5 million Yoruba have spoken. The ‘ominira’ petition with over 5 million signatures is amongst the most supported petitions in the world. By way of comparison, the 2019 Brexit revocation of Article 50 petition with 6 million votes is the UK’s petition with the highest number. The ‘ominira’ petition is ongoing and may still top 6 million.
 
The assertion of Yoruba sovereignty was the central demand of the ‘ominira’ petition. A Yoruba State must be declared in its wake. That declaration would be lawful because assertion of a separate sovereignty by an ethnic group is permissible under the fraudulent 1999 constitution currently being operated by Nigeria. The precedent was set by the 12 Arewa States. In 2020, the Arewa States declared Sharia Criminal Law in their region together with a judiciary and Hisbah, their own law enforcement agency. The Nigeria government did not oppose it. The Nigerian government permitted the Arewa States to modify Nigeria’s sovereignty, and constitution. There is thus no constitutional impediment to the Yoruba similarly asserting their own sovereignty.
 
Indeed, Section 14 of the 1999 constitution provides that: ‘(1) The Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be a State based on the principles of democracy and social justice. (2) It is hereby, accordingly, declared that: (a) sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria from whom government through this Constitution derives all its powers and authority.’ 5 million Yoruba have spoken; 2 million more than voted for Buhari in 2015 and in 2019. 5 million Yoruba demand to assert their inherent Yoruba sovereignty.
 
Religion, that is, Islam, was the unifying force for the Sharia Declaration in the Arewa States. Religion is not a unifying force in Yorubaland. The unifying forces in Yorubaland are a) one language, Yoruba, and b) the institution of Oba. In 1937, the Conference of Oba was formed to negotiate matters of interest with the British colonialists. That Conference later became the House of Chiefs in the Western Region.
 
A Conference of Oba should be immediately reconstituted to respond to the 5 million ‘ominira’ voices and declare the Yoruba State. The Olubadan or the Ooni, in the absence of the Alaafin, must call a meeting of the Oba of Yoruba major cities/towns – Eko, Ijebu Ode, Abeokuta, Ibadan, Oyo, Ogbomoso, Osogbo, Ile Ife, Ilesa, Ado Ekiti, Ondo, Akure and Benin. The Oba must immediately meet in Ibadan to proclaim the voice of the people. No reason to wait!  Our dead, maimed, orphaned, and raped deserve a Yoruba Emancipation Declaration. Our Oba must not let them down.
 
Declaration of a Yoruba State is lawful under international law. The Yoruba have a right to self-determination under the Charters of the UN and AU. The 1999 constitution and Nigeria’s domestic laws do not prohibit the expression of a fundamental right including the right to free association, and the right to assert sovereignty.
 
At that proclamation, the Conference of Oba would announce the name of an Interim Administrator whose job it would be to make smooth the transition from a dysfunctional Nigeria to the new Yoruba State. The Interim Administrator would
a.     proclaim the external boundaries of the Yoruba Nation – those who wish to opt out can do so later;
b.     raise a militia (from Amotekun, Agbekoya etc) to police and secure the external and internal borders;
c.     proclaim an independent Yoruba Central Bank and change of currency; and
d.     assemble a Convention to hear and decide on proposals from individual and groups on the constitution to be adopted – final choice to be the subject of a referendum.
 
Then, the Conference of Oba would select a delegation from amongst themselves to visit friendly capitals to seek diplomatic relations with the new Yoruba State. They must visit in particular, countries with large Yoruba Diaspora, such as,  Brazil, Cuba and the Caribbean. The delegation must make clear that the Yoruba State belongs to all peoples of Yoruba ancestry wherever they may live.
 
How would we pay for all these activities?
An Emancipation Levy on all the banks operating in the Yoruba Homeland. This would be done by the Yoruba Central Bank.
 
How can we declare independence without a standing army?
The question presupposes that the Nigerian army would be deployed to stop the implementation of the declaration of Yoruba independence. That is certainly possible but logistically unlikely.
 
It would be unlawful for the Yoruba to raise an army whilst Yorubaland is in Nigeria. Once the declaration of independence is made, then the Yoruba are entitled immediately to raise their own army.
 
It would be unlawful for the Nigerian government to wage war against the Yoruba because they declared the Yoruba State. There is no contract between Nigeria and the Yoruba that would be broken or one that necessitates enforcement by arms. The trilateral agreement for independence between the 3 regions – east, west, north - was torn up by the military coup of 15 January 1966.
 
How do we defend the defenceless now?
The Conference of Oba would set up local civil protection units, a system of protective measures conducted by thepeople themselves. At the core would be former military or police personnel, all of whom possess requisite standard of experience and expertise. One task would be to provide intelligence, that is, to regularly reconnoitre and map out the locations of Fulani herdsmen and Fulani men of no fixed abode. The information would then be widely disseminated to organisations, gatherings, businesses, Amotekun, Agbekoya, vigilante groups etc through leaflets, in person reports and airwaves. Islamic terrorists rely on the element of surprise. We want the terrorists to know that we know where they are, that there is no hiding place for them in Yorubaland.
 
What should we do with fellow Yoruba who oppose independence?
Nothing. The opposition are beneficiaries of the existing corrupt system. The actors have been the exact same people since 1999. These are political kleptomaniacs engaged in a game of political musical chairs to the detriment of the people.
 
How will the new Yoruba State survive without the UN’s blessing?
No problem. Taiwan and Kosovo are surviving very well outside of the UN. These ‘unrecognised states’ have everything that the UN member states have - territory, government, currency, passport, courts, army, police, schools, hospitals etc. They also have transnational networks - diaspora, neighbours, friendly states, potential trading partners, mass education, reputation, and resourcefulness.  
 
Over 8,000 people worldwide have now signed our petition to the UN for self-determination for the Yoruba people of Nigeria - http://chng.it/QJp8yJ6hPs 10,000 signatures is the target. We are nearly there. Please make it happen. Your signature costs you nothing.