Iwoland Development Coalition (IDC) is a non-political development group, with base in Iwo, Osun State. Every indigenes of the town is entitled for membership, however it takes committed effort and displayed patriotism to be one of the leading members, not necessarily how long you’ve been part of it.
Seriously, I still can’t believe it that some of us have negative motives toward this coalition despite the relentless effort of our founding members.
To be candid, and as a matter of fact on the issue regarding IDC, and some upcoming groups like Ileogbo Development Forum. I couldn’t believe it although it was foreseen and predicted. It is just that we didn’t know it would be this soon.
It is a great disappointment. I can vividly tell you that I am one of the brains behind IDC and many others you have not being hearing their names. Yet, still actively and partially partaking either financially or through other means in our activities.
IDC was initiated not for political motive. Its objective is mainly for community development and to call on all interested IWOLAND (AIYEDIRE, IWO, AND OLA-OLUWA LGA) indigenes home and abroad to come together as one and form a formidable force to contribute their quotas on social, economic, political and cultural development with no affiliation to any political party(ies).
Like a joke, we started on social media. I became a friend to our leader who is well known as Community Servant (CS) in person of Mr. Kabir Adisa Kulukulu (FCA) on Facebook whom I never met before until I came home. I got to know him through his activities and posts online about Guildance Community Development Foundation. We chatted, and later exchanged number and started calling each other from time to time on different ideas on how to make Iwoland become a city of our dream.
I realized that my own little boy’s heart and mind for development mirrors his on community development.
I have had my own RAI FOUNDATION on Facebook for a while which I used to help my friends and some associates within my reach. When I realized it was getting too much on me and my income wasn’t up to the request I kept getting from friends. I contacted him (CS) and decided to ask him to let us form a group that will champion development in our community. He (Mr Kabir Adisa) was mainly doing his community service through Guidance Community Development Foundation to people of Ibadan. I convinced him to let us focus mainly on Iwoland and get the youths of like minds together to work with. He agreed and we started fashioning out ideas.
IDC was initially known as IWO PROJECT on Facebook and BBM Group. The name was an idea of Ambassador Saheed Akintunde “Akeweje” aka Democrat.
Saheed Akintunde’s motive was to use IWO PROJECT to replace #IWOLOKAN2018 slogan. #Iwolokan2018 was hash-tagged by Alhaji Toafiq Odunayo Badru aka ElCerebro. His intention was to use the name to champion Osun State Gubernatorial for IWO. Mr Akintunde Saheed’s concern was that the name iwolokan2018 sounded somehow and may create hatred for IWO among its Osun West Senatorial District members.
We quickly think of something else and adopted Iwo Project as our name and it was mainly myself, Saheed Akintunde, Tunde Fatunmbi, Engr Shuaib Alabi Pedro. Few days later, Tunde Badru “Dat Iwo-Boi”, Alh Odunayo Badru, Alh Ahmed Abdulraheed Saheed Alausa, Yusuf Saliman, Musa Fatai Freedom, Mr Kabir Adisa and then Prince Adewale Akanbi (now Oba Adewale Akanbi, Oluwo of Iwoland) joined us. We also contacted few others like Barr Kabir Alayo, Com Akin Asifat Gofment, Aremo Maruf Adedapo, Prince Jide Osunwo to be mentioned but few.
Our first initiative was health clinic which was to address the health situation in Iwoland. We later swung into action by patching of Adeeke- Odo Ori road which was led by Oba Adewale Akanbi, Mr Adisa Kabiru Adeniyi and Mr Tunde Badru aka Dat Iwo-Boi acted as the secretary to the group.
As time flew by, I realized that Mr Kabir Adisa was tirelessly working on how to build Health Clinic for the people of Iwo/Akinbami Village due to unavailability of either clinic or hospital in that village and was to be championed by Guildance Community Development Foundation and Airtel Telecommunication. He informed me and many other people with good heart for community development. Mr Adisa initiated a whatsapp group mainly to discuss and champion this cause and also to source for fund. We started sharing contacts of people to reach out in gathering financial support and after so many trials and an unexpected accident that nearly took the life of Engr Shu’aib Alabi Pedro and Engr Yusuf Adeleye “Abu Haneefa”, we finally commissioned AKINBAMI HEALTH CLINIC in Ayedire Local Government.
Later, we challenged ourselves and ask for physical meeting instead of an online. The idea of meeting physically was mentioned by Alh Adebayo Lasis (FCA) and the first meeting took place at 155 Bowen Street Oke-Odo, Iwo hosted by Mr Kabir Adisa. Among people expected were Alh Bayo Lasisi (FCA) one of our pioneer fathers of this initiative though, he could not make it to the meeting. But there were over ten members at the meeting like; Mr Kabir, Mr Tunde Badru, Mrs Gbemisola Adisa-Lawal, Adisa Idayat Abisola, Sulaiman Olaide, Sheu Roji, Muslim Lukman and few others I couldn’t remember.
In summary, several names were suggested at this meeting to name our group which Iwoland Development Coalition (IDC) was later adopted at the second meeting after several deliberations. This was how IDC came to birth and existence.
Mr Kabir Adisa was collectively agreed to be coordinating it due to his community service and humanitarian experience and being the founder of GCDF and initiator of ongoing Akinbami Health Clinic Project. He was the one funding most of the assignments to be embarking on by himself before we formed this coalition and started calling for help.
How did we get other local government involved is another big task and with this he deserves a very big applause.
Mr Kabir Adisa was the one sourcing for members across the globe that are people from Iwoland. He started calling and giving them follow up on the needs to develop our community by ourselves. Among the big fishes we got with open heart was Mallam Olawale Rasheed through Comd Akin Gofment’s recommendation, Lekan Afonrinwo, Engr Semiu Odeyinka and many others. Later people like Prince Lekan Aforiwo, Prince Ayo Ojedokun, Elder Bisi Ogunkale, and others were also contacted and joined us along the way and we all had no issue or rancor but fostering and prospering with good faith and unity, and love became our founding spirit.
Later, due to known or unknown political reason of some elements among us. Some guys started distracting the group and causing chaos, forming sub-groups and group within the same group which I can say it is normally wherever because where there is a large number of people, such things should definitely be expected.
To my greatest surprise, I was called and informed that some people have started discouraging our financiers and calling for their heads or asking them to stop supporting our initiatives that Iwo people only wants Iwo to be developed with no interest in its suburb or environs. This same few people that orchestrated this divisive action were the one that later formed their own forum.
May we all be rewarded according to our motives.
To me, when I was informed of their ongoing activities, I told all members that it is a good idea. IDC alone cannot do it. Let us have sub-groups and branches that will be doing similar things, what we all want is development except that we shouldn’t be distracted, divided but rather let us make sure our mission and objective still remain the same. But the motive of these guys were not meant to foster the same IDC ideology but to dislodge, break, divide and cause enmity within IDC all because of their selfish and personal political interest to champion the motive of their principal they believe in. With their hope that it will render IDC powerless.
We are not asking for other group(s) not to be formed, inasmuch it is for the development of our community. With no joke, what we won’t condone is to divide IDC to form theirs. It won’t be easy and anyone we find stealing our ideas without our knowledge or approval, such persons if happened to be in our group may be likely be removed or permanently banned only if his or her action is bringing chaos and misunderstanding among us.
In summary, IDC doesn’t belong to anyone, it belongs to us all but there must be a leader and decision makers in a group of hundreds of people. And for you to be among leading decision making members, you will have to display exemplary leadership trait and commitment per excellence and not bit and beg ideas.
IDC has come to stay and nothing shall deter us. We are ready to do what is necessary and we must act decisively.
Thanks a bunch to all our members and every committed fellows of this selfless founding members for their relentless commitment.
Rufai, Adeniyi Ismail is the Executive Director of RAI Foundation, a non govermental organisation in Iwo, Osun State.