As I switched on my phone on Saturday morning, 3rd of April, I received over thirty-two messages announcing the most shocking transition of Yinka Odumakin, the Spokesman of Pan-Yoruba group, Afenifere. Thinking that I was still sleeping and that it was part of a bad dream, I properly regained consciousness and checked the social media. Alas, it was the breaking news of the day!
Still doubting and praying that it was not true, I called three good friends who should really know and they confirmed that it was indeed the case that even with our prayers, our brother, friend, comrade and apostle for a better Nigeria, Yinka Odumakin has left us for the world beyond! While enveloped and depressed in shock and grief, the tributes started pouring like rain even from unimaginable quarters, my spirit was lifted, and I thank God for the life and times of Yinka!
Determined to be sure that my thoughts of him are not based on sentiments and illusions, I called many of the people that sent messages to enquire their high interest in his transition and what they think of Comrade Yinka! The verdict was the same and unanimous from North to South, Christians to Muslims, APC to PDP, those in government and those outside, Old and Young, Nigerians and non-Nigerians! Yinka was a good man with unquestionable, unrepentant, and unending desire for a better Nigeria! “He is/was one of the very few islands for Nigeria’s rectitude in a sea of ferociousnational turpitude! With very few like him remaining, my hope for a better Nigeria was aflame. Now that he has transited, darkness gains and my departure nearer. I do pray and hope even though with hesitation that all those pouring encomium and tributes to Yinka will in their quiet moment and respect for him listen and do some of his views about our dear Nation”, an 80-year-old experienced and involved Nigerian most painfully stated!
In total agreement with the above prayers and deeply encouraged by the pouring tributes, I reconfirmed the most important thing that Yinka laboured for. It was Equity and Fairness for a better Nigeria! This relates to two burning national issues. While the first and most important is the need to restructure Nigeria, the second, which is related to the first, is the 2023 presidency and which zone it should go to. If the tributes being received are sincere, the only way we can truly pay our last respect to Yinka particularly from our leaders is to see that his prayers and wishes for Nigeria are fulfilled. This will make his soul to truly rest in peace while perpetual light shines upon him!
On the issue of restructuring, Yinka has on many occasions through his articles, interviews and activities clearly explained that the most feasible solution to glaring flawed and rapidly failing Nigeria is to restructure our governance system. With the pervasive insecurity, unemployment, poverty, lack of infrastructure, ethnic division and distrust, even the blind can see and the deaf can hear that Nigeria is in deep crises. Even if most of the issues cannot be addressed at the same time, suggestions have been made on howit can be done in a gradual process or through pilot cases. For instance, review the exclusive list and move certain items such as police, mineral deposits, railway and waterways to the concurrent list controlled by states and local governments.
Having been in power for about six years now without any sign of listening or heeding to the counsels of Yinka and others, one wonders if President Buhari and APC are interested in the peaceful co-existence and development of Nigeria or its ongoing crises and possible disintegration. As they send in tributes with a unified agreement on the genuineness and validity of Yinka’s contributions and views, an important question is why they have not considered the urgency to restructure Nigeria, which is central to Yinka’s struggles.
On the 2023 Presidency, Yinka and many other patriots like Pa Ayo Adebanjo, the highly respected Afenifere leader have on many occasions argued that restructuring Nigeria is more important to Yorubas and many other Nigerians than a President of Yoruba extraction. They even went further to state that in the spirit of fairness and equity, the zone that should produce the president come 2023 should be South East. Again as tributes pour in for Yinka from our leaders such as President Buhari, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Governor Kayode Fayemi, Pastor Tunde Bakare, Arewa Consultive Forum and others, it will be important to know if they have properly considered these views for equity and fairness to progress Nigeria. As leaders, it is expected that they should exhibit values and virtues for our national rectitude and not that of turpitude.
With the increasing agreement from the North that Presidency should shift to the South in 2023, the question is which zone in the South should in fairness and equity get it. Starting from return of democracy in 1999, while General Olusegun Obasanjo from South-West did 8 years, Dr Goodluck Jonathan from South-South did 6 years and presently Professor Yemi Osinbajo is serving as the Vice President in his second term of 8 years with PMB. Interestingly, even with this glaring facts, some people clearly with a turpitude inclination are arguing that South West should produce the 2023 President. With the same turpitude inclination, these so-called leaders accept the glaring lop-sidedness in federal appointments, emerging exclusion of some sections of the country, pervasive killings, insecurity, unemployment and poverty across the country as normal.
As the Pope recently stated, God does not bless sin irrespective of who the people are and the circumstance! While we can ignore such counsel and achieve certain things like taking the presidency by force, corruption and manipulation, my grandfather counselled that God has a very slow pace and sometimes slower than snail in his decisions and actions. Unfortunately, in our selfishness as human beings, we are most of the times incapable of reading, hearing or understanding God!
Everything that Yinka Odumakin preached can be summarised in Rotary Club 4-way test- Is it the TRUTH? Is it FAIR to all concerned? Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS? Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned? As our leaders continue in their self-interested approach to the governance of our dear country, we pray that God will give them the humility to consider the Rotary Club 4-way test or wise counsels of Yinka Odumakin. To Chief Ayo Adebanjo and other genuine patriots, take solace and be grateful to God for the life and times of Comrade Yinka, brother and friend while we pray that God grant his soul eternal rest and perpetual light shine upon him!
