Engineer Segun Odegbami, the former Nigeria international spoke out of the experience garnered during his football days when he said that it was too early to say that the Yoruba have lost out after helping to enthrone the Muhammadu Buhari administration in Abuja.

“It is too early in the day to say the Yoruba have lost out. It is not a sprint event, it is a marathon and when you start a marathon, those who sprint out the first, usually are the people that get tired,” the engineer styled as the Mathematical Odegbami said penultimate Monday.

Odegbami, who scored 23 goals in 46 appearances for his country was part of a delegation of the Afenifere Renewal Group, ARG who paid a courtesy call on Vanguard.

The group led by the ARG secretary general, Mr. Ayo Afolabi also included the executive director of The Yoruba Academy, Dr Ade Adeagbo, Professor Anthony Onipede and the ARG programme officer, Mr. Segun Balogun all spoke in the same vein.

Members of the delegation gave the impression that they were not in any way perturbed by developments in Abuja following the difficulties of the region’s political ‘leader’, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu in positioning the leadership of the National Assembly.

But when pressed on whether the Yoruba was losing out, Odegbami sought to dribble himself out of the question by taking attention towards the other activities of the ARG, notably, the promotion of what he described as the Yoruba Agenda as encapsulated in the fitly framed Development Agenda for Western Nigeria, DAWN.
DAWN as the delegation’s leader, Afolabi said, was simply a catchphrase for regional integration, a programme aimed at integrating the development of the Western Region.
Giving vent on the issue, Afolabi said:

“The DAWN Commission is Development Agenda for Western Nigeria, DAWN. To the ordinary man on the streets, it is known as Regional Integration. The idea of regional integration was brought together by looking back at what our progenitors, fathers had done right from Awolowo and it is to see how we can move Western Nigeria forward. We are looking at it in terms of the economy, we are looking at in terms of trade, human development, infrastructure,” Afolabi said.

He was soon brought to task on how that idea could take hold with the dilution of the APC’s political hold in the Southwest, given the political idiosyncrasies of Governor Ayodele Fayose and lately, Governor Segun Mimiko in Ekiti and Ondo States. Ekiti and Ondo States are the two states in the region controlled by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

“I take you to when the Yoruba Agenda was launched in 2012 in Lagos. At that time, Olusegun Mimiko was the governor in Ondo State and Ondo State was adequately represented at that time. So, the developmental agenda is not essentially on political basis. It is based on the reality that the Yoruba will have to move forward in the terms of development in general.”

Asked if Governor Fayose was involved in the integration plans, Afolabi replied thus “Before he came into office, Ekiti was very much in it.” Pressed on whether Ekiti after the coming of Fayose had shown interest in the project he said:
“None of our states opted out.” He went on to allude to the inclusion of some other states with Yoruba cultural leaning.

“We have gone further to bring some other states that have predominant Yoruba populations come into it. Kwara is very much interested and the parameters are being worked out. I am aware that Governor Uduaghan before he left office was very much in it. Don’t forget that all these states were part of Western Nigeria and that is why we christened it Development Agenda for Western Nigeria. We didn’t limit it to what you now see as the new Southwest.”
Dr. Adeagbo in his contribution noted the salutary role of the Yoruba Academy in laying the intellectual framework for the Yoruba Agenda that is at the heart of the reintegration plans for the people of the Southwest.

“The Yoruba Academy was responsible for the intellectual work that gave birth to the agenda of that integration. What we are saying is that for the Yoruba person wherever you live within the Southwest, that you will be able to have the same standards, potentials and also, that the infrastructure available to you must be the same. What we have done within that context is to ensure that our thinking is above politics and not the party you belong to, but to make sure that every Yoruba state is developed.”

Professor Onipede on his part sought to expatiate how the Yoruba Agenda for development has cascaded to the benefit of the rest of Nigeria.

“Even though DAWN is our brain child, but you will recognise the fact that there are six geopolitical zones and that our bold efforts is like a primer, a template which other regions can look upon. And they have started looking up to it,” the professor said.

“Even though we are primarily focused on Western Nigeria, if Western Nigeria is well developed, it would be like adding to the commonwealth and other geopolitical zones would also bring themselves up irrespective of political affiliation and push for development. It is a way of bringing politicians to be accountable to the people.” Mr. Afolabi was to add to Prof. Onipede’s point when he referred to development initiatives from some other geopolitical zones which he claimed were instigated by what was seen in the Southwest.
“Beyond that, since we started it, there has been an initiative from the South-South known as the BRICS Commission and the North has also set up its own.

“When Chief Awolowo started up with setting up the WNTV, WNBS which was the first of its kind in Africa, no sooner did he set it up that the Eastern Region set up its own broadcasting house and the Northern Region also copied it. It is a way gingering every part of Nigeria to be able to move forward and aspire for development,” Afolabi said.
Eventually the discussion returned to the position of the Yoruba in contemporary Nigeria, and again, Odegbami was asked whether Asiwaju Tinubu who led the Yoruba in the formation of the present government had lost out.

“Asiwaju is a Yoruba man and he is the leader of the APC, at least in the Southwest. That does not equate to the agenda of the Yoruba, it is a very thin line, but you must create that distinction. For example, some of us are not members of the APC even though we are fully sympathetic to the cause of the APC because we have among us those who belong to other political movements.

“As I told you it is still too early, this is a game. I have found out that politics is a game where there are no scruples, where anything goes, it doesn’t follow rational thinking and calculations and some people master it more than the others. But one thing is clear, the Yoruba never set out to rule Nigeria or to control the Federal Government. We have always done well when we are making our contributions to our region first and that impacts on the rest of the nation.”