Beyond the Battlefield: Inside a Security Dialogue With the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland

Dr. Oludare Ogunlana and Iba Gani Adams, the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland

Before I left Nigeria this week, I paid a courtesy visit to Iba Gani Adams, the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland. It was a deliberate stop at a difficult moment for our region, and I left the meeting more convinced than ever that the South-West is thinking seriously about its future.

"The goal is a South-West free from fear and free from want, where people move freely by road and by rail, and our children are back in school."

A title carried from empire into democracy

In the days of the Oyo Empire, the Aare Ona Kakanfo was the generalissimo. He commanded the military wing of the empire, and his word carried the weight of war. That world is gone, but Kankanfo remains relevant by defining his role in the modern era. We now live under a constitution, in a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. We have organized law enforcement, an organized military, and a defined structure of government. In this era, the office of the Aare Ona Kakanfo is largely ceremonial and cultural, a bridge to our past so that we never forget who we are. Its true modern power is advisory, strategic, and symbolic.

The current Aare succeeded the late Chief M.K.O. Abiola, the icon of the June 12 struggle, who held the title before him. That lineage matters. It reminds us that the office has long since moved from the battlefield into the arenas of politics, culture, and social mobilization.

"The office has moved from the battlefield into the arenas of politics, culture, and social mobilization. Its power today is to lead, to convene, and to shape strategy that fits the constitutional order."

Why the visit mattered now

Insecurity has pressed hard into Yorubaland. Kidnappers, bandits, and terrorists have pushed into the South-West. We have watched them operate in Ondo, in Ekiti, in Osun, in Kwara, and in Oyo. The mass abduction of teachers and schoolchildren in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State shocked the entire region because we had never before witnessed mass kidnapping on that scale in Yorubaland.

Many voices have called on the Aare, as the symbolic generalissimo, to act. But we must not forget that the era of the empire is not the era we live in today. He cannot lawfully raise a private army. What he can do is lead, convene, and shape a strategy that fits the modern constitutional order. That is exactly the conversation we had.

A plan that looks forward, not backward

Sitting with Iba Gani Adams, I found a leader with a clear and forward-looking agenda. We spoke frankly, in both open and private conversation, about how our people move forward together.

His thinking runs on modern rails. He is thinking about cybersecurity and artificial intelligence. He is thinking about a regional security operations center, a war room to fuse intelligence and coordinate response. He is thinking about an institute to train security personnel under a South-West security framework, where they learn intelligence gathering, technology, and the use of drones to support state policing and formal law enforcement in defending our land.

He is also thinking beyond guns and gates. He is concerned about the flood of drugs reaching our young people. The recent discovery of a methamphetamine laboratory at Tapa in Ibarapa North, and another in Ogun State, shows how real that danger has become. He wants to work with the NDLEA and with the government so that our children return to school, do well, and grow into productive adults.

Above all, he understands that security is not only physical. It is human. When farmers can no longer reach their farms because bandits forbid it, hunger follows. So he is thinking about food security, about human security, and about weaving everything together for the well-being of our people. He is also thinking about knowledge transfer, about calling home the best of our diaspora doctors and engineers to build not only Yoruba land but Nigeria as a whole.

"Security is not only physical. It is human. When farmers can no longer reach their farms, hunger follows."

My counsel, and my commitment

As the CEO of OGUN Security Research and Strategic Consulting, I pledged my support and my best wishes. I also offered candid counsel. Every part of this vision must be pursued in collaboration with the government. He will need to understand the policies and work with the governors, the presidency, and the security agencies. That is how the objective becomes reality.

And the objective is worth every effort. It is a South-West where our people are free from fear and free from want. A region where everyone can move freely, by road and by rail, without the dread of being kidnapped and ransomed. A place where young people are encouraged to go to school and acquire the knowledge that the modern day demands.

That is a future worth building. OSRS will help build it.

Professor Oludare Ogunlana, Ph.D. National Security Scholar | Founder and CEO, OGUN Security Research and Strategic Consulting LLC Intelligence.

Intelligence. Protection. Strategy.