An Open Letter to The Governors, Obas, Religious Leaders, Sociocultural Organisations, Vigilantes and Veteran Security Officers of Yorubalan On the Defence of Our Children, Our Schools, and the Yoruba Renaissance

To:
His Excellencies, the Executive Governors, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, Ogun and Lagos of the Southwestern States, Edo, Delta, Kwara and Kogi States,
His Imperial and Royal Majesties, the Traditional Obas of Yorubaland
The Chief Imams, Archbishops, Bishops, and Faith Leaders of Yorubaland
Leaders of Yoruba Socio-Cultural Organisations at Home and in the Diaspora
Commanders and Members of Vigilante Groups and Local Hunters’ Associations
Veteran Security Officers of Yoruba Extraction

From:
Agenda for Yoruba Unity, Reconciliation and Integration [AYURI]
i/c 84 Adekunle Fajuyi Way, Adamasingba, Mokola, Ibadan

On behalf of the Yoruba Renaissance Program Planning Committee
Prof. Ademola George Adegbolagun, Exec Vice President- AYURI

Date: 15th May 2026

Excelencies, Your Majesties, Distinguished Faith Leaders, Commanders and Elders,

E kaaro o. Mo ki yin gbogbo ni orukọ Omoluwabi, Iwa, Otito, ati Sũru.

I write not in anger, but in urgency. The recent abduction of children in Ogbomoso is a red line crossed. It is not merely a crime. It is an assault on the one industry that has defined the Yoruba for centuries: education.

For the Yoruba, education is more than a sector. It is our equalizer, our export, our pride. It produced the teachers, lawyers, doctors, traders, and statesmen who built modern Nigeria. If our schools become hunting grounds, we lose the competitive edge our ancestors bequeathed us.

We cannot afford diplomatic silence. We cannot afford fragmented responses. The AYURI platform was created for moments like this—to bring Obas, governors, veterans, vigilantes, faith leaders, socio-cultural groups, and youth under one table and speak as one Yoruba Nation.

What is at Stake

1. Our Children’s Future: Fear empties classrooms. A generation kept home is a generation condemned to poverty and subjugation.
2. Our Communities’ Stability: Attacks on schools paralyze markets, trade, and trust.
3. Our Cultural Integrity: The Yoruba are known for Omoluwabi—discipline, courage, and care for the young. Silence now betrays that name.

A Unified Response in Line with the AYURI Concept

AYURI’s mandate under Article XIV is cultural, socio-economic, and peacebuilding. It is not a rival to any institution. It is neutral ground for coordination. Here is what must be done now, together:

1. To His Excellencies, the Governors: Coordinate as One Region

• Declare the Ogbomoso incident a Southwest Security Emergency and activate joint intelligence sharing across all six states.
• Mandate fortified school security protocols for all public and private schools, especially those near forest corridors and state borders.
• Increase funding and legal backing for Amotekun and integrate it fully with vigilante groups and traditional hunters under a unified command structure.
• Set aside partisan differences. The Yoruba child has no party affiliation.

2. To Our Traditional Obas: Activate the Indigenous Security Architecture

• Reactivate and formalize local intelligence networks through town unions, market associations, and palace officials. No stranger moves unseen in Yorubaland if the system works.
• Convene emergency Obas’ security councils in each zone to work directly with governors and Amotekun commanders.
• Use the moral authority of the throne to mobilize communities for vigilance and to reject the harboring of criminals.

3. To Our Religious Leaders: Guard the Moral and Spiritual Front

• Lead communal prayers and fasting for the protection of our children and schools across mosques, churches, and traditional shrines on a designated day.
• Use pulpits, mimbar, and community gatherings to preach against kidnapping, to encourage intelligence sharing, and to condemn the harboring of criminals.
• Establish Faith-Based School Protection Committees in partnership with parents’ associations and local vigilantes to monitor vulnerable schools.
• The voice of faith still moves the people. Let it be used for courage, not silence.

4. To Our Socio-Cultural Organisations: Mobilise and Harmonise

• Afenifere, Yoruba Unity Forum, Ilana Omo Oodua, Apapo Omo Oodua, Oodua Redemption Alliance, and all diaspora bodies must submit position papers and nominate delegates to the AYURI Rennaissnce and Education Summit.
• Coordinate grassroots mobilisation, resource mobilisation, and media advocacy to keep school safety on the public agenda.
• AYURI will not compete with you. It provides the table where all strands of the Yoruba liberation and development movement are represented.

5. To Our Veteran Security Officers: Lend Your Expertise

• Form an Emergency Advisory Council of Yoruba Veterans under the AYURI platform to advise governors and Amotekun on actionable counter-terrorism, intelligence, and rapid response strategies.
• Your experience in national and international operations is irreplaceable. Yorubaland needs it now, not in retirement.

6. To Our Vigilantes and Hunters: Secure the Forests

• Work with Obas and Amotekun to conduct systematic clearing and monitoring of forests, abandoned settlements, and footpaths.
• Receive standardized training, communication equipment, and legal protection to operate without fear or criminalization.
• Report directly to the traditional authority and state command structure to avoid duplication and confusion.

The AYURI Pledge

AYURI will:

1. Host a Yoruba Rennaisance & Education Protection Summit on 23rd September 2026 at the International Conference Centre, Ibadan, to ratify a Yoruba Renaissance Security Protocol.
2. Establish State and Diaspora Implementation Cells to fund school fortification, intelligence networks, and support for affected families.
3. Document and share best practices across all Southwest states to ensure no community is left behind.

Conclusion: Let Ogbomoso Be the Last

If we allow school abductions to take root in the Southwest, no one is safe—not the rich in their estates, nor the poor in their quarters. If our children cannot learn in peace, the Yoruba Nation has no future.

We have the resources. We have the military intellect. We have the royal authority. We have the moral voice of our faith leaders. What is missing is unity of action.

Let us rise as one. Let the governors fund, the Obas lead, the religious leaders sanctify, the socio-cultural groups mobilise, the veterans advise, and the vigilantes guard. Let Ogbomoso be the last time these enemies dare to touch our children.

May Olodumare grant us wisdom, and may the spirit of our ancestors strengthen us to choose unity over division, and service over silence.

AYURI!!! Omoluwabi ni wa!!!
Iwa. Akinkanju. Otito. Sũru.

Yours in service to Yorubaland,

Prof. Ademola George Adegbolagun
Executive Vice President, AYURI
On behalf of the Yoruba Renaissance Program Planning Committee

Cc:

1. Council of Yoruba Elders [CYE]
2. Yoruba Unity Forum
3. Amotekun Commanders, Southwest
4. National Association of Hunters and Vigilantes, Yorubaland
5. Christian Association of Nigeria, SW Zone
6. League of Imams and Alfas, Yorubaland
7. File