Yoruba Welfare Group Visits Troubled Shasha Community, Preaches Peace & Unity

One week after conflict broke out between the Yoruba and the Hausa settlers in the popular Shasha Market in Akinyele Local Government Area of Oyo State, a group – Yoruba Welfare Group, has visited traditional rulers of the community, including Séríkí Hausa of Ṣhaṣhá, with a view to commiserating with them over the unfortunate incident.

The visit was predicated over what the group’s National President, Comrade Abdulhakeem Adegoke Alawuje, believed was imperative to douse ethnic tension by meeting both the leaders of the Yoruba and the Hausa communities.

According to him, it was necessary to live in peace by shunning acts capable of igniting tribal war as if it was not curtailed, it might lead to reprisal attacks as the Yoruba, who also live in the North, would become targets of attack.

 Alawuje said, “We are useful to each other and will always depend on ourselves to survive. Yorùbá people in the Northern part of the country are more than three states combined together in the South. We should not start what we cannot finish as there’s nothing good in war for those who have witnessed it before”.

Also, Oyo State Coordinator of the Yoruba group addressed the Baálé and the Community, urging them to prevail on their children to shun violence and be open to genuine reconciliation by living together in peace.

The Oyo Coordinator of the group was supported by another executive member, Comrade Babatunde shobowale, who made a passionate appeal to the Báalé, asking him to continue to ensure there is peaceful coexistence among various ethnic groups resident in his domain so as to avoid turning Yoruba into a battle ground so that the enemies’ plans to destabilise Yoruba ahead of 2023 would be thwarted.

Responding, Baálè of Shasha lauded the Yoruba Welfare Group for its timely intervention and visit.He described what happened at Shasha, which claimed tens of lives, as the handiwork of the devil, saying such never occurred in the community since the Yorùbá and the Hausa had been living together for decades.

Also, Otun Kabiyesi eulogized the Yoruba Welfare Group for its quick intervention by visiting the area. According to him, the community was still mourning their loss. He also begged the Yoruba Welfare Group to appeal to the Government not to relocate the market as the market remained the only source of revenue in the town.

A minor disagreement between a Yoruba woman and an Hausa man had last week triggered ethnic clash, resulting in wanton destruction of shops and houses as well as massive looting of goods in the ancient market. The Baale appealed to Yoruba Welfare Group’s President, saying the community would not accept any move to relocate the market as being speculated especially as both tribes were ready to give peace a chance.

Baale said the only assignment given to the Yoruba Welfare Group was to ensure that the market was not relocated to another place.He, however, blamed the crisis, which engulfed the market, on greed, saying some mischief makers from both tribes were bent on destroying the market in order to relocate it.

 Meanwhile, the group, which left the Yorùbá Baálé, proceeded to Séríkí Hausa of Ṣháshá, where President Adegoke Alawuje preached unity and peaceful coexistence.He said both tribes needed each other to survive, hence the need to shun violence became inevitable.

The National President of the Group, Comrade AbdulHakeem Adegoke, said “When you move out of the North, the only place you can see Hausa people settled and live comfortably is Yorubaland. And when you move out of Yorubaland, the only place you can see Yoruba people living comfortably is the North”. 
“Definitely, we must not keep quiet when something like this is happening between the Northerners and Westerners. We must come in and look for peace,” he added.
 “Our visitation is a reconciliation move and intervention.The aims and objectives of the Yoruba Welfare Group is to preach peace and the group is against banditry, kidnapping and terrorism.”
“Apart from these three things, Nigerian can live in any part of the country without any rancour.” 

The President reiterated their commitment to ensure that Nigerians lived in harmony and such things will never happen. He also appealed to Séríkí to tell members of his community who were already displaced for fear of reprisal to come back to their respective homes.

Responding, Séríkí Hausa thanked the group, exuding joy for the group’s quick intervention and visit while narrating how they had lived together for decades without any rancour until the devil struck last week.

Besides, he gave a brief historical background of the market.
“There is no rancour and nobody can relocate the market from Shasha”, Séríkí said.
He, however, begged the group to appeal to the Yoruba youths and their parents not to foment trouble again, saying, “I know how to handle my people but it’s left to the Yoruba”.
“That’s the only assignment given to the group for genuine reconciliation. Aside from this, we are ready to embrace peace and live peacefully with our brothers from the South. We want the Government not to play politics with the market.”