It was
a roll call of who is who in Nigeria as the Oodua People’s Congress celebrated her
25 years of existence in Lagos today.
The
national coordinator and one of the living founder of the Yoruba movement, Iba
Gani Adams, the 15th Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland has described the organization
has the real mouthpiece of the Yoruba race whose struggle has paid off.
In
his words, he said, “The struggle was tough but today we are celebrating 25 eventful
years of keeping the voices of the Yorubas alive. We were nine great like minds that
formed the movement, five people are no more, only four are living including
me. This is an organization government has condemned severally with an order to
kill our members at sight. Within 3 days; about 270 members were lost in the
struggle.
“I
was once in detention for 17 months. Dr. Fasehun was imprisoned for five years.
We were involved in all these struggle for a better society. Today, we are glad
that God in His infinite mercy Has made us overcome all the impediment.
Going
forward, Gani Adams has said that with the level of things in the country, OPC
will metamorphose and become a political party that its members will rule Nigeria.
He said,
political authority is absolute, and with this, OPC as an organization may go
into partisan politics and right the wrong in the country. We need a platform
where our members, even our friends can aspire and become useful to the society
via electioneering.
People
from far and near were all in attendance as OPC celebrated its over 2 decades existence with awards for the living and those that have passed on.
Amongst
them are: Late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the late Moshood Abiola, MKO Abiola,
Gani Fawehinmi, Dr. Beko Ransome- Kuti, Pa Adekunle Ajasin, Abraham
Adesanya, Justice Adewale Thompson, Ambassador Segun Olusola, Chief Rasheed
Gbadamosi, Olumide Adeniji, Tony Ngrube, Prof. Sophie Oluwole, Ibraheem
Abobanawo, and the founding father and Spiritual leader of the Congress, the
late Dr. Fredrick Fasehun.
Other awardees were, Prof. Wole Soyinka, Barristers Femi Falana, Femi
Aborishade, Kehinde Oluwole, Gabriel Akinadewo, Dr. Joe Okei- Odumakin and
Yemisi Shylon among others.
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