Let Me Rest, Rhodes-Vivour Started Yoruba Ronu, Dayo Israel Tells Obidients

A youth leader in the ruling All Progressives Congress, Dayo Israel, has said the candidate of the Labour Party in the past governorship election in Lagos, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, pioneered the Yoruba Ronu phrase.

Yoruba Ronu is a phrase that means Yoruba Think. It is often used to awaken the Yoruba ethnic group so as to prevent them from making wrong decisions.

The phrase became popular during the past general elections in Nigeria after it was used by Dayo Israel, following the loss suffered by then APC presidential candidate, President Bola Tinubu, in Lagos which he once governed.

Immediately it was announced that Tinubu, a Yoruba man who went on to become President, lost in Lagos to Peter Obi of the Labour Party, an Igbo man, Dayo Israel took to social media with the Yoruba Ronu phrase. This was to prevent the APC from suffering another loss in Lagos at the governorship poll.

The governorship election in Lagos was between incumbent Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Rhodes-Vivour and Adeniran Jandor of the Peoples Democratic Party.

Since Labour Party won the presidential election in Lagos State, though by a slim margin, it appeared as if the party, which fielded Rhodes-Vivour, whose mother is Igbo, was going to wrestle Lagos from the ruling APC.

A victory for the LP in the election would mean Lagos would be controlled by a party alien to the Yoruba people. This Dayo Israel may have frowned at, hence his apparent use of the Yoruba Ronu phrase, which eventually led to LP losing the election to APC’s Sanwo-Olu.

Since the loss suffered by the LP, its supporters, popularly known as Obidients, have been bugging Dayo Israel for the use of the Yoruba Ronu phrase, a thing they considered tribalistic.

Reacting, months after his usage of the phrase, Dayo Israel dug out an old post on X by Rhodes-Vivour in which the LP candidate made use of the same phrase to awaken Yoruba people. Rhodes-Vivour said, in response to a post, “Sense… Yoruba Ronu.”

Quoting the post, Dayo Israel shared on X, “Great to see that my friend, Gbadebo Rhode Vivour @GRVlagos of the Labour Party is the pioneer of Yoruba Ronu, as posted on 26 March 2021. I hope the Obidient would let me rest every time someone mentions Yoruba Ronu. Have a great week. But before I go, #ObidientRonu – you cannot continue to live in opposition, join hand with BAT and let’s make Nigeria great together. #obidientronu.”