to bring these people out from their situation.
“When I interviewed 12 persons on their understandings of what restructuring is all about, what I got was different from the 12 persons. Some said they wanted 3, 4 regions and some said they wanted 12 states. But, in all I got to understand that all they were asking for is devolution of power and this is not too much to ask for.”
