In a statement, Ilana Omo Oodua, the Yoruba bloc of the south and middle belt secessionist alliance known as Nigerian Indigenous Nationalities Alliance for Self-Determination (NINAS) said it has pulled out of the alliance reached months ago.
In the statement released on Tuesday November 30 and signed by 45 leaders of the Ilana Omo Oodua in Nigeria and the diaspora, it was also stated that Prof. Banji Akintoye, leader of the Yoruba bloc, has also resigned his position as the chairman of Nigerian Indigenous Nationalities Alliance for Self-Determination (NINAS).
According to the group, the decision was taken because the position of some NINAS members does not align with that of Ilana Omo Oodua.
The statement reads: “In the light of the current development in the Yoruba Self-Determination struggle, especially, in Ilana Omo Oodua, it has become very necessary for the Yoruba people to dissociate themselves from the Alliance known as NINAS with immediate effect.
“It is our well-considered opinion that some of those we align with in NINAS do not want the kind of SELF-DETERMINATION that we the Yoruba people want.
“Therefore, we the leadership of Ilana Omo Oodua, wish to inform the general public that the Yoruba Bloc under the leadership of Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide has moved out of the Nigerian Indigenous Nationalities Alliance for Self-Determination (NINAS) with immediate effect in order to safeguard the integrity and honour of our agitation for Self-Determination.
“We thank the Leader of LNC, Mr. Tony Nnadi, for his inputs to the NINAS struggle since inception. However, it is now obvious to most people in the Yoruba Self-Determination struggle that the LNC is not working in tandem with our objective in Ilana Omo Oodua.
“The implication of this development is that the prestigious leadership that Professor Adebanji Stephen Akintoye, has provided for NINAS as Chairman since inception has now come to an end from today Tuesday 30th November, 2021.
“Furthermore, Ilana Omo Oodua hereby withdraw its membership of NINAS with immediate effect. All the Yoruba People Worldwide that believe in the agitation for Yoruba Nation Self-Determination at home and abroad are, by this statement, notified to comply.
“We are, however, pleased to inform you that a more productive Wide-Alliance to be known as the South and Middle-Belt People’s Sovereign Movement (SOMPSOM) will be officially inaugurated after the completion of the ongoing consultations with likeminds across the South and Middle-Belt Regions.”