IBADAN — THE Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III, weekend accused the Federal Government of marginalising South-West states in the distribution and sharing of political power and resources.
Oba Adeyemi spoke during the closing ceremony of a week-long celebration of Oranyan festival, a progenitor of Yoruba in his palace.
The monarch said it was unacceptable the way the zone had been sidelined despite invaluable role it had played in social, political and cultural life of the country.
He said: “It would almost seem that the central government has decided to look away from Yorubaland in the allocation of resources and in political power sharing. This unfortunate situation of the Yoruba within the context of the Nigerian state is no doubt disturbing, bearing in mind the enormous resources available in Yoruba world view to build the Nigerian nation.
“In spite of our heroic contribution to the Nigerian nation, the Yoruba ethnic group is almost relegated to the background in the scheme of things in Nigeria.”
The celebration of Oranyan has been a ding-dong affair between Oyo town and the ancient Ile-Ife with the latter claiming to have exclusive rights to celebrate the deity.
At the commencement of the third anniversary of the festival, Oyo monarch argued that it would be unthinkable for Ile-Ife to be laying claims to Oranyan when the dynasty of the deity remained in Oyo, insisting that there was no other city in Yoruba race where they had “Alaafin.”
Oba Adeyemi, while addressing thousands of people and well-wishers said: “This gathering is a rallying point for enthusiasts of Yoruba history and culture. It is also to call attention to Yoruba contribution to civilisation as empire builders long before dawn of political sophistication in other parts of the world and to establish the relevance of Yoruba culture in promoting global peace, international understanding and harmony.”
Source: VANGUARD