By Peter Dansu The Yoruba Self Determination Movement (YSDM) has renewed its call for an independent Oduduwa Republic, proposing restrictio...
By Peter Dansu
The Yoruba Self Determination Movement (YSDM) has renewed its call for an independent Oduduwa Republic, proposing restrictions on non-indigenes’ political participation, land ownership and access to commercial spaces across parts of the South-West.
The group also accused former Lagos State Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu of allowing the expansion of Igbo political representation and property ownership in Lagos during his administration between 1999 and 2007, a development it claimed had contributed to current tensions over ethnic identity and ownership of the state.
The movement made its position known on Wednesday at a press conference organised by the Yoruba Action Group at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Press Centre in Iyaganku, Ibadan.
Its Deputy Leader (Homeland), Architect George Akinola, said Nigeria’s worsening security challenges, political tensions and disagreements over ethnic identity and territorial ownership had reinforced the group’s position that the country should be dissolved rather than restructured.
Akinola said the movement had warned between 2017 and 2022 that Nigeria was approaching a crisis, arguing that restructuring, resource control and a return to regionalism would not address the country’s fundamental problems.
“We added, among other things, that it is too late for restructuring, resource control or regionalism in Nigeria,” he said.
He maintained that an independent Oduduwa Republic remained the movement’s preferred solution to what he described as threats to Yoruba political, economic and cultural interests.
YSDM Disputes 'No Man's Land' Claims Over Lagos
The group rejected the description of Lagos as a “No Man’s Land” and disputed claims that Igbo residents played a decisive role in developing the state, insisting that Lagos was historically and culturally part of Yorubaland.
It identified the Awori, Ijebu, Egba, Egbado, Remo, Ilaje and Egun communities, alongside Yoruba returnees from Sierra Leone, as groups associated with the historical development of Lagos.
Citing historical accounts attributed to Sola Ebiseni, the movement argued that Yoruba lineages had shaped Lagos’ traditional institutions, including the succession of its monarchs and the composition of prominent royal families.
It also challenged claims of historical Benin sovereignty over Lagos, arguing that the traditional succession system on Lagos Island reflected Yoruba ruling-house arrangements.
The group’s position comes amid longstanding debates over the history of Lagos, indigeneity and political representation in the state, which remains a major commercial centre with residents from diverse ethnic backgrounds.
Akinola alleged that Tinubu’s administration as governor between 1999 and 2007 had created room for greater Igbo political representation and property ownership in Lagos, which he claimed contributed to present disagreements.
The movement subsequently declared that no Igbo candidate should contest elections in Yorubaland during the 2027 general elections, arguing that political participation should be determined by indigeneity.
“No vacancy for any Igbo candidate in Yorubaland,” Akinola said, urging those interested in elective offices to return to their ancestral states.
The proposal has raised questions about the constitutional rights of Nigerian citizens to live, work, own property and participate in political activities outside their states and communities of origin.
Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution prohibits discrimination on grounds including ethnic group and place of origin, while Section 43 provides for the right of Nigerian citizens to acquire and own immovable property anywhere in the country, subject to the Constitution.
Section 15 also promotes national integration and the protection of citizens’ rights to reside in any part of the federation.
Proposes 20 Per Cent Limit on Market Spaces
The YSDM called on governors, senators, members of the House of Representatives and state lawmakers across the South-West to enact laws protecting what it described as indigenous interests.
Among its proposals was a demand that non-indigenes should occupy or control no more than 20 per cent of shops and commercial spaces in any market.
The group specifically mentioned Alaba, Ladipo and the Trade Fair Complex markets in Lagos, alleging that Yoruba traders had faced intimidation and exclusion in some commercial spaces because of their ethnic background.
It called for the criminalisation of harassment against indigenous traders and urged state authorities to investigate allegations of discriminatory market practices.
The movement also proposed limiting land leases available to non-indigenes to 20 years or less, compared with the 99-year leasehold arrangement it cited, and urged lawmakers to introduce policies regulating property ownership in areas it considers Yoruba territory.
It further called for the identification and return to their states of origin of non-Yoruba residents convicted of crimes. The group also advocated tighter migration controls in urban centres and the revocation of properties where it alleged hostile groups had gathered.
Akinola said the measures were necessary to prevent what he described as the concentration of commercial and political power in the hands of particular ethnic communities.
The group also demanded an end to open grazing by cattle in Yorubaland, arguing that cattle owners from outside the region should establish ranches in their states of origin.
Links Agitation to Insecurity
The movement linked its campaign for self-determination to insecurity in rural communities, alleging that farmers and other residents had suffered kidnapping, rape, killings and other attacks by armed groups operating in forests, villages and along highways.
It accused the Federal Government of failing to adequately address threats to Yoruba communities, arguing that the security situation had strengthened its case for an independent state.
The group also made historical claims about the origins of the Fulani and Igbo peoples, disputing aspects of their ancestry and historical development. Those claims were presented as the movement’s position and were not independently established in the information provided.
Akinola warned that Yoruba people would respond to what he described as persistent provocations and attempts to challenge their territorial identity.
He cited historical conflicts involving Yoruba communities, including Fulani incursions in the 19th century, the political crisis in the former Western Region in 1963, the disputed 1983 Ondo State governorship election and the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, widely believed to have been won by the late Chief Moshood Abiola.
The movement argued that these episodes demonstrated what it considered the determination of Yoruba people to resist political domination and threats to their interests.
Akinola also referenced Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart, invoking a passage about responding forcefully when someone violates the sanctity of another person’s home to reinforce his warning to those he accused of disrespecting Yoruba history and culture.
Questions Legitimacy of 1999 Constitution
The YSDM challenged the legitimacy of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution, arguing that Yoruba representatives had not participated adequately in its drafting and that the document did not sufficiently reflect the consent of the country’s constituent ethnic nationalities.
It maintained that ethnic nationalities should be able to pursue self-determination and establish protections for their identities and indigenous rights.
However, Nigeria’s Constitution describes the country as an indivisible and indissoluble sovereign state and does not provide a unilateral constitutional procedure for an ethnic group or state to secede from the federation.
The movement said it would continue campaigning for an independent Oduduwa Republic, insisting that restructuring and other constitutional reforms would not resolve what it considers Nigeria’s fundamental problems.
It urged political office-holders, traditional rulers and community leaders across the areas it identifies as Yorubaland to support its campaign for self-determination and the proposed legislative restrictions.
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