More Yoruba leaders desert Igboho over calls for secession

The Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) has distanced itself from the secessionist call being championed by Sunday Adeyemo, a Yoruba youth leader popularly known as Sunday Igboho.

Igboho, a self-acclaimed Yoruba activist last week declared Yoruba as a separate nation and demanded the secession of South-West states from Nigeria.

However, Kunle Olajide, the secretary-general of the YCE said Igboho does not represent the Yoruba people in his call for secession, The Cable reported. Yoruba Council of Elders says Sunday Igboho does not represent the Yoruba people in his call for secession.

He added that the Yoruba people had invested so much in Nigeria’s formation and unity, and it would be unwise for them to seek secession.

Olajide also debunked Igboho’s claim that Yoruba monarchs and elders were behind him. The YCE secretary-general said there was no platform where the traditional rulers met with Igboho.

He said the Yoruba people are angry over the “ethnocentric nature” of the Muhammadu Buhari administration.

However, Olajide noted that the ethnic group remains part of the country, urging Igboho and those who believe in his secessionist call to exercise patience.

Meanwhile,  the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in the 2019 election, Obadiah Mailafia, has spoken against any possible arrest of Sunday Igboho.

The politician who was a former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) told Channels TV on Wednesday, March 24, that it would be unwise for security agents to arrest the activist.

He argued that Igboho is fighting for his people and should be left alone.