Former Nigerian Ambassador to the Philippines, Dr. Yemi Farounbi, has ascribed the centralisation of Nigeria to the cause of the woes befalling the country.
Amb. Farounbi said this while delivering a lecture at the maiden Annual General Meeting, Lecture and Awards of the Oyo State Labour Veterans Association, with the theme “The Labour of Our Heroes Past.” The event was held at the Dapo Aderogba Hall of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Iyaganku Quarters, Ibadan, on Wednesday.
The veteran broadcaster lamented the erosion of the good old days in Nigeria, when, according to him, the Naira was good, the economy was okay, the security of lives and property was guaranteed, and Nigerians had access to free and good education and scholarships, among other human development indexes that made Nigeria a great nation.
He said that before the centralisation of the country, each of the regions in the country was developed by the proceeds made from their resources.
“The western region’s resources and money were used to develop the region; the same was true for other regions in the country. But the centralisation has made some regions lazy because the labour of some regions is being syphoned and used to develop other regions,” Amb. Farounbi said.
He emphasised that “if we don’t want the labour of our heroes past to be in vain, we should go back to regionalisation.”
The President of the Association, Comrade Ibrahim Bolomope, said earlier in his speech, “The association exists to promote dialogues, mediation, arbitration, and peace-building in industrial relations and labour practice in Oyo State.”
Comrade Bolomope, who disclosed that the existence of the association has been impactful both inter-organisationally and intra-organisationally, thanked the Oyo State Government, Engr. Seyi Makinde for permitting the peace-building role of the association in labour-government conflict since it came on board.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the occasion, Barrister Akeem Agbaje while speaking about the labour movement in Nigeria, discarded the notion that labour unions are rascals, saying “labour unions are a bunch of intellectuals.”
The Special Adviser to the Oyo State Governor on Labour Matters reiterated Governor Makinde’s efforts at bettering the lives of workers in the state. He also highlighted the Governor’s achievements and his determination to continue and even improve with the gestures.
