President Goodluck Jonathan has a date with Southwest traditional rulers tomorrow.

Twenty-three obas are due to attend the meeting, an initiative of the President, at the Aso Rock Villa.

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuade, will lead the traditional rulers, sources said last night.

“The obas are going to Abuja at the invitation of the President. He has been reaching out to the traditional institution in Yorubaland for a while now. The meeting is as a result of his incessant rapport with the leadership of the obas in the region.

“He wants the obas to help him reach out to the political elite in the region ahead of the 2015 general election. On many occasions, his emissaries have told our traditional rulers of the President’s desire to have them on his side as he prepares to battle the opposition in 2015, especially in the Southwest which is an opposition stronghold.”

It was gathered that the Ooni personally handled the invitation of the obas for the meeting.

A few top obas had allegedly held several meeting with the President before now to discuss the viability of Jonathan’s 2015 presidential ambition especially as it concerns voters in the Southwest.

It was gathered that following extensive discussions, it was agreed that a larger contingent of traditional rulers from the region should meet with the president with a view to hearing from him directly on his aspiration and plan for the geo-political zone.

The idea is that the visit will avail them of information to pass on to their subjects on the return from Abuja.

Sources said: “It is no longer news that Jonathan wants to win the Southwest at all cost. This meeting is one of the ways he wants to penetrate the region and he intends to use the traditional rulers to achieve his desire.

“The number of traditional rulers invited by the organisers for the trip was in excess of the 23 that agreed to go to Abuja tomorrow. Many of the obas contacted declined to be part of the team.

“Many of the obas invited from Osun State turned down the invitation after considering their relationship with the governor of the state. One of the traditional rulers declined to be part of the trip. He will be on his way out of the country tomorrow as a decoy.”

It was also gathered that the organisers of the trip plan to explain it away as part of the effort to find an enduring solution to the current security challenges in the country.

An activist and leader of the Yoruba Renaissance Movement (YRM) Dr. Seeni Olaforiju, dismissed the planned meeting as a big disappointment.

His words:”There is no doubt that these traditional rulers are going to Abuja on their own accord. They surely do not have the mandate of their people to go and discuss politics with Jonathan.

“If they think they can help the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to penetrate the Southwest, then they are joking because they will fail. Yoruba are no fools and they know their leaders. Jonathan and the obas are just wasting their time.

“What has Jonathan done for the Southwest since he came on board? This is a man we supported when some forces wanted to prevent him from succeeding his late boss. What we got as a people is nothing but acute marginalisation, disregard and disrespect at the end of the day. Now he wants to use traditional rulers to hoodwink us.

“The fear of the merging political party is leading Jonathan to seek help where he will not find any. As much as we respect the traditional institution in Yorubaland, we also know how to say no to those who may want to lead us astray. The obas can go to Abuja and enter into whatever agreement they like, we will be waiting for them in 2015.”


http://thenationonlineng.net/new/news/2015-jonathan-in-secret-meeting-with-ooni-22-yoruba-obas-2/

GEJ thinks the SWesterners are the people he can buy with money or fake heroism (SE), or the people who will sing praises of leaders because they are ignorant of their rights and see him as son of the soil who can do no wrong (SS). He is deceiving himself for he can say whatever he likes to the Obas, the ordinary man will not vote for anyone based on some meeting he is having with any Oba.

So far the president performance is bad.

GEJ is stumbling ......

Epic fail
Their 'brother' @ Ado Ota better advise them well
Once upon a time,the Pharoahs held sway
Long after them,the Ceasar's did too
But all that is ancient history
Political j-Obas would be wise to learn from them

My candid advice to all traditional tittle holders is not to dabble into politics if they want their respect intact.

GEJ must be dreaming ...ooni whose relevance in the state has bn shattered. My hand on my cheek watchn.

lekzwyc: GEJ must be dreaming ...ooni whose relevance in the state has bn shattered. My hand on my cheek watchn.

Reminds of the saying "a drowning man will clutch at a straw".

Why are you shouting and running around just because of a proposed meeting between your traditional rulers and a sitting President? Can you guys get funnier?
I think you are doing your part of the country more harm than good. You are narrowing opinion horizon to your personal feelings and thought and extending it to be what every other person in that part of the country thinks. Only a foool in the present day Nigeria turns down such meeting. Nigeria runs a sharing system from the center and you are discouraging your people from being around where the wealth distribution decisions are taken? You can't get funnier!!

With this attitude, what becomes of you WHEN (not if) GEJ wins 2015 elections?

In nigeria, the traditional leaders represent their interests not the interest of their subjects.

I remember a news when the Osun state traditional leaders travelled to america searching for successor to gov. Oyinlola. The traditional leaders were disgraced by osun state indegenes they met when the indegenes asked them if the traditional leaders were part of PDP people.

1. The Awujale of Ijebuland
2. The Aalafin of Oyo
3. The Olubadan of Ibadan land
4. The Alake of Egbaland


The above Obas have integrity and will not dabble into this type of politics. You can\t buy them with petrodollars.

Too many clowns on Nairaland, what Jonathan is doing now is what we call 'political master-stroke' it's just a matter of time! After 2015 Presidential Elections results, you'll will come back to quote me that, I SAID IT! Everyman (including Kings etc) has a price that he can be bought Jonathan is indeed a smart man!

amAZEing: 1. The Awujale of Ijebuland
2. The Aalafin of Oyo
3. The Olubadan of Ibadan land
4. The Alake of Egbaland
The above Obas have integrity and will not dabble into this type of politics. You can\t buy them with petrodollars.

Really? may be when Olubadan is removed from ur list others are confirmed 'sell out' you better wake up and stop fooling urself! When real money is involved, hardly can you trust anyone

amAZEing: 1. The Awujale of Ijebuland
2. The Aalafin of Oyo
3. The Olubadan of Ibadan land
4. The Alake of Egbaland


The above Obas have integrity and will not dabble into this type of politics. You can\t buy them with petrodollars.

Olubadan was actually at the meeting

Frank-C:
Why are you shouting and running around just because of a proposed meeting between your traditional rulers and a sitting President? Can you guys get funnier?
I think you are doing your part of the country more harm than good. You are narrowing opinion horizon to your personal feelings and thought and extending it to be what every other person in that part of the country thinks. Only a foool in the present day Nigeria turns down such meeting. Nigeria runs a sharing system from the center and you are discouraging your people from being around where the wealth distribution decisions are taken? You can't get funnier!!

With this attitude, what becomes of you WHEN (not if) GEJ wins 2015 elections?

Lolzzzzzz....you guys even sound more sure of GEJ chances than the man himself...or else he won't bother running down to Lagos every weekend trying to placate those that can create stumbling block to his ambition.

amAZEing: 1. The Awujale of Ijebuland
2. The Aalafin of Oyo
3. The Olubadan of Ibadan land
4. The Alake of Egbaland


The above Obas have integrity and will not dabble into this type of politics. You can\t buy them with petrodollars.

please remove the alaafin from that your list.
His quarrel with the soun of ogbomosho because
of car gifts from alao akala is still fresh in our
mind.
I am also sure alake is going as well, he is very
close to the ooni.

Ooni? Is he still in existence Osun politics? But why is GEJ so much concerned abt 2015 when he has nothing to show so far?

Meritbaba: Ooni? Is he still in existence Osun politics? But why is GEJ so much concerned abt 2015 when he has nothing to show so far?

You meant "nothing to show" in your pocket?

emiye:
“He wants the obas to help him reach out to the political elite in the region ahead of the 2015 general election. On many occasions, his emissaries have told our traditional rulers of the President’s desire to have them on his side as he prepares to battle the opposition in 2015, especially in the Southwest which is an opposition stronghold.”

There's absolutely nothing wrong with the President invitation to traditional rulers, but there's everything wrong with the above deduction by the writer.

Traditional rulers from different regions in the country have at one time or the other, had meetings with the President at the villa, it has been the norm before the advent of the 4th republic..

If the news is anything to go by, most of the invited traditional rulers has been in the saddle before Jonathan Presidency, and for a journalist to sit down and assumed invitation of such high caliber of traditional rulers can only mean for political expediency vis-a-vis 2015 clearly shows how shallow people reason sometimes, but coming from the Nation Newspaper, I'm not surprised.

Double post

Interesting... GEJ wants to give Yoruba obas money for votes? Anyway, he should know that those Obas, even if they agree to support him, can only control their own few votes and those of the nuclear family members. Not sure he can get 1000 votes from the Obas in Yorubaland and their families put together.

GEJ, dont bankrupt Nigeria for nothing...

This mumu president thinks these obas have political relevance in the southwest . He should stop wasting his time. Even at this moment, ACN is just being tolerated to keep PDP out of the southwest .The excess of tinubu was roundly rejected in ondo state.however left with what we have now,ACN is the lesser of 2 evils.hopefully we will get a fashola 2.0 ,3.0 version of leaders in future. The yorubas have a good idea of what a good principled leader is. Jonathan is neither a good leader ,a good administrator or a principled one. As for PDP, dead on arrival.there are no takers.

And who told him than the yorubas are still in the age where 'Ti oba lase'?

Didn't he heard of the latest developement where some even went as far as beating their king?

Former Governor of Osun State, Olagunsoye Oyinlola was very dear to Ooni of Ife when he was the governor, hardly could 2 weeks go without him visiting Ooni in his palace. Ooni even favored Oyinlola to Aregbesola, but at the end of the election, who won, despite the election proclaimed Oyinlola as the winner but the the eventual winner still given the mantle at the appeal after the tribunal.

[quote
author=CyberG]GEJ thinks the SWesterners are the people he can buy with
money or fake heroism (SE), or the people who will sing praises of
leaders because they are ignorant of their rights and see him as son of
the soil who can do no wrong (SS). He is deceiving himself for he can
say whatever he likes to the Obas, the ordinary man will not vote for
anyone based on some meeting he is having with any Oba.[/quote]


we shall see...

I laugh in gibberish.indeed gej is a drowning loser.you can buy the shyte obas all you want.the general consensus in the south west is to vote you out.from young to old,from rich to poor.even the evils of the south west obasanjo and his likes are against you.just save your money for other meaningful adventures.

Goodluck jonathan is bias and if he return as president.. the yorubas will suffer the more.. because Goodluck is bias..

if he is allowed a second time.. nigeria will be in a civil war...


ko se eniya ti o fair.. o le bi ti ti yoruba ko se ni da ni... e ma je ko wole mo. ejo re ni owo ninu. to ba tu wole le keji, iya ni o je yoruba ba. ejo ni owo nu. ko se ki ni ti aso ta.


o je ruti eji le yoruba. ti orunmila fe iyawo. ti iyawo yi, ko ki se iyawo to da. ati da obi. ti ada obi nu. inu obi so pe. ejo ti won pe ni jonathan ni. ejo yin ko da. ti ejo ba wole ni ekeji. oro inu ejo yi ko ni da.

awon gba lo so pe. omo ti ose sam sam kekere ni o ti se sam sam. ejo yin inu owo obi yi, ko da. ki ni ti won fi won wa ni yi. omo wa ni o se. ajoji ko gbodu se.

omo wa ni o se in 2015. ko se jonathan. ko bada si ibi ti oti bo.

We need to depose this stupid Ooni. He is not a principled man. Ever since I've known him, he has only been after his personal interest while camouflaging like he is the traditional leader of Yorubas. The condition for voting for anybody should be based on that person's record/performance as it concerns the entire Country. In the case of Jonathan, I personally think he's trying, but has been overwhelmingly biased against the Southwest. Based on this, I don't think he has our interest at heart - That's just my personal opinion from what I've observed.