Nine ethnic associations accuse Lagos Police of promoting Igbo-Yoruba quarrel through a recent statement on Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB).
Lagos State Police Commissioner, Hakeem Odumosu, recently claimed that IPOB youths were planning to launch an attack on Lagos.
The pan-Yoruba groups in a statement described the claim as “dangerous” and capable of heightening ethnic tensions.”
“The police statement carries the possibility of being misinterpreted as an Igbo plot against Lagos and Yoruba people.
“This is dangerous given the fragile nature of Nigeria.
“We are deeply concerned that the Police … allegations tempts the prospect of setting Yoruba in the South West against Igbos.
“This is very unfortunate at a time that state institutions are increasingly being turned to instruments for pursuing primordial ethnic interests.
They urged Yorubas to “ignore the conscious attempts to cause ethnic conflict between Igbo and Yoruba at this time that both ethnic groups need each other.”
“The Yoruba will work never to allow this to happen,” the groups said.
They advised that if the police were sure of their information, they should discretely investigate and arrest offending IPOB members.
The groups also accused the Police of not playing fair whenever “terrorists and armed herdsmen of Fulani extraction” attacked Yorubas.
They restated that armed herdsmem are “openly attacking, kidnapping, raping and killing Yoruba people in the South West.”
“… at no time did the police call a press conference to announce such plan after before or after each horrendous killings.
“There was also never a time the police linked such attacks to any ethnic group,” the groups said.
The groups said their ultimate concern is to stop anyone from creating an ethnic conflict between Igbo and Yoruba people.
“This will benefit a certain group who think setting Igbo against Yoruba will meet the objective of scuttling the search for peaceful self determination by the two great civilisations.
“We urge the police not to allow themselves to be used … to divide the South and set the people against each other for its own narrow gains. The police should avoid ethnic profiling. It is dangerous.”
The Pan-Yoruba groups announced their collective desire “to sustain peaceful coexistence between Igbo and Yoruba and avoid any slide into ethnic conflict, an ill wind that blows no one any good.”
“To this end, we shall set up a Committee to work out a platform to sustain ethnic harmony in Lagos,” they said.
Those who signed the statement include Femi Ajibola (Oodua Nationalist Coalition), Kunle Oshodi, (Agbekoya), Taofik Adeyemi, (Oodua Peoples Congress).
Others are Diran Obalola (Oodua Liberation Movement, OLM), Femi Agbana (Yoruba World Congress), Rasaq Arogundade, (Oodua Peoples Congress, (OPC), Eunice Okunola (Oodua Women Coalition), Pastor Goke Otunla (Network for Yoruba Alliance) and Ahmed Korede (Apapo Oodua Koya).
Nine Pan-Yoruba ethnic associations accuse Lagos State Police Commissioner of promoting Igbo-Yoruba quarrel through a recent statement on Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB).
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