Oyo govt demolishes Onitiri-Abiola residence over Oduduwa Republic declaration
By KEMI KASUMU
The Oyo State Governor, Engr. Seyi Makinde, has ordered the demolition of the house of Mrs Dupe Onitiri-Abiola for declaring that Yoruba Land had become a sovereign nation.
The government moved against the wife of late MKO Abiola, winner of the June 12, 1993 election, after her declaration of Oduduwa Republic, which she made in a now viral video.
The demolition has demonstrated that attempt to hide under a finger of separatist activity to wreck violence on any part of Nigeria will never be tolerated.
It is a clear indication of the stiff resistance to expect from the Yoruba ruling class.
Agitation for secession is pronounced in the South East of Nigeria, while the Northern part of the country is riddled with armed groups with varying demands ranging from Boko Haram to banditry and armed insurgency without any clear ideological goal.
Authorities have also linked Onitiri-Abiola to the last Saturday 13th April 2024 invasion of the Oyo State Government Secretariat by some 21 young men of Yoruba Nation, who claimed they were agitating for a separate country for Yoruba people of the South West.
The men invaded the Secretariat in the early hours of the day wearing masks and martial fatigue. They were accosted by police and members of Amotekun Corps who later dislodged them while arresting 21 of them as three died amidst fight with state agents.
On Tuesday, a court in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital ordered that the 21 arrested members of the group be remanded in prison.
Onitiri-Abiola has been very vocal in her agitation for Oduduwa Republic.
She was said to have made her Oduduwaa Republic declaration at the particular house demolished by the Oyo State Government.
According to sources, her whereabouts were unknown as at the time of filing this report.
In a viral video, it was revealed that the house was pulled down following the discovery by security agents that the house was also being used as an armoury.
A media report gathered that she recorded the broadcast in therein and then left the house before sending it on social media.
A source, who spoke under the condition of anonymity, said the suspect, who had been on the run, was using one of the rooms downstairs to store weapons, camouflage uniforms, boots and other items.
Though, there was no one to confirm it, the state government has reportedly confiscated the building.
The source said: “When the demolition was ongoing, all neighbours around denying seeing her. But, some of them said she lives in that house.”
Security men and those who carried out the demolition order were seen hanging around the house.
A room where the broadcast was believed to have been made was turned upside down with all personal effects littering the floor.
