✔ Why I want Yoruba man to be president in 2023
✔ Nigeria must restructure to stop secession
By Dapo Akinrefon & Shina Abubakar
The Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdulrasheed Adewale Akanbi is an outspoken monarch who has been criticised for his position on many issues. In this interview he discusses issues ranging from politics, traditional institutions, secession and the 2023 general elections. Excerpts:
There have been agitations for secession and self-determination. IPOB in the South-East is calling for the Biafra Republic, while the South-West wants Oduduwa Republic. What is your take on these agitations?
My take is that there should be devolution of powers; the center has to be weak, and the states given more responsibilities. State Police should be allowed. With the Federal Government controlling the Police, the governors don’t have any power over the police in their states. I am also advocating for some constitutional power to be given to the traditional rulers, we need it. I am the first Chief Security Officer of this land, nobody knows this land more than I do. The Police Area Commander or the DPO here is posted from somewhere else, they are not from Iwo, how can he know Iwo more than me, I am the one who knows Iwo because it is my domain.
Some people are insisting on secession. Are you in support?
What makes Nigeria great and what makes this country to be singled out as the hope of the black race? I don’t know if you are aware that the black race globally looks forward to this country to provide leadership, how do we then break up? I believe that the way to make it better is to eradicate corruption. We need to enforce a lot more or maybe the leadership in the country should go the way of China. If you steal money in China, it is punishable by death. If the amount of money stolen in Nigeria is stolen in Britain, there won’t be Britain anymore, but this country is so strong. There is strength in our diversity and unity is our strength.
So, you are not in support of secession
No, how can I? There is strength in our diversity. What we should do is to find a way to make this country better. It is not to break it. We are called the giant of Africa. What makes Nigeria the giant? When they were calling Nigeria the giant of Africa, they were yet to discover oil, so what makes it giant? It is the population. This is the most populous black nation in the world. If you ask: those clamouring for this Oduduwa, are they united? Are your leaders and kings united? I started talking about this when I first came on the throne. I have said it severally that we have problems with the traditional rulers in the South West. We are not united; we don’t even have the Yoruba Council of Obas.
We are agitating without leadership, it is like the #EndSARS protest which lacked leadership and was hijacked by hoodlums. So, are we going to become a leaderless nation? That’s anarchy. It is like saying there should be no king in Iwo. When there was no king in Iwo for 10 years, we know what it robbed Iwo of. Iwo went backward more than 80 years because of 10 years of interregnum.
You have to go back to history. I know that not all the Igbo people will be…
