The Yoruba Leadership and Peace Initiative (TYLPI), a non-political, non-religious, socio-cultural group has cautioned to be mindful of how it handles the fall out from the #EndSARS protests.
It urged the government to refraining from measures such as the freezing of the bank accounts of identified leaders of the #EndSARS group and the imposition of travel bans on some of them in order to create a conducive atmosphere for meaningful and fruitful engagement.
The group spoke in a communique issued at the end of its expanded management committee meeting held recently in Ibadan.
In the communique signed by Mr. Olusegun K. Ahmadu and Arakunrin Olufemi Adefemiwa, President and General Secretary, respectively, the group expressed the view that the Government has under-performed in meeting its obligations to the people, resulting in the untold hardship being faced by Nigerians.
Below is the full text of the communique.
COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT THE END OF THE EXPANDED MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETING OF THE YORUBA LEADERSHIP AND PEACE INITIATIVE (TYLPI) HELD IN IBADAN ON THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2020.
1. The Yoruba Leadership and Peace Initiative (TYLPI), a non-political, non-religious, socio-cultural think tank committed to ensuring the building of a strong and self-sustained Yoruba nation in a just and equitable Federal Republic of Nigeria, held its expanded Management Committee meeting in the Conference Hall of Lead City University, Ibadan on Thursday, November 5, 2020.
2. The meeting reviewed the state of affairs in the nation and expressed the view that the Government has under-performed in meeting its obligations to the people, resulting in the untold hardship being faced by Nigerians and urged the Muhammadu Buhari Administration to brace up and fulfil the most important duty of government, which is to ensure the welfare and security of the people.
4. It expressed satisfaction that the social upheaval that attended to the recent #EndSARS protests by the youths has petered out but expressed regret that the protests exploded into violence which resulted in the avoidable deaths of Nigerians and the wholesale destruction of private and public property.
5. It noted that the main demands of the protesters were issues that concern the welfare of the generality of Nigerians and urged the government to take urgent and non-cosmetic steps to address them.
6. The meeting noted that government has expressed its willingness to enter into dialogue with the aggrieved youths and urged it to demonstrate good faith by refraining from measures such as the freezing of the bank accounts of identified leaders of the #EndSARS group and the imposition of travel bans on some of them so as to create a conducive atmosphere for meaningful and fruitful engagement.
7. The TYLPI Management Committee called on the youths to accept the government’s invitation to dialogue as well as refrain from inflammatory statements and other acts that may hinder successful engagement.
8. The meeting condemned the worsening security situation in the country, especially the unrelenting activities of Boko Haram terrorists in the North East, insurgency in the North West, the heinous activities of murderous Fulani gangs and the rising incidence of kidnapping and other violent crimes across the country, noting that apart from the threat to life and property, such activities pose a great disincentive to investment and development. It therefore called on the government to take necessary steps to restore law and order in the country.
9. The TYLPI Management Committee noted that appointments into strategic national agencies have, since 2015, been skewed in favour of persons from a particular section of the country to the detriment of others, no matter how qualified they are for such positions. Such lopsided appointments, it further noted, violate the letters and spirit of Chapter2, Section 3 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and urged the Federal Government to act swiftly to redress the situation in order to give all Nigerians a sense of belonging.
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10. The meeting expressed the commitment of TYLPI to the emergence of a strong, self-reliant, just and equitable Federal Republic of Nigeria and urged the Federal Government to facilitate the process by ensuring the devolution of powers to the federating units before the 2023 general elections. Such step, it emphasized, would enhance healthy competition among the units and create room for each of them to explore the areas of its comparative advantage to develop at its own pace.
11. The TYLPI Management Committee noted that the 2014 National Constitutional Conference made wide ranging recommendations that would effectively address many of the social, political and economic issues slowing down the nation’s development and called on the government to take practical steps to implement relevant sections of the report.
12. The Committee said the fallout from the general elections of 2015 and 2019 had underscored the urgent need for electoral reforms. It noted that the 8th National Assembly had passed the Electoral Bill which had sufficiently addressed such needs. It therefore called on both the National Assembly and the President to expedite action towards the enactment of the law before the 2023 general elections.
13. TYLPI Management Committee said it would continue to engage with like-minded individuals and groups in all parts of the country in the continuing search for lasting solutions to the nation’s problems.
14. The meeting agreed to adopt a credible and evidence based approach to pursue redress of the federal character principle violations and would follow processes available under the extant laws to seek such redress.
15. The meeting also advocated for a new Electoral Act based substantially on the Uwais Report to be birthed and to re-orientate heads of security agencies and strategic institutions involved in electoral process and furthermore to insist on the implementation of the 2 volumes of Mallam Nasir El- Rufai’s committee’s report on federalism set up by the ruling All Progressives Congress, which aligned with the 2014 confab report.
16. The meeting noted that reverting to the old 12 – state federal structure may not to be exactly ideal. Despite its imperfections, it was agreed that South West would still fare better with the region retaining at least 2 states – Lagos and the defunct Western, which should be encouraged to strengthen regional integration and cooperation to drive development. Strategically, TYLPI must engage with major sub national groups in Nigeria including the North, some of whose members of intelligentsia have spoken in favour of restructuring.
17. The meeting noted that, even the commerce, real estate industry and the economy of the region had been taken over by non-indigenes, due to mindless complacency and indolence of the original people. It resolved that they must be educated on what these developments entailed, how it affected them so they can consciously secure the fortune of the region and its legacies for posterity. TYLPI, in support of this, is to liaise with public and research institutions to turn their findings into policies for development in various sectors –social, economic, agriculture, technology, etc.
