The Arewa Youth Assembly (AYA), which handed down the ultimatum on Friday, said the demand came on the heels of a declaration of Yoruba sovereignty made by Mr Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho.
The group said Adeyemo had given his Yoruba kinsmen three days to move out of the North. The speaker of the Assembly, Mohammed Salihu Danlami, in a statement, called on stakeholders in the country to reject anything that could cause confusion in the land.
Danlami said: “One Mr Sunday Igboho issued a press statement in which he said enough is enough; that the time for Yoruba nation is now, and that they will no longer accommodate and accept the presence of northerners.
“This is despite the fact that the constitution of the country has made it crystal clear that any Nigerian can live in any part of the country, irrespective of his or her religious and tribal placements.
“Since it is Igboho who wants his people out of the North to form a Yoruba nation, we will make it easy for him by asking Mr Igboho to provide a means of transportation to convey his people to the South West.” The statement noted that Sunday Igboho had continuously threatened the lives and property of Northerners living in the South West for no reason.
“We have kept quiet for the sake of peace and for respect for the laws of our country but as Mr Igboho rightly said, enough is enough,” it added.
The group called on Northern elders, traditional rulers and all security agencies to support them in accomplishing the task of evacuating Yoruba people out of the 19 Northern states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, in a peaceful manner.
NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
