Orunmila Youngsters International of Nigeria yesterday accused federal government of allegedly planning to relegate traditional religion with the proposed National Conference.
The group in a communiqué jointly signed by its President, Surveyor Adefabi Dasola and the Secretary General, Priest Fayemi Fatunde Fakayode, after their meeting in Ibadan, lamented the non-inclusion of any traditionalist in the confab delegates.
According to the group, with their exclusion from the confab delegates list, it was glaring that federal government “is promoting discrimination and inequality in the country”.
“It is no more oblivious to us that Federal Government of Nigeria is directly involved in the unfair game of denigration and relegation against the traditional religion and her adherents,” it said.
We, the practitioners of Ifa /Orisa Religion have not seen why we should be denied representation in the upcoming National Conference while Muslims and Christians are duly given slots,” they said.
The group alleged further that “this makes it clear that the government is not interested in making this country a true egalitarian society; this is just a sign of oppression, discrimination and religious bigotry”.
It added: “As stipulated in the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, our right to freedom of Thought, Conscience and religion as well as that of freedom from discrimination are what we are deprived of.
“Our prayer is that the government, under President Goodluck Jonathan do the necessary thing to make sure that our interest is physically represented in the National Conference.”
