YAKASSAI AND THE YORUBA AGENDA

Former parliamentary secretary to the former President, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, Tanko Yakassai some hours ago unashamedly stated that Restructuring is a Yoruba agenda. Restructuring in this context says nothing about secession. It basically identifies federating units and compels leveraged resource control which is actually what is called true federalism. To call this a Yoruba agenda could not have been caused by any other thing than Mouth Diarrhea.

South west economically does not control Nigeria, has minimal oil and is not the biggest region neither is it the wealthiest. Where then is the Yoruba agenda?

Im always ashamed when I see elderstatemen who take their eyes of their own naturally endowed groundnuts, cotton, leather, spice etc to concentrate on resources naturally endowed to other people. How can someone far up the savannah keep his mind fully concentrated on other people’s things while his own is untapped due to laziness? Why cant people develop with What God gave them?

It is this same spirit of bias that makes the government decide that some states are educationally less priviledged states such that if a student from Abeokuta and Funtua scored 240 and 200 respectively in UTME where the pass mark is 242, the Funtua student is surer to gain admission into a Federal University than the Abeo boy. Why? He is from an educationally less privileged state. Were we not in this country in the Abacha days when a Minister for education stated that he does not understand the cause of the madrush of the south for education? It is only in this country that Merit is told to make way for  race and creed to rule.

It is this imbalance that led to the civil war. It is this same imbalance that makes a less qualified person to become a judge or permanent secretary. When he wants his kinsmen in control of resources, he calls it federal character. When others ask for resource control or simply restructuring, he calls it a Yoruba Agenda or a secession plan. How myopic? Please tell me. Why should the oil gotten from Bayelsa be used to develop Ibadan or Kano when Kano has decided to stop her groundnuts? Why were more states created for the North by the North-Led military of the 19

Tanko Yakassai

60s? These are truly the pains of the neglected in this country.

The government just started dualising in full swing Ughelli to Port Harcourt roads less than 10 years ago. These are the cities that produced all the petrodollars used for those smooth dualised northern roads. The owners of the oil do not get the gains yet Yakassai says restructuring is a Yoruba agenda. Sincerely I am very sorry for him. The question is will the north allow Nigeria to continue if Oloibiri, Escravos and Port Harcourt were located somewhere in Borno? This is food for thought!

The spirits of fairness, equality and natural justice are not likely happy with this country. They can never be happy with elder statesmen who have no respect for true federalism or a scientific reward system!