Yoruba Is Glue Holding Nigeria Together — Olu Falae

Elder statesman, Chief Olu Falae, has said Yorubaland is the glue holding Nigeria together.

He said the Yoruba nation invested a lot to maintain peace in the country and, therefore, would not be talking of secession.

Falae, a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Minister of Finance, said this in an interview with Vanguard, noting that when insecurity or crisis displaced Nigerians, they usually found solace in the South-West.

He described Yorubaland as “the refugee camp of Nigeria… where everybody is accepted and looked after.”

He said, “We have invested, perhaps, more than most groups in Nigeria. To prove my point, if there is a crisis in the East today, where do people rush to? The South-West. If there is a crisis in the North, where will they run to? The South-West.

“This is the refugee camp of Nigeria. This is where everybody is welcome, accepted and looked after. That is the investment of peace we have been making from time immemorial.

“Yorubaland has been the glue that holds Nigeria. If the South-West says it wants to secede, the Middle-Belt will fight us because they see Yoruba as the cement that holds Nigeria.

“During the Civil War, when the Igbo went home, Governor Mobolaji Johnson looked after their property for them. Rents were in the banks. When they returned, their money was given to them to start life all over again.

“That is a fact. But the property they left in Port Harcourt was taken over by their neighbours. It took several years before some of them were returned to the owners.

“We have demonstrated that we are the most accommodating; we are the cementing culture in Nigeria. So, there is no way we can secede. This is our home.”

The statesman made the point while explaining that restructuring would solve many of the country’s problems, especially insecurity.

He said Amotekun was not a secessionist move, as the South-West would always be advocating a united Nigeria.