Akinrogun Tunde Odanye was a gubernatorial aspirant in the Alliance for Democracy(AD) and later the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2003 and 2007 elections. In this interview with Group Politics Editor, Taiwo Adisa, he insists that there is an urgent need to review the colour and texture of Yoruba politics, as it relates to national politics, in view of the outcome of the last general election. Excerpts:ABOUT a week beforejudgement was delivered onthe Aregbesola versus Oyinlola gubernatorial election case, you said there was no way Aregbesola could win the Appeal. What is your reaction or position now I did not say there was no way Aregbesola could win the case; I said it though it was possible, it was highly improbable, because, to me, the odds were seriously stacked against him and his party. The court had given the ACN approximately 200,000 and the PDP approximately 400,000 votes.They therefore needed to cancel exactly 10 Local Government areas, not one local government less and not one person more, because if just one vote was cancelled from any other local government in addition to the 10 cancelled, the election would have been void because the winner must have won 25 per cent of two-thirds of the 30 Local Government Areas, that is 20 local governments in addition to majority votes.To me, it was like trying to score 100 per cent in an English Language, English Literature, History or other arts or humanities examination, which, also though not impossible, is also highly improbable. Well, it happened and we have all seen the controversy that has trailed the decision. As to my reaction, I am a firm believer in that Yoruba saying that Oluwanisola, bo ti wun lo nse ola e, e ni ti o wun ni o n gbe Ade fun.(It is God that gives power and He gives the crown to whoever He wishes). So, today, Rauf Aregbesola is the governor of Osun State and should be recognized as such.In politics, like life, one thing is constantchange. Political victories and losses are, therefore, like a pendulum swinging back and forth every now and then in favour of or against parties, strong and weak alike.So, what would be the fate of your party the PDP now that you are in the opposition Will you be launching out for the governorship again in 2014 I am not sure there are so many Abraham Lincolns in a lifetime, and I doubt if I am the second one. And though people like Lula Da Silva, the former Brazilian president, were in politics for donkey years before victory, I am not sure our situation is the same. I have invested 11 years on that project; if you add another three, that is, from now till 2014, that would be 14 years.I think the younger elements might begin to think that I am not compliant age-wise, at about 60 years. However, I confess to being involved in a new project called Egbe Omoluabi , a project I believe is most laudable and find most interesting, challenging and stimulating.What is the group all about What it is about can be discerned from the meaning. The meaning of Omoluabi, to any person who speaks Yoruba, is easy but the concept is a bit complicated. Though contained in the cognomen, one has to be conversant with Yoruba history, culture, tradition and or folklore to have a proper understanding of the real meaningor concept of Omoluabi. Omoluabi is about proper breeding and grooming. It is about understanding, respect and living up to the standards of your community and people. It is about constantly and spontaneously behaving and acting in a manner expected by your peers, people and community in every given situation and circumstance. (Ki a se eto ni igba gbogbo doing that which is right at all times). These norms, which are expected to be respected and kept, are usually unwritten and these are in addition to the laws of the scriptures and statutes. It generally demands a higher standard of living in addition to the commonly assumed and accepted notions of humility, kindness, keeping ones word, generosity, reliability, honesty, truthfulness, loving and caring for your neighbour and community, selflessness.It expects self sacrifice, strength of character, loyalty and, at times, the need to be heroic, including making the ultimate sacrifice of giving up ones life to save the reputation of, or for the good of, ones community, if need be. The Late Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi forever remains a hero and a distinguished Omoluabi for giving up his life, not only to save his boss but to save the Yoruba from the possible shame and infamy that might have been inherited by he and his people as a result of possible suspicion of complicity in the death of the then Head of State (an Igbo man) in Yoruba territory. Indeed, his death not only represents the very ethos of the Yoruba, it is supposed to represent the characteristic spirit of any Yoruba assemblage or community.An Omoluabi can best be likened to the proverbial quintessential English gentleman, and whilst it is about being a nobleman, it is not about being born into aristocracy. Every Yoruba man or woman is expected to be noble by birth and is expected to behave as such.What has that got to do with politics Everything. There should be decency in everything we do, including politics. There should be honesty, moderation and tolerance in politics. People can and should behave as gentlemen in politics. For instance, people should be properly informed and allowed to reach correct decisions, including which party they want to join, which leader(s) they want to follow, who they want to vote for, how they want their party run, etc. All these they should be able to do without fear, hinderance or intimidation. Presently, what we have is a situation where people are being deceived or coerced by demagoguery, character assassination, finger pointing, name calling and, in some cases, outright force, into joining parties they may not be disposed to joining should they be properly informed, know the truth, or be absolutely free to choose. It is killing Yoruba politics and, by extension, Yorubaland, it is not allowing Yoruba politics and, by extension, Yorubaland, to attain its full potential.Since most of our tested and trusted leaders of yesteryears (I mean our Afenifere leaders) who used to inform and educate the majority of the Yoruba on the best way forward are now advanced in years, what we find these days are people mongering hate, bad mouthing and assassinating the characters of anyone who dares to differ with them or share a different political disposition or predilection. They are trying to brainwash and/ or coerce all Yoruba into one party, owned exclusively by them.In what is reminiscent of Macarthyism in the U.S.A (where anyone who disagreed with them was labeled a communist) and Nazism in Germany (where anyone who disagreed with Adolf Hitler was labeled a traitor) and eventually done away with, anyone who disagrees or falls out with them is labeled a thief, a corrupt person or a traitor etc to Yorubaland. It is hypocrisy and deceit of the highest order. It is about removing the speck in the opposing partys eyes whilst ignoring the beams in their eyes.It is, indeed, very sad that these Afenifere leaders who played politics of decency are those now being denigrated and demonised whilst those who are doing Yorubaland the most damage both as to value system and dictatorship are the ones hailed as our saviours. Those who believe politics is for making life more rosy and abundant for the greatest number are seen as fools and frustrated people, whilst those who believe politics is about cornering and keeping power by fair or foul means for purposes of amassing wealth are seen as the true geniuses. This is not the Omoluabi way; things just have to be put right before it is too late, before people stop being able to differentiate between what is right and what is wrong.Are you distinguishing between groups called progressives and conservatives here There are numerous examples I can give. You see, former President Olusegun Obasanjo is a Yoruba man, an elderly one at that, and whatever his shortcomings, we all owe him respect as an elderly man and someone who rose to the highest position in this country and in the process did some things which benefitted the Yoruba race, even if some of us believe they were not enough. When he said there was a need for the Yoruba to play mainstream politics, they took it totally out of context and twisted it into something else. What he meant was simple. We all know that for every high office in Nigeria, there are powers and advantages attached to the office holders constituency, which explains why all the regions fight for the presidency, the Senate President, the Speaker, ministers and other high political offices; otherwise, there would be no issue of zoning.So what is the way out for the Yoruba In line with the propaganda of some of our compatriots, anyone in the PDP is a conservative, but the day the same person crosses to the ACN, he becomes a progressive and a saint. That explains why the Dalhatus, the Tom Ikimis and co, whom we fought in the dark days of Abacha are now suddenly saints and progressives, whilst the Yemi Farounbis, the Gbenga Daniels, the Kofo Bucknor-Akereles, the Dayo Adeyeyes, the Niyi Owolades, the Segun Onis, the Segun Ojos, the Gbola Adetunjis, the Hakeem Gbajabiamilas, the Kole Omololus, all those at the forefront of the fight against military rule, are suddenly tagged conservatives. I thank Dr. Rahman Olusegun Mimiko, governor of Ondo state for daring to differ with them. They say he is now conservative and bad too, it is not right and it is not fair.You have not stated the way out for the Yoruba We need to start imparting knowledge, correcting dis-information and instilling the correct values (the Omoluabi values) in our politics.Apart from regular grassroot politicking, amongst our proposed methods of reaching the people is to organize lectures and seminars. We hope to work with respected Yoruba leaders, those who have championed the Yoruba cause faithfully with sincerity and fidelity. We shall be working with people of proven integrity. These are the authentic Afenifere . Because we believe our objective should be of interest to all Nigerians if we come across other groups from other regions who share our objectives we would be happy to collaborate with them. Incidentally the president Dr Goodluck Jonathan has been trying his best to inculcate politics of decency, tolerance and ideas, this is certainly in tandem with our objective, so it would appear quite a number of well meaning people feel this way, so we dont expect a shortage of well meaning people and support.
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