Gani Adams, the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, says the perennial agitations for secession in Nigeria are not unconnected to the parlous state of the country.
He said separatists’ demand for balkanization of the country is spurred by government’s failure to tackle insecurity and challenges affecting the economy.
Adams spoke on Saturday at the fifth edition of the ‘Yoruba One Voice’ global conference, which held virtually.
In recent years, there have been calls by groups in the south-east and south-west for secession amid Nigeria’s worst recession in three decades and insecurity.
According to Adams, it is the right of every ethnic nationality to seek justice, good governance and self-determination when it becomes necessary.
“If Nigeria were good, none of us would have sought the exit door from this country. We would have buried the cause of the struggle,” he said,
“But the struggle for a Yoruba nation became more prominent when it was obvious that Nigeria could not [address] the ravaging unrest and economic downturn.
“When it was obvious that things had gone awry, and the nation we always call ours had lost the battle to terrorists and bandits, and the country has eventually lost its soul, I think those are the reasons we started having agitations from the geo-political zones.
“In seeking self determination, we are not ready to destroy the hard-earned glory and heritage of our forefathers.
“There are many options that are better than the present political arrangements. Without sounding immodest, it is obvious that majority of the Yoruba, especially, those in the diaspora, are tired of this forced marriage.
“Perhaps, those that are against our calls for self-determination are either not seeing what we see or they are not feeling the pain we feel because they are beneficiaries of the bad system that is ravaged by huge debt, increasing spate of insecurity, killings, kidnapping, raping, and undemocratic culture of our leaders.”