Yoruba freedom fighter Sunday Igboho, has said there is no basis for one Nigeria as insecurity spreads to Yoruba land. He spoke on Wednesday during a press conference in Ibadan, charging all Yoruba youths to support Prof. Banji Akintoye in the quest for a Yoruba nation. He said thus “Starting from now, we don’t want Fulani herdsmen in our land to disturb our farms again. If we meet any Fulani herdsmen, we are going to face and destroy them. I will open all borders in the Southwest tomorrow so that rice, cars, and other goods can enter, Southwest is no longer in Nigeria. All Yoruba leaving in the North should return back, any Oba that doesn’t support me will die.
The federal government of Nigeria took a very critical decision to close its land borders on August 19, 2019. This was after sessions of focused discussions on matters bordering on the economy and national security. It was not an easy decision to make, not after analyzing the pros and cons of affecting the closure of all our national boundaries.
In August, President Muhammadu Buhari ordered a closed Nigeria’s land border with Benin, preventing the import of goods. The move significantly affected trade in foodstuffs, which had already been affected by various past import restrictions. The move is part of an effort to tackle smuggling and associated corruption, but also to spur the domestic agricultural industry. On October 14, Nigeria ordered closed all of Nigeria’s borders with Benin, as well as those with all other countries, for the same reasons. With the market for smuggled food now restricted, domestic food prices – already high have gone up and the economy of neighboring Benin, a staging area for smuggling into Nigeria has been devastated. Imports into Nigeria are to come through seaports, where customs duties can be imposed more easily than at land borders. Nigeria’s vital oil exports are not affected.
Now, the sole Yoruba activist Sunday Igboho has vowed to open all borders in the Southwest which will be against the order and policy of the Nigeria Government, and such action will come with a dire consequence. Sunday Igboho’s agitation for Ooduwa Republic “Yoruba Nation” with “VIOLENCE” might be caused hostilities to be declared between the Southerners and the Northerners, and I’m sure the Nigeria Government won’t sit and watch Sunday Igboho’s newfound resolution lead to an escalation of hostilities, he’ll be hunted down and will be charged for a treasonable felony because if his resolution has no chance of resolving anything, then Nigeria Government will have no choice but to believe Sunday Igboho’s resolution is under the guise of economic and political interest.
That’s why Southwest elder statesmen like Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and Bola Ahmed Tinubu must step in, as a matter of urgency before Sunday Igboho’s resolution lead to an escalation of hostilities and ethnic conflicts. Sunday Igboho needs to be cautious and guided. He can’t afford to be reckless and that’s why elder statesman like Obasanjo and Tinubu needs to caution him from taking radical decisions before it’s too late.
