The Oodua Progressives Union, OPU, a socio-cultural group, convened by the Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, has reportedly suffered crisis at its Canada chapter.
The OPU which came up as the international wing of the Oodua People’s Congress, OPC, was founded some years ago, for the Yoruba in Diaspora.
It was reliably gathered that the Canadian chapter of the group is currently in serious crisis as members are allegedly locking horns over alleged imposition of officers by the convener, Chief Gani Adams.
According to an insider, trouble started when the Chief Adams ordered the chapter to fix only people loyal to him as executive members into the board of trustees of the group.
The alleged imposition order, it was learnt, did not go down well with majority of the members, who resisted the move.
“As a way of taking over the control of the organisation, Chief Gani Adams instigated some members of the group to pass a vote of no confidence on the coordinator, Prince Julius Ojo and his deputy, Ms Sade Daramola. They were both voted out by some members in a midnight gang up, whilst others were still in bed,” alleged the source.
The action, it was gathered, prompted over seventy members of the group to renounce their membership of the organization.
According to some of the aggrieved members of the chapter, “we are out of Oodua Progressives Union.We thought OPU would be a better platform for us to bring ourselves together in peace and harmony, not knowing that the organisation would sow seeds of discord among us. Most of us have been in Canada for many decades, dining and wining together in peaceful co-existence. We have never experienced any quarrel, no rancor, no acrimony. But since the arrival of Oodua Progressive Union in Canada, the organisation has turned us against each other.”
They stated further; “when the organisation was lunched in Toronto, two years ago, many of us flew in from different provinces to celebrate and stay with the convener and his entourage for almost two weeks. We left our families and works in an effort to protect and uphold Yoruba cultural heritage and values,” they stressed.
Prince Ayoade Adedeji, who said he has been in the forefront of championing the cause of Yoruba race for many years in Canada, condemned the style in which the OPU is being run. “No organisation can succeed in this manner,” he said.
In the same vein, Olori Subuola Celestina Adekolu, a notable stakeholder said: “A house built with lies cannot stand unless truth becomes its foundation. OPU was built on lies, that is why we’re witnessing all these. This is very sad and unfortunate. OPU has torn us apart as a result of leadership issues. The removal of the coordinator and his deputy was a coup. The coordinator and the deputy were wrongly made to pay prices for their love for the common members”.
Other members of the group claimed the “lackadaisical” attitude of Chief Gani Adams towards reconciling members and dealing with issues have further compounded the crisis.
The aggrieved members therefore, warned that nothing untoward should happen to any of their members in Canada and whenever they visit Nigeria.
-Oyin Princess