News
That Yoruba Race May Survive Beyond This Generation
The Indians were evicted by Idi Amin in the 70s and they were granted asylum in most Western countries, but what did they do?
They formed ecosystems. Ecosystems are legal and can be formed as consortiums to take loans from banks and access other beneficial services such as grants etc in Western countries.
Families would come together, pooled resources together and buy businesses where parents and kids would work to build what looked like pyramid with branches.
A family would opt out of the joint venture to purchase another with the support of others and this has greatly made them wealthy and powerful.
Today, the woman who calls the shot on immigration in the UK was a daughter of an evictee family from the East Africa and there are many other success stories of such that abound in Western countries up to Australia amongst the Indians.
In the Yoruba communities of the Western countries, nothing of such exists, not even the basic grouping you often find even amongst the Igbo communities.
Igbo associations are mostly cultural, burial collections and end of year gatherings. This is not bad, they do these to introduce their kids to Igbo culture.
Their kids experience their culture first hands through all these. But these are utterly absent in Yoruba communities.
An ugly trend is actually rearing its head in our communities from Dublin to London and up to New York; this is the abuse of the social media by a clique of uncouth Yoruba women and some men as well by projecting trashes as culture.
A son to one popular Yoruba blogger has allegedly being quoted as saying that his mum was fond of sleeping randomly with men and planning evil against individuals.
This is really sad when you look around and listen to trashes being ditched out by these so called Yoruba bloggers here and there.
Can’t we think of ways we could have Yoruba Credit Unions? This could be a step to a future Oodua International Banking Corporation, where remittances are done to favour our community, where the future homebuyer could walk in and secure a loan to do so.
I must confess that we are not doing enough in our communities to expose our children to the positive sides of our culture, we have given too much relevance to negative carriers amongst us. Nothing can be sadder than this.
Yoruba outside Nigeria tend to isolate themselves from each other and has caused reverberating effects on our people. You often hear people of Yoruba descent die in isolation at their homes and many too, unjustly treated by the legal system.
We are often rebuked by others as the enemies of ourselves, just as being played out in our political system in Nigeria and elsewhere .
We attack and ignore each other too often and fail to see between lines by appreciating those who are making efforts at elevating the race. This bothers me a lot as I often ask if we are so dark hearted.
Maybe, we may need to call for a conference to discuss this and chart a way forward for ourselves and generations to come.
Yoruba Leaders’ Forum was essentially formed to fill the vacuum but unfortunately we are still tottering.
Bamofin Olufemi Ogunjimi writes from London, UK.
Gunmen suspected to be kidnappers have abducted a couple from their residence in the Iluabo area of Akure North Local Government, Ondo State.
During the attack, which occurred in the early hours of Saturday, February 21, 2026, the assailants shot one person before seizing the victims.
The gunmen had stormed Olaribigba Estate in the community when they whisked Mr Jamiu Olawale and his wife into the bush.
Following the development, which has created tension in the agrarian community, residents protested and barricaded the road leading to the community over the incessant kidnappings and insecurity in the community.
According to sources, the couple had arrived at their residence in an ash-coloured Toyota Camry when they were attacked by the gunmen, who lay in ambush for them.
During the incident, a neighbour of the abducted couple, Patrick Ilumaro, who was seated in front of his residence, was shot by the gunmen while fleeing from the community.
A neighbour of the victims revealed that Ilumaro was swiftly rushed to an undisclosed medical facility where he is currently receiving medical treatment.
While confirming the incident, the Ondo State Police Command disclosed that tactical teams as well as conventional operatives have been deployed to the community.
In a statement issued by the Police Public Relations Officer, Abayomi Jimoh, the operatives are already combing the axis in an effort to rescue the victims and apprehend the perpetrators.
“Concerted efforts are ongoing to ensure the safe return of the abducted persons and bring those responsible to justice.
“Members of the public are urged to remain calm and go about their lawful activities. Meanwhile, the Command urges them to provide credible and actionable information that may assist in the investigation to the nearest police station.”
One person died and four others were rescued following a road accident at Ekoro Junction, Abule-Egba, on Friday evening, according to a statement from the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority.
The Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department of LASTMA, Adebayo Taofiq, made this known in a statement issued on the agency’s X handle on Saturday.
According to the agency, the crash occurred at about 7:30 p.m. when an empty MACK tanker suffered a sudden brake failure, lost control and rammed into a Toyota Corolla before crashing into a roadside shop.
LASTMA said the tanker, with registration number EKY 900 XY, collided with a Toyota Corolla marked AAA 823 AY.
The impact caused extensive structural damage to the shop and triggered panic among traders and pedestrians in the area.
“The magnitude of the collision led to the immediate confirmation of one fatality at the scene, while four other trapped persons were extricated from the wreckage through coordinated emergency rescue efforts,” the agency stated.
The authority said it immediately activated its Rescue and Recovery Protocol, deploying specialised operatives to manage the situation.
“Personnel implemented strategic traffic diversion, vehicular evacuation procedures and crowd management in synergy with other emergency responders to forestall secondary incidents and guarantee unobstructed access for rescue operations,” LASTMA added.
It stated that emergency teams carried out rescue operations and provided medical attention to the injured victims.
According to the agency, a heavy-duty tow truck was later deployed to evacuate the damaged tanker and clear debris from the road to restore normal traffic flow.
The agency disclosed that the tanker driver fled the scene shortly after the crash and security operatives have since launched efforts to apprehend the driver and initiate legal proceedings.
“Security personnel from the Nigeria Police Force, Ekoro Division, responded expeditiously, maintaining public order, securing the accident perimeter and assisting in investigative processes aimed at establishing the precise sequence of events that culminated in the mechanical failure and subsequent collision.
“The incident precipitated considerable traffic congestion extending across adjoining routes toward Abule-Egba, necessitating robust traffic management interventions by LASTMA officials who remained on ground directing vehicular movement and implementing diversion strategies to alleviate the backlog,” it said.
According to the agency, its General Manager, Olalekan Bakare-Oki, expressed condolences to the family of the deceased and urged transport operators, particularly drivers of articulated vehicles, to prioritise routine vehicle maintenance.
“Preventable mechanical deficiencies remain a significant contributory factor in severe road traffic crashes,” Bakare-Oki said.
He also advised motorists to exercise vigilance, obey traffic regulations and maintain responsible driving practices, especially within densely populated commercial corridors.
Bakare-Oki assured the public that security agencies would conduct a thorough investigation to determine the immediate and remote causes of the incident and ensure that anyone found culpable would be prosecuted in accordance with extant laws.
The agency said other emergency responders at the scene included the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, the Lagos State Ambulance Service, the State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit and officers of the Nigeria Police Force, collaborated to coordinate rescue, medical response and environmental safety measures.
The Department of State Services (DSS) will arraign former Governnor of Kaduna state, Nasir El-Rufai, on February 25 over alleged cybercrime and breach of national security.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court has fixed the date for the arraignment of the former Governor on a three-count criminal charge filed by the Department of State Services (DSS) after the Chief Judge, Justice John Tsoho assigned the case to her.
NAN earlier reported that the DSS, on Monday, filed a three-count criminal charge against El-Rufai following his alleged involvement in wiretapping the telephone lines of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.
The charge, instituted by the Nigerian secret police, is marked FHC/ABJ/CR/99/2026.
The service accused El-Rufai of breaching the Cybercrimes Prohibition Act (2024) and the Nigerian Communications Act (2003.)
In court, El-Rufai was alleged to have, on Feb. 13, while appearing as a guest on Arise TV station’s Prime Time Programme in Abuja, admitted during the interview that he and his cohorts unlawfully intercepted the phone communications of the NSA, Mr Ribadu.
The offence is said to be contrary to and punishable under Section 12(1) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Amendment Act, 2024.
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