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SUNDAY VANGUARD, APRIL 4, 2021, PAGE 35
THE ODUMAKIN PASSAGE
Nigeria mourns Afenifere spokesman
Continued from page 34
outspoken defender of whatever ideals
and principles he believed in and a patriotic
citizen in every sense of the word.
Ever since his student days, Odumakin had
been fearless and unrelenting in speaking
up in promoting the cause of justice and
what he perceived as the best interest of the
citizens of Nigeria. He participated actively
at the forefront in the various students
and youth struggles against successive military
dictatorships in the 1980s and 1990s.
In the process, he was arrested, harassed
and even detained several times. Yet, he never
allowed himself to succumb to tyranny
or be pressured into submissive and pliant
silence.
“In the struggle against the annulment of
the June 12, 1993, presidential election and
the perpetuation of military dictatorship,
Odumakin was never found wanting. He
was at the vanguard of the battle even at
the risk of his life and liberty. It is impossible
to credibly tell the story of the emergence
of the democracy we enjoy in this dispensation
today without emblazoning
Odumakin’s name in gold. He was a doughty
fighter for freedom and the rule of law.
He was rock solid in his commitment to
Afenifere, the Yoruba people, and several
other civil society groups in which he played
active roles”.
He was a great warrior
—Fani Kayode
On his part, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode
said: “I am deeply saddened that we have
lost Comrade Yinka Odumakin, one of our
brightest and best.
“He was a great warrior who feared
nothing and who stood for truth and
justice right to the end.
“The South West and indeed Nigeria has
lost one of its greatest sons and brightest
stars.
May the Lord forgive him of all his sins,
May He honor him with a place in
Heaven and May his great and mighty
soul rest in peace. Adieu great warrior,
until we meet again”
Odumakin was a courageous
federalist —Ekweremadu
A former Deputy President of the Senate,
Senator Ike Ekweremadu, described
the death of Odumakin as a big loss, not
only to the Yoruba nation but also to the
entire country.
In a statement yesterday by his Media
Special Adviser, Uche Anichukwu, the
former Deputy President of the Senate
who condoled with the pan Yoruba group,
Afenifere, expressed shock over the development,
said Odumakin was a courageous
leader and federalist, who worked
tirelessly for a peaceful, equitable, and
prosperous Nigeria.
He said, “This is hard to believe and it is a
very grave loss to not only the Yoruba ethnic
nationality but also Nigeria as a whole.
“Yinka was a federalist, patriot, pan-Nigerian
and a courageous leader, who
longed for a peaceful, secure, equitable, and
prosperous Nigeria and worked hard and
tirelessly towards achieving it.”
Yinka died fighting for justice,
equity —Fayose
Former Ekiti State governor, Mr. Ayodele
Fayose, in a statement said the late Afenifere
chieftain lived a life of justice, fighting for
justice and equity for all.
According to Fayose, Odumakin would
be remembered for his undiluted love for
the Yoruba race and Nigerians in general.
Yinka should not have gone
at this time — Afenifere
Reacting to Odumakin’s death, Secretary
General of Afenifere, Basorun Sehinde Arogbofa,
said: “it’s a terrible blow. It is a terrible
blow to me as a person because we have
been so intimate.
“He has been my right-hand man in
Afenifere management. It is terrible.
Yinka should not have gone at this time.
It is a terrible blow to Afenifere and Nigeria.
“We have lost a brilliant chap with intelligence
and brilliant ideas. This is sad, very
sad.
“What a pity. I pity his wife, Joe.”
From left: Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Afenifere leader, Pa
Ayo Adebanjo, former Political Adviser to Obasanjo, Mr. Akin Osuntokun, and
another guest during the former president’s condolence visit to the Afenifere leader’s
house.
We lost a credible voice for
true federalism—Ibori
A former governor of Delta State, Chief
James Onanefe Ibori, expressed shock at
the death of Odumakin.
Ibori, in a statement signed by his spokesperson,
Mr. Tony Eluemunor, described
Odumakin as the kind of gadfly that any
nation would need.
He said though Odumakin was not
among his supporters, and their paths rarely
crossed, “yet, that did not blind me to the
fact that he was gradually becoming a credible
voice for true federalism and fiscal restructuring
which Nigeria needs badly. I
always wished him well. Now, I will miss
him very much. He remained an activist
till the bitter end.”
It’s a great loss to Nigeria,
Yoruba nation—YCE
Secretary of Yoruba Council of Elders,
YCE, Dr. Kunle Olajide, described Odumakin’s
death as a loss to Nigeria and the
Yoruba.
In a telephone conversation with Sunday
Vanguard he said Odumakin was a
committed Nigerian, a true patriot, and energetic
fighter for justice, equity and fairness
in Nigeria.
Olajide said:” Odumakin loved this country
almost to fault. He was very dedicated
and richly endowed with great intellect,
enormous energy, courage boldness and respect.
He deployed all these for the good of
the country, Yoruba nation and his family.”
.We lost him when he was
needed most — Arewa Youths
On its part, National President, Arewa
Youth Consultative Forum, Yerima Shetimma,
while mourning Odumakin, said Nigeria
has lost one of its best.
Shetimma said: “It is a great loss. Yinka
was one of our finest. In the Arewa community,
we have lost one of our best. He was a
shining and leading light in our struggle. It
is a loss to the family and the country. We
lost Yinka at a time we needed him most. I
am still in shock.”
I’ve lost a friend—Osuntokun
Also mourning, former Political Adviser
to ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, Mr.
Akin Osuntokun, said he has lost a friend.
Osuntokun said: “I have lost a friend. The
vacuum he has left behind, may God help
us to fill. God knows best.”
Yoruba have lost a
good fighter —ARG
On his part, National Chairman of
Afenifere Renewal Group, ARG, Mr. Wale
Oshun, described the late Odumakin as a
good fighter.
Oshun, who spoke to Sunday Vanguard
said:”He was a great Yoruba man, a great
fighter for justice and for the Yoruba nation.
For me, I have lost a friend in the struggle
for equity for the Yoruba. He really believed
in devoting his time and energy to
equity and justice in the interest of the Yoruba
man.”
We’ll miss his bravery
— Gani Adams
Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba
Gani Adams, described the death of Odumakin
as one death too many.
Aare Adams, however, said Odumakin’s
death had dealt the Yoruba nation a big
blow, leaving in its wake, sad memories.
Adams, in a statement by his Special Assistant
on Media, Kehinde Aderemi, described
the late Odumakin as a true Yoruba
son, a committed fellow, and the voice
of the people, especially the downtrodden.
The statement reads:”We’ll all miss his
voice. We’ll miss his commitment, we’ll miss
is bravery because the late Yinka Odumakin’s
fearless image loomed larger than
what we can easily forget in a hurry. He
was a phenomenon that spoke truth to power.”
He was a defender
of Yoruba —Oke
Also, a former Secretary of Afeniferè in
Kwara State,Chief Wole Oke, said:”The
death of Yinka Odumakin is very shocking
and most unfortunate. The mystery
of life is that death will come at God’s appointed
time and take people
away.Yoruba nation has lost a true and
genuine defender of her cause.”
S-West states, CSOs should
imortalise him — HURIWA
Human Rights Writers Association of
Nigeria, HURIWA, likened the death of to
a political earthquake.
In a condolence statement signed by its
Executive Director, Emmanuel Onwubiko,
HURIWA called on governors of the South-
West states and civil society organizations
to immortalize the famous activist as a way
of keeping his legacies intact for generation
yet unborn.
His words:”The death of Mr. YINKA
Odumakin, one of the fiercest nationalists
and federalists, who campaigned vigorously
for the enthronement of social justice,
transparency, equity, equality of rights and
respect to the principles of the rule of law is
very sad and tragic. That this is happening
at a time of the worst kind of dictatorship
and the rise of tyranny that has no conscience
or feelings for the well being and
welfare of the nation state and her citizens,
makes his death even more very
sad. The tribe of the outspoken patriots in
Nigeria has shrunk with his passage.”
Odumakin lived for
Nigeria —PDP
The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, also
described the death of Odumakin as a huge
loss to the nation.
In a statement signed by its spokesman,
Kola Ologbondiyan, the party said Odumakin
was consistently focused in fighting
for a nation in which the principles of equity,
fairness and justice thrive.
“He dedicated his life as a journalist, human
right activist and social crusader for
improvement in every phase of the live in
our country.”
Southern, Middle Belt
Leaders, PANDEF mourn
Elder statesmen from four of the six geopolitical
zones in the country, under the aegis
of Southern and Middle Belt Leaders
Forum and the Pan Niger Delta Forum,
PANDEF have described the death of
Odumakin as a heavy loss.
A statement signed by the leaders of the
Middle- Belt, Ohaneaze, Pan Niger Delta
Forum, PANDEF, South-South and
Afenifere, the groups described late Odumakin
as its backbone who worked tirelessly
for the group.
Crusader for better Nigeria goes down fighting
By Clifford Ndujihe, Politics Editor
NIGERIA lost one of her best lovers,
Mr Yinka Odumakin, yesterday.
By written and spoken word, Odumakin,
a rugged pro-democracy activist, who
died at 59, fought until his last breathe for
a Nigeria that works for all Nigerians.
One way of doing this, he argued repeatedly,
is to restructure the country, devolve
power to the federating units and enthrone
fiscal federalism.
For close to 30 years, the Obafemi
Awolowo University, Ile-Ife Political Science
graduate was in the trenches with a
host of other pro-democracy and human
rights activists battling to save Nigeria,
first from the murderous clutches of military
rule, and later, to deepen and entrench
democracy.
He teamed up with the Campaign for
Democracy, CD, led by the late Dr. Beko
Ransome-Kuti, in the 1990s to fight the
military to a standstill, leading to the return
of democratic rule on May 29, 1999.
Odumakin, alongside his wife, Dr. Joe
Okei-Odumakin, was one of the founders
of the June 12 Stakeholders, which morphed
to the June 12 Pro-democracy Movement
that fought for the revalidation of
the June 12, 1993 presidential mandate
of late Chief MKO Abiola, which was annulled
by the military regime of General
Ibrahim Babangida.
Military rule out of the way, Odumakin
continued his crusade for a just and equitable
Nigeria.
He succeeded Chief Ayo Opadokun as
the national publicity secretary of the Pan-
Yoruba Socio-Political and Economic organisation,
Afenifere. He was a member
of the 2014 national conference that made
no fewer than 683 recommendations to
save Nigeria.
The refusal of the President Muhammad
Buhari’s Administration to implement the
confab recommendations elicited sharp
criticisms from the deceased activist.
Indeed, Odumakin was one of the fiercest
members of the pro democracy movement.
He was always writing and granting
press interviews on burning national
issues.
Odumakin maintained a regular weekly
column, ‘Candid Notes’ in Vanguard
Newspapers and worked until he became
very ill on March 10, 2021.
His last article, ‘Decoding the no flight
zone’ was published on March 9, 2021.
In his column published on January 26,
2021, Odumakin warned that the country
might become like many big countries
that disintegrated, if not restructured.
Titled: ‘The last days of Nigeria?’, Odumakin
said: “It’s only those who are too
daft to read societies on anomic drifts that
would not be able to decode that Nigeria
as presently constituted is nearing its last
days, the way Yugoslavia, USSR and other
once-upon-a-time countries exhausted
their possibilities and became history.
“If Nigeria fails to restructure as has
been strongly canvassed and goes under
in the alternative, President Muhahamadu
Buhari may have the unenviable
record of presiding over the liquidation
of the country in its years of ‘change.’
“We pray the words of General Yakubu
Gowon in 2011 at the peak of ‘monkeys
and baboons being soaked in blood’ by
supporters of Mr. President are not fulfilled
in the season of madness being foisted
over Nigeria at a frenetic speed.”
In his second to the last article, ‘Republic
of Bandits’ published on March 2,
2021, he said: “How fast a country can
degenerate into a failed republic is presently
playing out in a Nigeria that is tottering
towards the edge, unhinged in the
hands of leaders willing to do this without
remorse. The same people who were
promoting change six years ago and their
counterparts under the umbrella, including
their soulmates who were pretending
to belong to the clergy are all out now
with their daggers drawn to murder the
country as fast as they could and unless
the enlightened world rises in its self-interest.
But it might be too late to save Nigeria
from one of the worst cataclysms
that the world would have witnessed in
recent times.”
With his expiration, Nigeria has lost one
of those fighting for her survival. It is to
be seen if Odumakin’s labours would be
in vain or bear fruits.