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Ekiti at 22: The rough and tumble of our journey

On behalf of our Obas and leaders who struggled for almost six years to get Ekiti land carved out from Ondo State, I congratulate all Ekiti indigenes home and elsewhere. It is no news to say that the struggle was torturous, long even dangerous at times. On occasions like this, when the struggle for total liberation, this time from decease and abject poverty is still ranging, one cannot but remember and recall the past particularly for the younger  generation which has abandoned history for I.T. and especially telephone technology.

In May 1991, I got about a dozen of Ekiti indigenes mostly intellectuals who ordinarily resided in Ado-Ekiti. Together we looked around us in Ekiti-land, compared our environment with what was happening in other parts of old Ondo State. Specifically we looked at the infrastructure – road, government buildings and structures, the status of agriculture particularly cash crops, the industrial and commercial base etc. At the end of our search, we discovered that very little investment was coming to Ekiti sector of Ondo State. The industrial base was even more alarming with Ekiti having the comatose Odua Textile Mills at Ado-Ekiti and the ailing Burnt Brick Factory at Ire-Ekiti against 12 projects in other parts of Ondo State. In terms of personnel in the Public Service, Ekiti constituted more than 50 per cent of the work force, but most of the topmost personnel were in the wrong places.

The above was precisely the situation when we started to dialogue among ourselves on the need for a separate identity under the Nigeria sun. It was a heady project but we were prepared for any eventuality. We were lucky that we successfully enlisted the support and leadership of senior Obas in Ekiti land. Most of our Natural Rulers were persuaded about the justness of our course and warmly endorsed and embraced our programmes, including methodology.

We knew who to approach, what information they needed to assist us and when to provide this information. For example for the period of six years, we prepared twenty publications which we took to several government officials, military and civilian, Natural Rulers and ultimately to Aso Rock. We visited Gen. Abacha three times at the Vila and sent messages to important personages mostly in the North. This included a delegation led by late Ojo Falegan to late Sultan Dasuki of Sokoto.

We came to know quite in the middle of our struggle that the Federal Military Government would create additional six states, one from each zone to which the country had been structured. We also came to know that there were requests for six new states in the Western Zone- Ijebu State, Oke Ogun State, Ibadan State, Oduduwa State, Coastal State and Ekiti State. Obviously we were worried how we could win the only slot from the West. We did, not necessarily because we struggled harder, provided more information, made the right connections, but because God in His infinite mercy blessed our effort and looked mercifully on the helplessness of our people.

The above are some issues which also can be described as problems that have persistently confronted Ekiti State since its creation 22 years ago. The compounding and resilient ones are:

i.The industrial base has not by any imagination been improved.  Indeed the two industrial projects earlier mentioned have disappeared completely from the map. There is no single government assisted or contrived industry in Ekiti State. Ideally, Ekiti should establish agro-allied industries, using basic agricultural and other natural resources as input in the industrial process. Most often we see carpenters, bricklayers, mechanics and such related artisans pursuing their age long peasant or cottage businesses. There is no financial assistance by government; our young people carry on their businesses as it was done 30-50 years ago.

ii.Agriculture which we believed ought to be the bedrock of the local economy has largely been abandoned in Ekiti. Peasant farming without any form of mechanization continues to engaged over 70 per cent of the farming population. Incidentally Ekiti offers a good terrain for tractor operation in mechanized farming. But the question is how many farmers or cooperative bodies employ farmers in the operations? Or how much has government offered to help farmers to obtain this vital equipment.

iii.Transportation, especially road, has not fared better. The roads are essentially what they were some 20 years ago. Sure, some improvements have occurred to major municipal roads leaving out most feeder roads. In the Greater Ado metropolis for example, more than 70 per cent of the roads in the municipal area are not motorable, so are local government headquarters where cosmetics alterations have been effected.

iv.The position of the Federal Government is even worse than the state government. It would appear that Ekiti is not part of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. In the current federal budget, only N60 million as allocated for federal roads maintenance in Ekiti. There are states which have up to N50 billion allocation for federal roads. Do we call this a just society?

  1. Unemployment is a national malaise, but it is worse in Ekiti where the young population is more than 70 per cent and 90 per cent of that number is unemployed. This is why Ado-Ekiti which is now about four times its size 22 years ago is cynically referred to as the Okada Capital of Nigeria, with every person using the dangerous ride.

One redeeming feature of all these is the private effort of individuals at developing our state and enhancing the economic well-being of the citizenry. In this connection, Afe Babalola stands out clearly, and could even hold a leadership position in South-Western Nigeria considering his investment as an all rounder, in Education, in Health-care delivery, in Agriculture etc. The ancillary institutions at ABUAD will be difficult to match anywhere in Nigeria.

There was a spectacular meeting of Ekiti Obas and leaders on January 9, 1996. The meeting was designed to confirm whether or not Ekiti people wanted a separate state and where the capital should be Naturally, an issue of this  importance had raked up animosities, old grudges among leading principalities in Ekiti and government had just set up Mbanefo Committee to investigate and confirm where new states were genuinely required in the country, Naturally the Ekiti Council of Obas led by the Ewi of Ado-Ekiti and the Committee for the creation of Ekiti State headed by this writer were anxious that Ekiti should not present divergent views at the Mbanefo hearings. So a large meeting which was attended by 71 Obas and 190 leaders met at the palace of Ewi and after long debate, sometimes acrimonies, we agreed on two basic things. One, that Ekiti wanted a State and two, that the headquarter be located in Ado-Ekiti. This was the position of Ekiti which lawyer Afe Babalola adequately presented to the Federal Governments committee.

In presenting the above facts, I want to remember with nostalgia the contributions of leading Obas and my colleagues during the six years struggle. In fact, much has been written about the history of how Ekiti State came about, that I only need to add few things especially our friends and collaborators whose names shall be written in gold in the history of time. Many of our comrades have passed on while some are still in this divide.  The list is in the Book “Creation of Ekiti State – The epic struggle of a people”.

It is surprising that most of what we fought for from May 1991 to October, 1996 are still with us. We are no more under an ‘alien’ people, yet we have not arrived at the paradise we envisaged. Indeed our values as Ekitis have been debased. In times past we held our heads high, but now we are nervous about what others call us. But don’t we deserve all these new names now?

  • Chief Fasuan wrote the piece from Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital.

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