Isokan Yoruba Magazine, Fall
1996/Winter 1997 , Volume III No. I, Page 40.
Isokan Un-Plug, By Kayode
Adenaiya
Amidst the cry and the popular knowledge of
subjugation by the Northern Oligarchy in Nigeria, my people
(Yoruba) resist every opportunity made possible by some noble
individuals to bring us together and address how to liberate our
people from bondage. Every effort is being undermined by the
self- righteous individuals amongst us who think that instead of
working with people that bring forth great ideas, they would
rather see the idea killed because they did not initiate the
idea, and more so, they are too timid to be honorable and humble
enough to serve under a leadership other than themselves.
I will want to believe that all the demagoguery against Egbe Isokan Yoruba by its detractors is not really because of ideological differences; neither is it due to the fact that they don't like the objectives of Egbe Isokan. It develops from self-serving cronyism for representatives of the junta in Nigeria. I have listened to people alleging Isokan of the following:
Acting in bad faith on behalf of the Yoruba people.
Arrogating to itself the title of Yoruba spokesgroup.
Members are a bunch of idol worshippers.
Engaging in political mongering that is not tough enough to address the political quagmire the Yoruba find themselves in.
Members are an arrogant bunch of self-serving professionals.
Isokan is out to dominate other sub-ethnic groups.
Isokan is trying to break up Nigeria.
To those that accuse Isokan of acting in
bad faith, what have they in any capacity done to act in good
faith on behalf of the Yoruba people lately, except to cause
rancor and bad blood among our people.
Isokan by every definition is a pan-Yoruba organization, and if Isokan can not speak on behalf of the Yoruba I wonder which organization should assume such responsibility.
Members are proud to be Yoruba, and of Yoruba
culture, religion, and traditions. If some people find their
heritage in Islam or Christianity, I don't think Isokan
has problem with them. I wonder why they are having problems with
Isokan. Note that Isokan has Christians and Muslim
members. (Esin kan ko ni, ki awa ma se oro ile wa o).
Those accusing Isokan of political
mongering should check their heads. There is no better time for
any noble and highly respected Yoruba son or daughter to be a
politician than the present time because those we counted on sold
their soul, betrayed their people, and pushed us into the present
political quagmire. Therefore, any Yoruba son or daughter who
thinks he or she has a leadership quality should proceed and not
allow himself or herself to be discouraged by hypocrites, who are
trying to secure political favors by discouraging good and able
leaders from competing, because they are not credible and
confident enough to compete legitimately with good and qualified
personalities.
Isokan is made up of well refined and
high caliber men and women with impeccable resume and rich
experience. They have shown how good and able they are by the
kind of self-less service they offer to the association to date
and to Yoruba people at large. I will appeal to people with
sincere and honest motives to come and work with these men and
women. They are not the ones to be wary of; it is their
detractors. Good people should come and be a part of a
progressive team bonded by the love for their people. Prosperity,
liberty and freedom are our legacy. We should be the harbingers
of great positive change for Yorubaland and a truly federal
Nigeria.
I would have discarded the litany of
allegations against Isokan as the vivid imagination of a
lazy mind until I realized that it is more than just an irate
statement of some lunatics. This is a systematic campaign against
a group of well meaning, noble and honorable individuals. Several
events took place during the summer which were a fulfillment of
the article #2 objectives #1-6 of the Egbe Isokan
Constitution. In achieving some of these objectives, an Isokan
Yoruba Presidential Advisory Board (IYPAB) was formed to
facilitate working with other groups that were wary of
"domination" by Isokan. The IYPAB mode of operation is
supposed to be a loose relationship between groups to alleviate
the fear of any group domination. Hence, Yoruba Picnic Committee
was activated and the picnic event was held. Thank God, we were
able to pull through without any major set back. This is to say
that some committee members were smart enough to allow
tranquillity while some were there to kill ideas and ensure that Isokan
never had the light of day. Inspite of all treacherous acts and
performances, the picnic was held. It shows what we can do if we
come in good faith to serve our people.
The latest effort by disgruntled elements against Isokan is the formation of another association, "to take care of Yoruba problems." This shows the hypocrisy of this people, what is the Yoruba problem they want to solve? As we may note, this new organization in the making has been invited by the new Nigerian ambassador to "work" with them and address "Yoruba problems". This is a wing of the government that can not work with Yoruba people at home. Obviously the arrangement is clear, they will be paid to cause rancor and disunity amidst their own kin, they tap dance when the Nigeria Embassy chews their feet: they pretend to be leaders when they are just errand boys of the caliphate master. I can now see the effort by the detractors to pull capable leaders to their own level of shame and dishonor.
My greatest disappointment in the picnic committee of which I was a member was that the picnic event was able to bring together the largest group of Yoruba people ever in the metropolitan Washington are and we failed to awaken the consciousness of the Yoruba community to the plight of folks back home. I will like to mention that this is not an oversight, but a deliberate omission on the part of chairman of the committee who "single handedly" deleted, and considered such a call to the Yoruba people as least required. Efforts made by people who wrote to appeal to the consciousness of our people were deemed as political mongering and dumped in the trash. The campaign at Isokan had always been the inclusion of the grassroots in the decision making of our body politics. We don't want our faith in the hands of some hypocrites that subscribe to deceit, and self aggrandizement. The people with such character lead us into the predicament the Yoruba find themselves today.
In lieu of the circumstances and political
quagmire we find ourselves in as Yoruba, I think it's high-time
for Isokan to un-plug itself from unworthy individuals and
acquaintances that will divert Isokan's energy and
attention from its focus. Isokan does not claim to have
the ultimate solution to Yoruba problems but Isokan offers
a forum for people with nobility of mind, love of their heritage,
and concern for the plight of their people back home, to come and
brainstorm over these issues and come up with probable solutions.
The objectives of the association are sound and well-meaning to
every Yoruba and even to all Nigerians at large because the only
thing Isokan requests for the Nigerian Federation is
fairness, justice, and equal opportunity for all.
I am sure and positive that Isokan still
has its door wide open to well meaning Yoruba that are ready to
join hands in addressing the quagmire that faces our people at
home. If you know you are worthy of Isokan, you will never be
found worthless, be sure to find your self on the positive side
of history when it is written, don't be caught in the same web of
history as one of Yoruba's controversial icons (Afonja) who was
too proud and self serving to request the assistance of his
kinsmen against an invading jihad army from the north hence
losing his enclave (Ilorin) to the Dan Fodios.
Kayode Adenaiya is an Enginner and serves as
the Financial Secretary of Egbe Isokan Yoruba.
For More Information Contact:
Egbe Isokan Yoruba
P.O. Box 90832, Washington, DC 20090
Tel: (202) 270-6382
FAX: (301) 499-5386
Internet: isokan@yoruba.org