At the time of his death, which sadly occurred in the late hours of April 2, 2021, Yinka Odumakin was the National Publicity Secretary of Afenifere, the leading socio-cultural interest group in South-Western Nigeria.

The activist died of complications which arose from contracting COVID-19, but he will be remembered for living a life that was colourful, if not necessarily long.

His Early Life

Odumakin was born at Moro in Ife North Local Government of Osun State on December 10, 1966, barely seven months before the outbreak of the Nigerian civil war. He attended St. Augustine Primary School, Ondo State. For his secondary school education, he first attended CAC Grammar School, Edunabon, Osun State, before switching to Oduduwa College, Ile-Ife, in Osun State.

An Activist Is Born

In 1986, Odumakin gained admission to study English Language at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife. While at the university, he worked as a reporter for the Punch Newspaper. It was also during his undergraduate days that his activism began: he was a member of the university’s Democratic Socialist Movement, and he served as a Public Relations Officer of the university’s Student Union Government. He was also a member of the Alliance of Progressive Students (ALPS).

In 1988, Odumakin led some students of OAU to protest against the Babangida regime, on the grounds that the military government was “recolonising the country”. The school authorities suspended Odumakin and six other students, but this decision was quashed by the Oyo State High Court and the students were reinstated. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English Language in 1989.

Shortly after his graduation from OAU, he joined the Guardian Newspaper, where he worked as a reporter until 1993, when he left to form Effective Company Limited in collaboration with Femi Ige, a friend, fellow graduate of OAU and former colleague at the Guardian Newspaper. Odumakin was a key player in the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), the political movement that spoke against the dictatorial policies and antics of General Sani Abacha. His involvement with NADECO got him into trouble with the military government, leading to his arrest and subsequent detention.

A Love Story: How Yinka Met Joe

In 1997, he was introduced to Josephine Obiajulu Okei (now Dr. Joe Odumakin) by Gani Fawehinmi while he was in detention at the State CID, Alagbon, for opposing the military junta led by General Sani Abacha. Ms. Okei, herself an activist who had been imprisoned multiple times during the Babangida administration, agreed to marry him, even while the situation looked precarious: she had just been transferred from a prison facility in Ilorin, Kwara State. To quote Rihanna, they found love in a hopeless place. They got married on November 4, 1997.

Yinka and Joe Odumakin started their romance in the most unlikely of circumstances. Photo: Premium Times.. 

“Who meets and marries from detention in Alagbon? Only Yinka would ask, and only I would say yes”, Dr. Joe Odumakin wrote last week in her tribute to her late husband. “We were introduced to each other by the most qualified and the most decorated of inmates – Chief Gani Fawehinmi…it was our truest solemnisation of activist matrimony by a revered High Priest of the struggle…with the trench as our altar and the good of our people as our ultimate goal”.

In an interview with The Punch Newspaper in October 2016, the late activist revealed that the major quality that attracted him to the woman who would later be his wife, was her courage.

“I was first attracted by her guts”, he said. “I was swept off my feet by the fact that a woman could be that bold in a season where a lot of men were lily-livered”.

Odumakin, The Social Commentator and Critic

In 2011, Odumakin worked as the spokesman for the presidential campaign of Muhammadu Buhari. During the 2015 presidential elections, he changed course, opting instead to support (then) President Goodluck Jonathan. In an interview with the Punch Newspaper, he gave reasons for his decisions, stating that there had been “so many shiftings” in Buhari’s principles between 2011 and 2015. He was very critical of the Buhari administration until his death.

In four years, Odumakin went from being Buhari’s spokesman to being one of his fiercest critics. Photo: Newswire. 

Odumakin was a firm advocate for national restructuring, and until his demise, he argued in its favour at every opportunity he got. His stand intensified after the 2014 National Conference, which he attended with his wife. At the 2019 Independence Day lecture on Social Contract and Leadership in Nigeria (organised by The Change We Need In Nigeria Initiative), he argued that Nigeria was at the risk of disintegration, and was in dire need of restructuring.

“Let’s go back to what our founding fathers agreed”, he said at the event. “When we do this, there is a chance for Nigeria to survive, but if we continue the way we are going, that would be disintegration”.

Odumakin was very vocal about his demands for restructuring. Photo: The Cable. 

In 2018, President Muhammadu Buhari changed the date for Nigeria’s Democracy Day celebrations from May 29 to June 12, with a view to acknowledging the annulled elections of June 12, 1993, which have been widely regarded as “the freest and fairest elections that Nigeria has ever had”. On June 12, 2019, in an interview with The Guardian Newspaper, Odumakin questioned the essence of Buhari’s decision, stating that marking that date without implementing the ideals of June 12 amounted to a mockery of the late M.K.O Abiola.

“This is just a mere attempt to score some political points, I do not see it beyond that”, he noted. “This action does not mean that they have accepted the ideals of June 12. For instance, the spirit of June 12 is about free and fair elections. Do we have this today?”

Odumakin was initially sceptical about the operations and functionality of the Amotekun security outfit, and was not shy in expressing his displeasure. In a 2019 interview with the Guardian Newspaper, he argued that true federalism, not Amotekun, was what South-Western Nigeria needed to rid itself of insecurity.

“You’re in a cage, and instead of you looking for freedom, you are looking for a shortcut”, said Odumakin. “Until we fight for federalism to get our autonomy so that we can be in charge of our security, and our governors can be the chief security officers of their states, Operation Amotekun will simply be a waste of time”.

Odumakin had initial reservations about the Amotekun security outfit. Photo: Daily Trust. 

However, he back-tracked on this position soon after. In a 2020 appearance on Channels Television, he explained that Amotekun was crucial to the protection of South-Westerners.

“Those who are afraid are criminals troubling the South-West”, he said during a segment of the show Sunrise Daily.

The emergence of Sunday Igboho as a leading voice in South-Western Nigeria attracted a lot of divided opinion, but Odumakin was one of those who spoke against the federal government’s alleged attempt to arrest him. On behalf of Afenifere, Odumakin berated Nigerian security operatives, condemning their purported harassment of Igboho.

Odumakin is the latest top Nigerian personality to succumb to the Coronavirus. In 2020, On-Air Personality Dan Foster, former Chief of Staff Abba Kyari, former Oyo State governor Abiola Ajimobi, artist BigLo, and motivational speaker Ubong King all died from the virus.

Final Respects

All over the country and beyond, tributes have been pouring in for the late activist and thought leader.

“This is a sad one for me. We came from the students’ movement and collaborated in the National Consultative Forum (NCF), led by Aka Bashorun, and later, Campaign for Democracy (CD). His office at Jebba Street (West), Ebute Metta was always a beehive. Rest in power, Yinka”, Abdul Mahmud, a Nigerian lawyer and human rights advocate, tweeted on April 3, 2021.

Bola Ahmed Tinubu, National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who was frequently criticised by Odumakin in his latter years, described the departed statesman as a sincere Nigerian.

“Even if we differed politically, I had no cause to doubt his sincerity in charting his chosen path”, said Tinubu in a press statement eulogising Odumakin. “He will forever remain a model of what a citizen who places the good of his country above his personal interest could be.”

Odumakin may have lived a relatively short life, but he clearly made a huge impression on Nigeria’s political landscape, particularly the South-West. Dogged, resilient and fearless, he was admired by many, and earned the respect of even his foes. People like him only show up once every generation, and it is not out of place to say that the country has lost a gem. He will be missed.