The first and greatest reason for demanding a Yoruba Regional Government is that the people of Yorubaland want and deserve democracy. Their will is powerful, clear and true every time opinion is sounded. It has been expressed calmly and consistently over a period of decades, and has strengthened rather than diminished with the passing of time. In a responsive and effective democracy, this would be reason enough for change. But present unitary constitution denies Yorubaland responsive and effective democracy. That is the second reason for change. Yoruba begins this decade facing a stark choice. It has a distinguished and distinctive structural heritage, evident in Yoruba’s legal system, its educational system, its social, cultural and religious traditions. These things are the very fabric of Yoruba society, yet Yorubaland has come to lack democratic control over them. Their conduct is determined by a system of government inimical to growth and development in a multicultural society, operating through a dense tangle of unelected Ministers and Special Advisers. These offices now run Yorubaland’s affairs across the board, from Yoruba water to Yoruba Theatre. This is a democratic deficit which runs contrary to Nigeria’s first independent constitution which established parliamentary democracy based on distinct political identity and system. It is affecting relations with the rest of a Federal Republic of Nigeria in which most Yoruba wish to remain, and hampering Yorubaland’s ability to make its voice heard in the world, particularly within a fast-developing African Union well attuned to such voices. Redressing the deficit is a matter of fairness and justice, and also of better government. A Yoruba Regional Government is the means of taking back control without turning our backs on our neighbours; of determining our own strategies; of facing the challenges of a new age in our own way. A Yoruba Regional Government will be able to make a real difference to the prosperity of the Yoruba people, and to the quality of the life they lead. No modern economy can be viewed in isolation from the others with which it is entwined by ties of trade and ownership – one reason why Yorubaland needs to remain within the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which is by far its biggest marketplace. But the Yoruba economy can be differentiated from those of other parts of Nigeria, both in its strengths and in its weaknesses.
Posted on: Mon, 05 Aug 2013 12:50:00 +0000