The Chairman of the Yoruba Unity Forum and member of the Afenifere Elders’ Caucus, Archbishop Emeritus Ayo Ladigbolu, has urged the Yoruba to embrace collective leadership as the only viable path to unity, saying the era of rallying the people under one towering figure like the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo is gone for good.
Speaking on Thursday at the South-West Stakeholders Dialogue in Akure, Ondo State, Ladigbolu said while Awolowo and other visionaries, such as Chief Adekunle Ajasin, left indelible marks on Yoruba history, the dynamics of the time have changed.
“We all know we cannot re-create Awolowo or Ajasin,” he said. “But we can create a collective leadership that is credible and able to enunciate Yoruba priorities.”
He identified elder statesmen, including Chief Reuben Fasoranti, Chief Olu Falae and Chief Bisi Akande as “spiritually and culturally rooted vehicles for such leadership renewal.”
Quoting the late Dr Tunji Otegbeye’s 2007 remarks at the Obafemi Awolowo Foundation Dialogue, Ladigbolu recalled:“I have ceased to deify man since I was disappointed by Zik. But the same is not true of Awo, who lived and died for Yoruba unity and one Nigeria.”
He said those words remain a reminder that Awolowo’s greatness lay not in his personality but in his vision of unity and service to the Yoruba and the nation.
The cleric lamented that many of today’s groups claiming to speak for the Yoruba “are not talking to each other,” describing the disunity as a major obstacle to regional progress.
“Yoruba are good individually and can be better if we work together,” he said, urging that the Akure dialogue serve as “a veritable means of re-energising our region.”
Ladigbolu stressed that the future of Yoruba progress must rest on shared priorities anchored on the traditional values of Omoluabi and Olaju — the dignity of the individual and the sophistication of the people.
“Our focus must be on developing our component parts, eradicating poverty, and making our people proud to be Yoruba-Nigerians,” he said.
He warned that without internal cooperation and a redefined sense of purpose, the South-West risked squandering its historical advantage.
Calling for renewed self-reliance and innovation, he urged Yoruba leaders, professionals and entrepreneurs to invest in local industries, agriculture and digital education. He cited the Odu’a Investment Foundation’s Digital Education for Innovation and Economic Development programme as a model for empowering young people to drive regional growth.
Turning to governance, Ladigbolu emphasised that transparency and accountability must underpin the new vision.
“We cannot eat our cake and still have it,” he said, challenging both citizens and governments to demand accountability in revenue generation, expenditure, and infrastructure delivery.
He concluded that the region’s progress would depend on civic engagement and fiscal discipline.
“When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice,” he said. “Now is the time for Yoruba stakeholders to close ranks, speak with one voice, and pursue the unity of purpose that once defined Awolowo’s legacy.”
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