The Oodua People’s Congress New Era has disassociated the body from an alleged Planned 30th Anniversary Celebration being put in place by Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland ,Iba Gani Adams.
According to a statement signed by the National Public Relations Officer of OPC New Era, Adesina .A. Abiodun on Thursday, the body cited many reasons for the distance, among which include; that Gani Adams remained an expelled former leader of the body and with the current economic situation in the country, it will amount to insensitivity to bring out the drums in the name of an anniversary celebration.
The Statement reads in full ” In the last few days, we have been inundated with phone calls and messages on various platforms by well-wishers and concerned individuals. The reason for all these, being, the alleged report that Gani Adams intends to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the founding of the OPC.
“0rdinarily, we did not take the matter as anything worth giving a thought to. Gani Adams has always been an attention seeker, and this we saw as one of his many schemes to gain attention for himself and if possible, defraud the unsuspecting and gullible members of the public who still patronize his shenanigans.
“However, we were compelled to issue this short statement as a matter of necessity, if only to calm the frayed nerves of those who have been reaching across to us and the general public as a whole.
“Our position on the matter is that Gani Adams remains an expelled former leader of the OPC. He and those who patronize him may continue to delude themselves, but the fact is that there is an abundance of fake clerics, herbalists, doctors, lawyers, and other such professionals out there with clients patronizing them. Many go undetected for years, if ever they are.
“Secondly, and more importantly, we are of the firm opinion that with the dire economic situation of the country, it will amount to insensitivity to bring out the drums in the name of an anniversary celebration. We in the past have joined others to either advise or condemn such extravagance and inconsiderate attitudes when exhibited by our representatives (political), and should therefore not be caught doing the same.
“Thirdly, there is nothing for the OPC and Gani Adams to celebrate as of this moment. The organization is presently living on past glory. It is partly through the efforts of the OPC and other rights activists and organizations that we today have civilian rule. The OPC was formed to fight for democracy and against military dictatorship. And unlike others who fled and fought from the Diaspora, we dug and stuck to the trenches here until the military succumbed in 1999.
“We can also -along with others- lay claim to the historical fact of having the presidency exclusively conceded to the South-west (Yoruba candidates) with the return to Democracy in 1999. Former president Olusegun Obasanjo squaring up to Olu Falae in a presidential election remains unprecedented and may never ever be repeated in the annals of this country.
“Again, the OPC through its cultural advocacy and similar activities has helped revived interest in our tradition and culture. Today, the signs of our cultural rebirth are much more obvious. Governments, especially away from the federal level are giving more recognition to the traditional institution and way of lives. Our traditional fashion and items of fashion are trending both locally and internationally such that it is not uncommon to nowadays see our local hairdos on international figures. Also, Yoruba music through afrobeat exponents have become so accepted that our artistes sell out performance venues abroad. Can Gani please point to any significant achievement or gain engendered by himself as the so-called leader of the the OPC in the last ten years?
“We therefore distance ourselves from Adams’ macabre celebration plans and restate our dedication to quiet servitude of the Yoruba people and nation”.