Yoruba Assembly, a coalition of diverse Yoruba socio-political and cultural groups, has warned of grave consequences should there be any attempt to stage a military coup in Nigeria.
The group said such an action would destabilise the country, erode democratic gains and plunge the nation into turmoil.
The warning was issued in a communiqué released after the group’s conference on the State of the Nation, held in Lagos and attended by over 1,000 delegates from across Yoruba-speaking states, including representatives from the Yoruba diaspora and other ethnic nationalities like the Itsekiri.
The Chairman, Olawale Oshun, who read the assembly’s statement, said the group was disturbed by reports suggesting the possibility of anti-democratic conspiracies in the country.
He cautioned against any attempt to truncate Nigeria’s democratic process, noting such an act would have “unprecedented and irreversible consequences.”
Oshun, Chief Whip of the House of Representatives during the aborted Third Republic, said: “We warn military adventurists to stay away from politics. Any attempt to truncate democracy at this moment will end up creating unprecedented violence and instability.”
The assembly expressed concern about intelligence reports alleging planned attacks by the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) on parts of Ondo, Ekiti, Kwara and Osun states, warning that Yoruba communities must begin to organise themselves for self-defence.
“Our people cannot remain silent witnesses to the invasion of our homeland. The Yoruba must unite to resist any attempt to subjugate or destroy our heritage,” the group said.
The assembly condemned the recent spate of killings in Kwara, Kogi states and Itsekiri land, describing attacks on Yoruba people anywhere in Nigeria as “an attack on all Yoruba.”
It called on the Federal Government to protect Itsekiri communities in Delta State and Yoruba populations in Kogi and Kwara states, warning that ‘’the continued neglect of these vulnerable areas can lead to unrest.
