By YEMI AKINTOMIDE
Life is full of surprises and wonders which make it oftentimes, justify the popular saying that “what goes around, comes around”. This line of thinking has continued to hit the deepest bottom of my mind since the sudden and strange risen to stardom of the self acclaimed freedom fighter, false activist and rights agitator, Oloye Sunday Adeniyi Adeyemo (Sunday Igboho).
I always smile loud, wide and wild, anytime I read about the over hyped and fraudulently rated activities of Sunday Igboho in Yorubaland since January this year, when like a flash, Igboho jumped from a Fulani/herdsmen chaser to a leading Yoruba Nation self determination agitator within a space of six months.
It’s also baffled me how many of our presumed leaders and vibrant youths of Yoruba extraction, blindly and senselessly followed the crude and criminality actions of Igboho and his cruel gang under the pretense of fighting the cause of freedom for Yoruba Nation.
What an irony! Did it ever crossed our minds as Yoruba sons and daughters, that how could an illeterate, uncultured, uncouth and war monger, who stood as mercinary that fight against the source and cradle of Yorubaland, Ile-Ife during an internal crisis with neighbouring Modakeke in 1997: now miraculously turned an agitator for Yoruba Nation? If not that Oduduwa, our progenitor, stood by Ile-Ife; on what basis, or pedestrian will Yoruba Nation stands today?
Let me briefly take you into the background of Sunday Igboho for those yet to know and do a background check on him before blindfoldedly picked him as their new found hero: Sunday Adeniyi Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho was born 10th of October 1972 at Igboho in Oke-ogun area of Oyo State.
His father relocated to Modakeke in Osun state, where Sunday grew up to become a motorcycle repairer. He later moved back to his town of birth in Igangan where he engaged in smuggling activities, bringing cars and other prohibited goods illegally from neighbouring Cotonou town in Republic of Benin. His gang was so notorious in gangsterism, thuggery and other criminal activities in Igangan, Ibarapa, Lanlate, Eruwa and other towns and villages in Oke-ogun area of Oyo State, so much that he became a sought after kingspin and political hired thug for any political party and it politicians that are seeking votes within that axis.
His popularity rose rapidly within the Yoruba speaking people of Southwest, Nigeria after the treacherous role he played in the Modakeke/Ife communal crisis between 1997 and 1998, where he fought as a mercinary on the side of Modakeke people against the Cradle of Yorubaland. After the Modakeke/Ife crisis, Igboho relocated to Ibadan to continue his smuggling/thuggry business, and made money out of almost every Governor elected in Oyo State since 1999, including late Lam Adesina and former Governor, Rasheed Ladoja whom he became one of his most trusted aides. He equally ‘help’ the current Governor, Seyi Makinde during the later struggle for Agodi revered office in 2019 before the relationship went sour.
Igboho inward to national recongation through the traditional/social media was noticable in January 2021, when he gave an ultimatum to Fulani herdsmen in Ibarapa to vacate the land after the killing of his childhood friend and farmer, Dr. Fatai Aborode in Igangan town.
The believe that Igboho has metaphysical abilities after he forcefully drove away the Seriki Fulani of Igangan out of town was the highpoint of his new trade of activism where he gained thousands of new followers. He then vowed to storm more towns and villages in Ogun and other states in the Southwest in the pursue of the killer Fulani/herdsmen.
And because of the lackadaisical actitude of both the Oyo State Government and the President Mohammadu Bihari led Federal Government towards tracking kidnapping, banditry, killing, farmers/herders clashes; Igboho and his gang warm themselves into the minds of the ordinary people who are despirately looking for quick way out of the killing sprees.
Frankly speaking, not until January 15, 2021, Sunday Igboho was relatively an unknown personality outside the Southwest region. It was when Igboho and his supporters took the battle to end the herdsmen crisis on their idle shoulders by storming the Fulani communities in both Oyo and Ogun States, serving eviction notice to herdsmen in the South-west as the way forward to end insecurity rocking the region. Thereafter, Igboho popularity spread like harmattan fire across Nigeria boarders.
Now, my worry is that at what point and time did the Fulani chaser and his gang turned to chief promoter of the Yoruba Nation and self determination agitators? This gang of practically unknown individuals just woke up one day, holding series of rallies in some southwest states, including Ibadan, Osogbo and Akure without any known format, direction, and quality personalities and respected leadership.
Till the time of putting down this peice, it has continued to baffle me how Igboho and his cohorts swiftly changed the narrative from campaign against killer Fulani herdsmen to Yoruba Nation agitation! The sharp turnaround remains a mystery.
That was the major reason why further rally, especially in a sensitive city like Lagos must be stopped. The security operatives jacked into action by raiding the Ibadan home of Igboho few hours to the commencement of the Lagos rally, thereby weaking the tempo of the proposed rally on Monday 1st of July, 2021.
The large crowd of miscreants and street urchins that greeted couples of the Igboho led rallies and the over hyped and over blouted media attentions and attractions must have gotten into Igboho’s head as he continued to abuse and blast Yoruba traditional rulers, elder statesmen, opinion moulders, political leaders, respected clergymen and everyone who dare to challenge his modus operandi of confronting the Federal power.
In many unguided and poorly shot videos, Igboho had always lambasted and placed curses on those against the Yourba Nation struggle. He accused Governor Seyi Makide of backing herdsmen, recalling how Makinde relied on him to win votes in 2019. His words; “You can bring all Fulanis to Yorubaland, if you like, you unfortunate ones. It will not be well with you. You are threatening me in my fatherland with Fulanis. You will not prosper. Is it the Fulani’s that make the laws of the land? Have you forgotten when you were ‘bankrolling’ me you wanted to become Governor and all I did for you all during the elections, and now you dare threaten me?”
Igboho, in another forum, while speaking at a meeting with the Yoruba in Diaspora in February, called the trio of Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, (Ojaja III) Governor Seyi Makinde; and Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdulrasheed Akanbi, “Fulani slaves.” Tell me, who won’t be ashamed of this vagabound and son of nobody, parading himself as leader and frontliner in the struggle for emancipation and actualisation of self rule by a group made up of intellectuals, educated, well cultured in traditional norms and values such as our Yoruba Nation. Only the gullible ones will continue to follow Igboho’s crude and wicked way.
According to Ajadi, one of Igboho’s kinsmen from Oke-Ogun and former governorship candidate in the 2019 Election in the State: “Sunday Igboho is just an example of lost values. Igboho cannot tell the Yorubas how to move in Nigeria when I love this country so much. How can Sunday Igboho tell us we should destroy Nigeria and become the Yoruba nation, for what? When some of us are working so hard to ensure that the unity of Nigeria stands. I don’t have any other nation. Why would Igboho want to destroy the nation? He (Igboho) said the Fulanis should vacate Igangan. After his one-man show there, they came back on a counterattack. He was not there to defend them when scores of people were killed on reprisal. That is not common sense. Why does he want to fight, that means he is stupid. He incites the war and he is not prepared for the war. His children and wives are not in Nigeria”
Can you now see the sense in Ajadi’s submission? How could a man, a supposed leader for that matter, exposed his people to such a naked attacks as he did in Igangan: on a one-man, one-day show, which has since turned to a dangerous nightmare with every day attack on Igangan without their ‘super warlord’ to protect them again. I think the cogent question a reasonable Yoruba man should ask Igboho about is this, why starting a fighter you won’t wait to win and accomplish?
Like the fate that befalls the leader of Indegeous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnmadi Kanu, no government will stands akmbo watching some disgruntled elements inciting and beating drums of war in a multi-ethinicity and diversity country such as Nigeria, not after witnessed a full fledged civil war between 1967 and 1970. Many people, especially Igboho supporters, will quickly ask what has he done wrong that necessitated his manhunt by the Federal security operatives? Then, I ask, how do you discribe an individual who goes about in the name of fighting to end the terror of killer herdsmen in Yorubaland, to agitating for separation of Yoruba Nation from Nigeria, undermining the government by publicly announcing that Yoruba Nation is no longer part of Nigeria?
Can you imagine such grivious offense against his father land, but a crowd of nuisances, under the leadership of a pseudo- activist cum agitator will continue to deceive the people that Igboho has done no wrong to warrant his prosecution by the Government of Nigeria simply because he is purportedly fighting for his people freedom from Fulani colonisation.
But, I believe that every supporter of Igboho’s no case submission must have answers to all these allegations leved against him by the Federal Government that: 1.He made the secessionist declaration and organised rallies.
2. Engagement in violent activities by arrogating the powers of a law enforcement agency to himself.
3. Establishment of a militia group that caused the death of some innocent citizens. 4. Gun running as discovered by the DSS in his house.
5. Both the Nigeria Police Force and the DSS have declared him wanted in respect of some criminal allegations.
6. Refusal to obey summons by Nigeria’s law enforcement agencies only for him to escape to the Benin Republic to hide.
7. Igboho’s activities are inimical to the mandate of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF).
The most laughable aspect of Igboho current ordeal was the very stupid move he took to escape to Germany by bolting away from Nigeria to neighbouring Cotonou, Benin republic riding on okada with Ropo, his wife, through a self discovered foot paths inside the tick forest. I was not surprise because as notorious smuggler, he was familiar with all illegal routes on that axis for a very long time. What an hero on the run, abandoning his conquered kingdom.
His disciples would see nothing wrong in his action or inaction because it was meant to be a ‘see no evil, say no evil battle’; thereby, a massive campaign of mischievous theory about his escape was launched on social media platforms after he was arrested at Cotonou airport, alongside the wife on their way to Germany. Again, the question is why such a fraudulent media propaganda to justify or right a wrong step? Even when the athentic news came in from Cotonou that he has been arrested and thrown into police detention in the neighboring town, his unrepentant supporters are still spreading fake news that he has already landed safely in Germany, given details and gravic discriptions of how he escaped to Germany with his wife. What a set of fake activists/ agitators!
And when he effectually landed in the court, another story of no case, no extradition rented the airwaves. We were made to believe that, quoting all the treaties and laws in this world, Igboho can’t be extradited to Nigeria as the Government of Benin is ready to give him asylum, and he will be living happily in the country, thereafter. What a gullible group of people!. What a fraudulent way and manner to pursue a cause!! What a crude, novice and uncouth activist/agitator!!!
Yesterday was Monday, 26 July 2021, the day the Cotonou court was set aside to free the freedom fighter to go and sin no more, as Igboho supporters made us to believe; but to our surprise, the court sent him to jail faraway from the police detention he was since the July 19 that he was arrested at the airport.
This was his lead counsel reaction to the court verdict on the BBC News;
“I was shocked when Sunday Igboho was sent to Benin Prison yesterday. When we started this case last week, the Prosecutor told us it was Nigerian Government he had a case with but yesterday, we realised that the Nigerian Government don’t even file ANY CASE against Igboho. The case he has, as the Judges told us, is with the Benin Republic Government.
The Government of Benin Republic said Igboho entered their country improperly with the aim of committing heinous crime against the country, he was asked to mention those who accommodated him and drove him to the Airport but Igboho said he ran for his life in Nigeria and he didn’t commit any crime. The Judges weren’t convinced, he said Igboho should be transferred to Prision until all those involved in his activities in Benin Republic are apprehended. Investigation is still ongoing.”
Let me stop here for now with these words in Yoruba language so that many Igboho disciples can understand; “kerekere, Oosa ma un w’ewon Kutonu lo re ke. Ewe ti sunko, o bo pooo,
YEMI AKINTOMIDE, a Journalist, wrote from Ireakari Estate, Orita-Obele, Akure.
E-mail: yemiakintomide02@gmail.com