A serious break in the ranks of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) may have been sparked by the recent violent protest held on the streets of Lagos last Tuesday by the Gani Adams faction of the group. Indications of deep divisions emerged when about 50 pioneer members of the OPC gathered at the Kolex Hotel in Shomolu to address a press conference and issue a statement titled, “Gani Adams Has Betrayed Us And The Yoruba People.”

Speaking on behalf of the group, Comrade Shina Akinpelu said, the National Coordinating Council of the OPC, the highest ruling body of the organization, is dissociating itself from what he called “the shameful, destructive, violent and reactionary activities of the Gani Adam-led team which occurred in Lagos.” He described the actions of the protesters and their leader as “the highest level of political violence sponsored and funded by certain elements in the Jonathan government.”

“Gani Adams is on his own and does not enjoy the support of a large size of our membership spread across the country,” Comrade Akinpelu said. “He is working for the sponsors of violence against our people who want the March 28 elections not to hold. Unleashing terror on innocent citizens and killing them is not the way of democracy. It is not our idea of a people-oriented advocacy.

“Gani Adams is on dubious project. He is using the Pipeline contract from the Jonathan government as a ploy or excuse to recruit people to work for Jonathan and PDP in the South West. Gani Adams is acting against Yoruba interest. The compromises he has made amounts to selling the Yoruba to the present government for a piece of Pipeline contract to line his pockets. OPC is not about Pipeline contracts or any other contracts for that matter. The Yoruba interest is beyond contracts. We seek justice and fairness from the current government.”

Unhappy Former Sec. Gen.
Also speaking in the same tune, the former Secretary General of the OPC, Kayode Ogundamisi, in a separate statement titled “That OPC Madness in Lagos,” described the attack on the citizenry as “uncalled for.” He berated the current leaders of the group for turning the ideals that gave birth to the organisation into something else.

The statement reads thus: “The Oodua People's Congress I, as National Sec-Gen and Late Dr Beko Ransome Kuti as National Treasurer and others, associated with was strictly a SELF DETERMINATION group until Dr Fredrick Fasehun swallowed General Obasanjo's 'apple' that led to the break up and factional crisis. History is repeating itself again in 2015. Goodluck Jonathan ​is 'donating' more apples into the OPC leadership and it is only a matter of time the followers would ask both leaders for s 'just share'.

“I would just advice both Dr Fasehun and Gani Adams that whatever assignment they are carrying out for President Jonathan they should do within the laws of the land. Today’s attack on innocent Citizens in Lagos and destruction of opposition party posters, beating up of members of the public with APC flags is uncalled for. We cannot return to the dark days of lawlessness and brigandage. Dollars don't last forever, but the Yoruba race will outlive all us.”

Hon. Adeola Speaks Up
The Chairman of House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts and APC senatorial candidate for Lagos West, Hon. Adeola Solomon, said the protest led by Gani is akin to going on a slave errand as a slave.

Speaking to the Conference of Ward chairmen of APC in his office on the disruptive and destructive protest and support for President Goodluck Jonathan, Hon. Adeola said the protest by a faction of the ethnic militia was against the interest of Yoruba people in the South West, adding that no true Yoruba son or daughter would support any administration that completely excludes its people from all the commanding political positions in the running of the affairs of this nation.

Hon. Adeola recalled that during the travails of the factional OPC leader under military rule and PDP led Federal Government before his new found pipeline security contract awarding ‘Abuja friends’, leaders of the progressives in Yoruba land had come to his rescue in several life sustaining ways adding that it is now clear that Adams is pursuing his personal interest against Yoruba interest as attested to by many founding members of OPC who have dissociated themselves from his personal economic pursuit.

Final word
The pioneer OPC members who joined Comrade Akinpelu at the press conference include Monsuru Akande, Sunday Adebayo, Kilanko Oladipupo, Kehinde Ogunyale, and Gbenga Eegunlusi. They all agreed that the move by Gani Adams must be condemned and called on all Yorubas to remain united.

Their statement read in part; “We, members of the National Coordinating Council of the Odua People’s Congress, OPC, call all true Yoruba leaders, sons and daughters to stand with us in totally condemning Gani and his anti-democratic tendencies. We must renounce him and remind him he cannot sell the Yoruba race to Jonathan and PDP on the cheap. He also has no authority to speak on behalf of the Yoruba people. We pity those who rely on him to win votes. They will be sorely disappointed. Their investment is a bad one already. We reject today and always any attempt to use our organization and its members for narrow and selfish partisan purposes.

“We must remind them that the Yoruba people cannot be hoodwinked by sweeteners. No one should expect them to kowtow to an individual who is a Lilliputian in the political development and history of the Yoruba nation. The Yorubas are a politically sophisticated persons and will simply ignore political opportunists like Gani Adams. We renounce him and his activities which are against the larger Yoruba interest. We renounce all other Yoruba sons and daughters who are playing roles inimical to the welfare and interest the larger Yoruba nation.

“We call on our people to be vigilant politically at this time. Nigeria needs a new leadership, a new direction and a country that works.”

I knew this will surely happen.

Gani Adams has always been behind the umblera theives.

Division is what happens when a leader supports them.