Yoruba: From Ancestors To Architects by Abiodun Komolafe (1)

The Yoruba-speaking people of Nigeria have been floundering, a state that, as is common in human societies, has led to transferred aggression.

This isn’t a problem unique to the Yorubas; we need only recall how large segments of the German population misdirected their aggression towards Jews and other minorities, resulting in a worldwide catastrophe. We must learn from these historical lessons!

Yorubas are unfortunately misinterpreting their own cultural strength, using it to promote self-serving interests rather than collective empowerment. They should look to the Gujaratis – a small Indian ethnolinguistic group—as a model for how a community can marshal its strength to achieve an overwhelming political advantage, even with a numerical disadvantage.

Gujarat, accounting for only 6% of India’s land area, makes significant contributions to the country’s economy, including over 8% of the GDP, 18% of industrial output, and 25% of total exports. Gujaratis are renowned for their entrepreneurial spirit, business acumen, and extensive networks, which have enabled them to establish thriving businesses globally, particularly in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and East Africa. They dominate industries such as diamonds, textiles, finance, and ICT, with notable achievements including owning one out of every four hotels in the United States.

The Jewish, Chinese and Lebanese Diasporas are also prime examples of communities that have leveraged their cultural and business acumen for success. Facing historical persecution or instability, they established extensive, interconnected global networks based on shared cultural values, including familial trust, education, and an entrepreneurial spirit. This allowed them to thrive in fields such as finance, trade and commerce worldwide.

Tragically, the Yorubas today have lost the momentum they once had and the sense of common purpose that arose from the treaty signed on September 23, 1886. This loss is reflected in several areas: professional and business advancements are being undermined by a lack of unity and strategic focus, progress in the education system, from primary schools onward, has stalled, and the competitive advantages afforded by access to the sea remain underutilised.

Yorubaland should be a thriving export-oriented economy, building on the plans of the 1950s and 1960s to move from exporting primary products to value-added goods. Instead, due to a lack of strategic direction and investment, raw materials like cocoa from the Southwest are exported with minimal processing, with the bulk of the profits going to foreign processors. In a more developed economy, we would be exporting chocolates, cocoa derivatives and other finished products; we would be leveraging our resources to drive economic growth while creating more opportunities.

The Obafemi Awolowos! The Bode Thomases! The Adeyemo Alakijas! The Sapara Williams! Leaders of their calibre saw the future and worked towards it! Can we say the same about our current leaders? Isn’t that a shame?

Awolowo’s tenure as Premier of the Western Region was marked by groundbreaking achievements that positioned the region to compete with countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, and India. Through strategic investments via the Western Nigeria Development Corporation (WNDC) and Western Nigeria Finance Corporation (WNFC), Awolowo spearheaded the establishment of numerous industries and corporations that drove rapid industrial development. These included West African Portland Cement Company (WAPCO) for cement production, Nigerite Ltd for asbestos and roofing sheets, Odu’a Textile Mills, and many others.

By opening vast industrial layouts in Ibadan, Lagos, and Ilupeju with over 120 factories, Awolowo catalysed mass production to meet various needs. Between 1951 and 1959, it created countless jobs without relying on oil revenue. Awolowo’s legacy of Infrastructure, Social Services, and Enduring Impact in Western Nigeria encompassed iconic infrastructure and social services that were pioneering for the time. He oversaw the construction of Cocoa House, the tallest building in West Africa for decades, and Liberty Stadium (one of the most modern in Africa). He initiated Western Nigeria Television & Broadcasting Service (WNTV/WNBS), the first radio and television stations in Africa.

Awolowo’s government implemented free primary education, developed cooperative societies that led to the establishment of a Cooperative Bank and College, and expanded road networks with bitumen-covered roads spanning over 2,000 kilometres. Odu’a Investments, a conglomerate he nurtured, was among Nigeria’s largest by 2004. His impactful governance in the Western Region, which now spans eight states, remains unmatched. Compared to the WNDC and WNFC, what impact has the Odu’a Group had on Yorubaland, beyond using its influence to tear and share the regional cake?

The question, therefore, is: can the Yoruba race ever find a leader like Awolowo? Does the Yoruba race even have a leadership presently? At this stage of its development, Yorubaland needs thinkers, not just fixers or dealmakers. Incidentally, Bola Tinubu, Nigeria’s current president, is a Yorubaman. The conventional wisdom is that the country’s 15th president can only spend two terms of four years each in office. What happens after he leaves office? Will Yorubas ever transcend the limitations of political temporality and build enduring institutions?

Again, here lies the essence of the challenge: giving a Yoruba man a political appointment doesn’t necessarily translate into empowerment for the Yorubas. Such appointments are often used to cement political alliances and enrich friends and close acolytes. To put it bluntly, being made the chairman of a board or commission is not empowerment; what empowers a people are meaningful programmes.

Take, for instance, what have the numerous political appointments given to our Yoruba sons and daughters over the past forty years translated into? What tangible benefits have the Yorubas gained, and how many socio-political and economic programmes are currently in place to support their development?

The opulent mansions being built by political appointees in Ijebu-Jesa and its environs – are they a sign of industrial investment? How many industries are actually operating in Osogbo, the Osun State capital? What about Ile-Ife, the cultural heartland of Yorubaland? And in Ijesaland, known for its historical commercial prowess that even impressed leaders like Otto Von Bismarck, the former Prime Minister of Prussia and Chancellor of Germany, how many industries are thriving there?

Let’s flip the script and look at the story of Yorubaland’s development through a different lens. Germany boasts the world’s third-largest economy and a top-notch financial system. Added to this is its constitution, which requires a certain voter turnout threshold for the election to be valid. In contrast, economic growth in Nigeria is often measured by statistics rather than the actual impact on people’s lives. When one considers the state of Nigeria, one is tempted to believe that the country itself is a management problem that needs philosopher-kings. Here, voter turnout is getting ridiculously low with each passing day, and all we chant is: ‘Hurrah!’

In our very eyes, school enrolment is dropping across the country, with innocent pupils trekking to their schools even as the sick skip medications due to a lack of funds to procure recommended drugs. A proper development programme for Yorubaland would have transformed the Olokola Deep Seaport into a significant economic hub over thirty years ago, and that would have yielded remarkable results. But, where are we?

Surely, Yorubaland faces a clear choice: preserve the past or forge its future. To transition from a people defined by ancestry to one that actively shapes its destiny, Yorubaland needs a forward-looking development plan that could span decades, whether ten, twenty, or more years.

The work of previous institutions already referred to helped develop a petit bourgeoisie unmatched in any of the regions. To build a sustainable future, we must learn from the past and rebuild the capital base of Yorubaland, attracting long-term investment capital to support the development of fiscal and social infrastructure. This is crucial, as exporting raw products would condemn us to being perpetual hewers of wood and fetchers of water.

●To be concluded.

*KOMOLAFE wrote from Ijebu-Jesa, Osun State, Nigeria.