OPC raises alarm over Biafran agitators plan to shift campaign to Yorubaland
By; Bayo Akamo, Ibadan.
The Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) has raised the alarm of an alleged moves by the pro-Biafran agitators to shift their campaign to Yorubaland “for ulterior motives”.
OPC in a statement made available to journalists in Ibadan and signed by the National Coordinating Council of the OPC, Comrade Akinpelu Adeshina asked security agencies and Yoruba leaders to guard against threat to peace in the South West zone.
It specifically advocated increased surveillance on the organizers of ‘The World Igbo Day 2015’ proposed to be hosted in Yorubaland this Saturday alleging “ulterior motives” behind the hurried arrangement.
“We see the attempt to bring the World Igbo Day celebration – in whatever guise – which is normally celebrated on the 29th September annually to the Yorubaland as a mischievous and diabolically crafted attempt to cause chaos in and destabilize Yorubaland; and this we will repulse and reject with everything at our disposal,” OPC stated.
Emphasizing that it was “compelled to make this call given the precarious and heightened security situation in the country and the world over”, OPC
added, “as much as we believe in the right of every person and group to self-determination, we are of the firm belief that this particular event is mischievously conceived and earmarked to be hosted in any part of Yorubaland.
“It is true that the Yoruba are a liberal, peaceful and accommodating people, yet we are no fools and should not be treated as fools. The South West part of Nigeria is the most secure and peaceful part of Nigeria today and should therefore not be turned into a theatre of war or avoidable crisis”.
OPC stressed in the statement that “for too long, the Yoruba have accommodated all other tribes and nationalities like good hosts. We have not minded the odium and other atrocities committed against our people, and on our ancestral land.
“During the last election campaigns, it was the height of all insults when the Igbos in Lagos derided and mudsling our highly revered traditional rulers, particularly the Oba of Lagos. Never in history has it been recorded that a Yoruba person or group crossed the Niger River into either the northern or eastern part of the country to go and vilify, desecrate or insult any of their paramount rulers for political or any other reasons. The leeway to do business and own properties which the Igbo and other nationalities enjoy in Yorubaland has not been reciprocated for the Yoruba elsewhere, thus it would only be fair to warn anyone or group that ‘if our relationship cannot be mutually beneficial, it should in no way be injurious to us as a people”.
It noted that “The recent infractions of the Fulani cattle-herders in Yorubaland are the last slap to the cheek that we are ready to accommodate as a people. We have also not forgotten the attempt to overrun Yorubaland and turn it into the theatre of war during the Biafran attempt to cede from Nigeria”.
OPC then charged all Yoruba elders, “leaders of thought and the commoners to wake up to the realities of the day and stand up to be counted in this effort to maintain the continued peaceful and harmonious existence that has always been the pride of the Yorubas.”
Re- OPC Alerts Security On Planned Pro-Biafra Protest In Yorubaland
Our attention have been drawn to a statement circulating in the media, some with the picture of the National Coordinator of Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) Otunba Gani Adams kicking against the plan of Pro-Biafra Group to stage their protest in Lagos.It is very logical to point out that such reckless and sensitive statement cannot be traced to OPC as led by Otunba Gani Adams.
According to the Director of media and publicity,Yinka Oguntimehin, OPC as an organisation has never issued any statement against any tribe or body over their right of association or protest as long as such a protest is peaceful and security of lives and property is assured and monitored by security agents.
The Igbos have a population of over 35Million spread all over the world,some of them have stayed in Lagos and indeed the South West for over 40years and more,it is not the purview of OPC to deny such people their right to determine their future and membership of the country as contained in the United Nations Self Determination charter of 14 December 1960, when the United Nations General Assembly adopted United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1514 (XV) under titled Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples provided for the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples in providing an inevitable legal linkage between self-determination and its goal of decolonisation, and a postulated new international law-based right of freedom also in economic self-determination.
Although the Igbos do not allow Yoruba such freedom in their region as they enjoy in South West,it is not a reason to go against their decision to self determination,however if they step out of line as allowed in the constitution,the Federal Government should do the needful by making use of the security agencies. The position of OPC on self determination is clear as we are in support of true Federalism and Statism,but we are not in anyway against the choice of Ibos to self determination.
The said statement signed by one Shina Akinpelu on behalf of OPC should totally be disregarded because going by our record,Akinpelu is a dismissed member of the Congress years back and he has no mandate of the congress to issue any statement,the statement was said to have been issued from Ibadan,the world knows that the Headquaters of OPC is in Lagos,and any statement is to come from Ibadan,it would have been issued by our Oyo State Coordinator. We are hereby appealing to the public to remain calm and ignore such unwanted provocation from a dismissed member of OPC who is now a tool in the hand of politicians to cause disaffection between the Yorubas and Igbo