Yoruba nation activist, Sunday Adeyemo Igboho has berated Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration over alleged intimidation of British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Richard Montgomery due to his recent petition to the U.K prime minister on the actualization of Yoruba nation.
Sunday Igboho a few days ago alongside with some Yoruba nation activists issued a press statement on his submitting a 25-page petition to the Prime Minister of UK, Keir Starmer to demand the independence of Yoruba nation from Nigeria which the British colonized.
He said the Nigerian nation has failed, only beneficial to the northern region of the country at the expense of other regions.
Reacting to Igboho’s petition, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Richard Montgomery disagreed with Igboho on the British government having a role to play in the internal affair of the Nigerian nation. He said the British government remains a strong of Nigeria and that the UK government can not determine the disintegration of Nigeria.
However, Igboho in a statement released to the public on the 16th of October, alleges that the Federal Government of Nigeria intimidated Richard Montgomery over his petition to the U.K prime minister.
He said no amount of intimidation will deter him from his legitimate quest of seeking the actualization of Yoruba nation through a no-violent method.
He argued that the 1914 amalgamation of the southern and northern parts of the current Nigeria is more than a hundred years and that such a contract has expired.
“The amalgamation of Northern and Southern protectorate in 1914 was the making of British government. It is also important to let you know that constitutionally, we have the inalienable rights after 100 years of amalgamation to opt out of the marriage of inconvenience as a process for the realisation of Yoruba nation”.
According to Igboho, his petition to U.K prime minister is for the U.K to bear witness to his quest when the issue of the Yoruba nation independence comes up at the United Nations Organization (UNO).
“The major reason why we submitted the letter to the UK government was because we want them to be a witness before the United Nations whenever the issue regarding clamour for the Yoruba nation comes up before the international body”.
While Igboho champions the independence of the Yoruba nation comprising the southwest geopolitical zone of the Nigeria’s federation, similar demand is also being made in the southeast region of the country. The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) whose founder and leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is being held by the Nigeria secret police for over three years since his rendition in Kenya in 2022, also seeks the restoration of the defunct Biafra nation.