From Oluseye Ojo, Ibadan
Emeritus Professor of History and Second Republic Senator, Banji Akintoye, has withdrawn his resignation letter, dated December 5, 2022 from the apex Yoruba self-determination organisation, Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide (IOOW), barely four weeks after he submitted it.
He has therefore resumed as the leader of the organisation, which has more than 200 pro-Yoruba nation groups under it. He has also dissolved the executive council of the organisation.
This was contained in a letter, entitled: ‘My Humble Response to the Request that I Should Withdraw My Letter of Resignation’ which was released and made available to journalists in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, on Wednesday.
The Concerned Leaders of IOOW, had last week at a press conference held at the NUJ Press Centre, Iyaganku, Ibadan, rejected the resignation letters of Prof Banji Akintoye, the leader of the group, and Prof Wale Adeniran, the deputy leader that later became leader of the group, from the movement. They revalidated and reaffirmed Akintoye as the leader of IOOW.
Akintoye had resigned in the first week of December 2022, and was succeeded by Prof Wale Adeniran, his former deputy in the struggle. But Adeniran also resigned as chairman of the group in the first week of January 2023, which is barely a month after assumption of office.
According to Akintoye, he received letters from all sections of Ilana rejecting his resignation and urging him to continue to make the sacrifice of leading Ilana.
“…Further to the above, a coalition of Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide (IOOW) affiliates groups both in the diaspora and homeland converged in Ibadan few days ago to revalidate and reaffirm my leadership of Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide (IOOW) and also urged me to withdraw my resignation as leader.
“I thank Prince Bamigbade for his goodwill interventions in the family of Ilana. In the circumstance, I hereby give up my earlier resignation decision, and announce my return to my leadership position and role in Ilana,” he said.