Alake is a junior traditional ruler in Yorubaland – Awujale

Awujale of Ijebuland

The Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Adetona, has described the Alake of Egbaland as a junior traditional ruler in the hierarchy of Yoruba obas.

Oba Adetona, who spoke on Thursday in Lagos, said it was wrong for the incumbent Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo, to categorise himself as one of the five topmost traditional rulers in Yorubaland.

He said even within the Abeokuta community in Ogun State where the Alake reigns, he is the least among the four traditional rulers there.

Adetona, who spoke in Lagos at the launch of an endowment fund for a professorial chair in governance in the Department of Political Science, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye, Ogun State, said it had become imperative to set the records straight since Oba Gbadebo had not disowned the statement credited to him on the issue.

Oba Gbadebo had during a visit to him by the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, on February 7, 2016, said he was among the leading Yoruba obas.

Oba Adetona, speaking on Thursday, said Oba Gbadebo was inexperienced, hence the need to tutor him.

He said: “Your Excellencies, distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, kindly allow me to digress a bit to comment briefly on a statement that emanated from the Ake Palace recently. Not long after the installation of Oba Alaiyeluwa Adeyeye Ogunwusi as the Ooni of Ife, he undertook steps to foster unity and cooperation among leading Yoruba Obas and for which I personally commend him.

First, he joined the Alaafin at his 77th Birthday Celebration at Oyo. Thereafter, he visited me at Ijebu-Ode on Friday, 29th January, 2016 followed by another visit to Abeokuta on Sunday, 7th February, 2016 where he met Oba Adedotun Aremu Gbedebo in his palace at Ake, Abeokuta, the Osile, Oke-Ona Egba at Ago-Oko, Abeokuta, the Olowu in his palace at Owu, Abeokuta with the exception of the Agura of Gbagura, Abeokuta who was not around then.

“The Alake, while receiving the Ooni at his palace said that Yoruba Obas (the Big Five so to say) had been categorised with the Ooni in the first position followed by the Alaafin, the Oba of Benin, with the Alake coming fourth and the Awujale as the fifth in that order. He also went further to quote wrongly from a 1903 Gazette to support all the fallacies in his statement. When I learnt of the statement, I made several calls to Alake until I eventually succeeded in finding out from him if those statements were actually made by him, which of course, he vehemently denied.

“In a recent discussion between the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu and I, we also touched on the same issue and the Oba of Lagos told me that he too had asked Alake the same question, which he had again denied vehemently. Regrettably however, when the said statement few days later was continuously credited to Alake on the pages of newspapers, I expected him to deny it or issue a rebuttal, but he did not do so.

Therefore, I consider it necessary to debunk the aforementioned falsehood and misrepresentation of facts from Ake Palace so as to put the records straight.
“First, I would like to make it abundantly clear that the 1903 Gazette referred to by Alake was just a Newspaper publication that he, in his self-serving role is now presenting as an official Government Gazette. The first question to Alake is: Who categorised the Yoruba Obas and when? I challenge him to produce the document of the said categorisation. It is a known fact that Alake was a junior traditional ruler under the Alaafin at Orile Egba before he fled to Ibadan for refuge as a result of the war then ravaging in Yorubaland. Following the defeat of Owu by the Ijebu Army in 1826, the Owus became refugees all over Yorubaland. Some of the Ijebu troops that fought the war proceeded to Ibadan where they met Alake and sacked him, consequently forcing him to seek refuge at Ake in Abeokuta in 1830 where of course, he met the Osile, Olowu, and Agura already settled at Oke-Ona, Owu and Gbagura sections of Abeokuta Township respectively. Even then, the Olubara, of Oyo origin had always argued that all the aforementioned four rulers met him in Abeokuta and therefore claimed to be their landlord. To even refer to Alake as ‘Alake of Abeokuta” not to talk of Egbaland, is a misnomer, as his control since his arrival at Ake in 1830 and till today is restricted to Ake section of Abeokuta.

The official Government Gazette testifies to this fact. In short, the Alake from history and all available records is a very junior traditional ruler in Yorubaland. His peers in Ijebuland are the Dagburewe of Idowa, Ajalorun of Ijebu-Ife, Akija of Ikija–Ijebu, Olowu of Owu-Ijebu, Oloko of Ijebu-Imushin, Orimolusi of Ijebu-Igbo and Ebumawe of Ago-Iwoye.

“I wish to recall that there had been an occasion in the past for three of us – the Awujale, the late Alake, Oba Oyebade Lipede and the late Oba Okunade Sijuwade, the Ooni of Ife – to sit over this issue with former President Olusegun Obasanjo at Aso Rock, Abuja. My advice to Alake, being a young and inexperienced traditional ruler, is that he should contact Chief Olusegun Obasanjo for proper education so as to save himself and his people from further embarrassment.

“It is important for Alake’s education to appreciate that Ijebu has been in existence for almost 1,000 years and that we are the only people that still remain in our original homestead while other Yoruba towns and villages have relocated twice or more.

If only he cares to obtain a copy of the Book: ‘The Ijebu of Yorubaland 1850-1950’ by the late Prof. E. A. Ayandele, that erudite Professor of History and endeavour to read it, there, he will know who the Ijebus are and appreciate that from time immemorial and since our settlement on Ijebu soil, Ijebu was indeed a nation until 1892 when we were defeated in the Magbon War by the British colonial forces. As to be expected, the British colonial masters left no stone unturned to humiliate us for daring to engage them in a war.

“When Sir Gilbert Carter read Intelligence Reports on Ijebuland at the Home Office in London, he felt convinced that the Ijebus were a special breed. Therefore, when he later found himself as Governor of Lagos Colony, he prepared a Treaty for the Awujale to sign so as to allow the Missionaries to educate and evangelize the people as well as surrender their monopoly of trade between the coast and hinterland and for which he offered an annual payment of 800 pounds that was rejected.

“Notwithstanding the conquest, our early contact with the expatriates was quite significant and rewarding. It was during this period that our God-given commercial acumen was brought to play, resulting in enormous prosperity for the Ijebus to the envy of our neighbours.

“In conclusion, I hereby strongly admonish Alake to refrain from making such unsavoury, unguarded and unfounded statements, which if not checked, may seriously jeopardise the unity of Yoruba.

Dr. Ben Carson endorses Donald Trump for President

Dr. Ben Carson with Donald Trump

"Our country is at a crossroads and in the midst of a moral crisis. We must be careful not to continue our current path, which is littered with uncertainty at best and ruination at worst. We can make changes to our system and that change starts now with, “We the People.”

We can have disagreements, but it is critical that we not allow those disagreements to divide us as a party or as a country.

It is with that in mind that I endorse Donald Trump for President. I have known Donald for many years. He is a successful businessman who has built a recognizable global brand that no one can question. His experience as a businessman is exactly what we need to move our economic engine in the right direction and empower those who have been left out of the American dream for far too long.

With our support, I am sure that we can help restore America's values and faith.

I know there will be some who want to underscore our differences and others will wish to return to statements he has made about me in the past, but that is politics. As a man of faith, all is forgiven and we have moved beyond the past, as the future is now.

Join me in supporting and rallying around the only candidate the GOP has that can defeat Hillary Clinton in 2016 and return America to that shining city on a hill."

Lagos monarchs visit Ambode, laud prompt rescue of abducted school girls

Governor Ambode with Lagos Monarchs

...Counsel Lagosians On Security Alertness
...Commendation Will Spur Us To Do More, Says Gov

The Lagos State Council of Traditional Rulers and Chiefs on Thursday commended the State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode and all the security agencies in the state for the prompt and successful rescue of the students of Babington Macaulay Junior Seminary School in Ikorodu who were kidnapped by gunmen at their school on February 29.

The traditional rulers, who stated this when they paid a courtesy visit to the Governor at the Lagos House in Ikeja, said the swift response and collaboration between the state government and security agencies which culminated in the rescue of the three affected girls and arrest of the hoodlums, was highly commended and that same was an eloquent confirmation that security and welfare of the people is paramount to the current administration in the state.

Briefing journalists at the end of the visit, Oba of Lagos, HRM Rilwan Akiolu said the kidnap of the girls had again brought to the fore the need to remind Lagosians to be security conscious and be alert at any given point in time.

He said: "We are here to appreciate what God has done in the recovery of the abducted school girls and to thank the Governor, the security forces, particularly the Commissioner of Police, the State Director of DSS, the Commander of 9th Mechanised Division of the Nigerian Army and all other security forces who worked tirelessly in the recovery of the three children.

"They really moved in on time and they achieved success with God's guidance and help. So, we are here to appreciate them and to alert the people on the need to be security conscious. We are also here to pray for the success of the Lagos State Government and to brief the Governor on the outcome of my visit to Saudi Arabia with Mr. President.

"We were very happy when we heard the news of the rescue of the girls and you see the efficacy of prayer is not in doubt. All hands were on deck and God heard our prayers and we were very happy. The Governor played the role of a father, an administration and of a man who cared for the welfare of his people, and our prayer is that God almighty will continually be with him and all of us," Oba Akiolu said.

Responding, Governor Ambode said the primary purpose of government is to ensure the security and welfare of the people, assuring that his administration would not renege in keeping faith with that role.

He thanked the monarchs for finding time to come and appreciate what his administration has been doing especially in terms of security, saying that the visit would further spur him to do more for the people.

"I just want to say a very big thank you to my royal fathers, my chiefs and this is coming from the bottom of my heart because for you to have thought it necessary to come and show appreciation about what has happened about our security situation in the last one week means that the concern that you have brought here is about the progress and unity of Lagos State in general.

"What you have done will more or less inspire us to do more. Your visit to the Lagos House today in respect of the three children that were kidnapped and later recovered is to send a message that you are in support of all our security agencies and you are also in support of the government with the way we have given security the required attention.

"You will recall also that the paramount reason why we are in government is for the safety and welfare of all Lagosians and we would not renege in ensuring that we keep Lagos safe and ensure that the lives and property of all Lagosians are of paramount importance to us," the Governor said.

STATEMENT REGARDING TRUMP CAMPAIGN CHICAGO RALLY POSTPONEMENT

Donald Trump

Mr. Trump just arrived in Chicago and after meeting with law enforcement has determined that for the safety of all of the tens of thousands of people that have gathered in and around the arena, tonight’s rally will be postponed to another date.

Thank you very much for your attendance and please go in peace.

Ambode restates commitment to civil service reforms

…Says only a viable workforce can drive govt policies, programmes

…Oyo-ita commends gov, seeks stronger fg-lagos collaboration

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode on Friday restated his administration’s commitment to reforms in the state civil service, saying that only a viable workforce can drive the policies and programmes of any government.

The Governor who spoke when he received the Head of Service of the Federation, Mrs Winifred Oyo-Ita, on a courtesy at the Lagos House, Ikeja, said he remains a strong supporter of public service reforms, adding that any government desirable of making positive change in the lives of the citizenry must have a motivated and trained workforce.

“We do not have any choice, because the engine room of whatever it is that is our policy or programme is actually in the public service and in the civil service, so it is important that we must tag along on the same wave length with all the civil servants for us to be able to achieve all the programmes our party, the APC has decided to put across to all Nigerians,” he said.

He assured Mrs. Oyo-Ita of his administration’s continuous support to enhance the partnership between the state and federal government in the areas of training and retraining of public servants, saying that it was germane to ensuring continuity in governance.

“So it is in our better interest that we enhance this relationship. I give you my commitment further to say that there is value in it, it is important that we build a virile civil service that can stand the test of time that even when programmes do change or parties do change, the bull work of the machinery of deliverables to our people which is the civil service, remains very strong. That is what I am committed to”.

He also pledged his commitment to collaborate with the Federal Government on enhancing the commercial nature of the public service, expressing optimism that it if put in the right perspective, it could engender economic growth and increase the GDP of the nation.

Earlier, Mrs. Oyo-Ita said she was in Lagos to visit some of the federal institutions in the state, just as she sought the Governor’s support towards revving the comatose nature of some of the federal training institutes so as to make them efficient.

“I am very passionate about training and retraining civil servants. No doubt, you will agree with me that no matter how eloquent and excellent the policy thrust of government may be, the civil service is the engine room and if the workforce are not well trained they cannot in anyway bring to realisation, the lofty goals of that administration and that is why we are looking back into what we have already developed over the years but somehow, it has been left to decay.

“When you see what is going on in our training institutes, for example, the Federal Training Centre in Lagos that I visited yesterday it needs a lot of work to bring it back to the level that it is expected of it. That is why I am putting a lot of effort into restructuring our training institutes, the facilities, they have the infrastructure and the resource persons, its curriculum and so on, so that we can bring it up to an international level whereby we have people coming from other African and West African countries as it happened in times past. This is one place we need your support,” she said.

Oyo-Ita also highlighted the intentions of her office to improve on the commercial orientation of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the Federal Government, saying the economic downturn has made it imperative for MDAs to become more commercial oriented.

She lauded Governor Ambode’s strides in the last nine months, saying that the impact of his policies and programmes are already being felt across the state.

“Indeed it is an honour to be given this opportunity to visit and pay a courtesy call on my own brother and classmate. When we left UNILAG in 1984, we never thought that when we meet, we would be meeting in this capacity because we were wearing jeans and tee-shirt and snickers and just going our happy way. We thank God for what he has used us to do in our various environments.

“That is why I am here to congratulate you on your well deserved election and appointment as Executive Governor of Lagos State, we are already seeing what you are doing in this state, you are continuing with the zeal and passion of your predecessors,” she said.

The Love for Selective Amnesia By Ayobami Oyalowo

Ayobami Oyalowo

A nation that forgets its past can function no better than an individual with amnesia. - David McCullough

"Maybe they were saying chains when we thought it was change", blurted a certain social media senator, who has made the cyberspace his default "chamber". And before you could say Jack Robinson, a hashtag,‪#‎ChangeToChains‬, metamorphosed on twitter with various irascible characters jumping on the bandwagon with little or no understanding of what they were saying. Worse still, they could not muster concise and intelligent reason(s) for their anger aside the fact that they just want to be seen as angry.

What seems to be the cause of their anger in the first instance? Some said there were fuel queues; others said the economy was in comatose etc. Justifiable anger, won't you say? No, you are wrong. Most of the folks pouring expletives actually have conveniently forgotten so soon (like the Israelites who were liberated from over 400 years of captivity in Egypt) where we were coming from. As at middle of May 2015, most of the telecommunication companies were sending emails and text messages to their customers appealing to their understanding on why they should expect serious disruption in services due to the twin problems of power failure and lack of petroleum products to run their offsite generators.

Last Friday, 4th March, a Muslim friend of mine was rushing to the mosque for jumat prayers and we stuck a casual conversation. We both reminisced on how just a few months ago, going to the mosque or church on Sunday for prayers could be your last as there may either be a bomb blast or some deranged fellows lurking somewhere with sub machine guns. But today, we have almost forgotten that our lives were lived in such fears that daily living was a miracle.

Yes, Nigeria is not yet an Eldorado, sadly so, but while we are not where we ought to be, the truth is that we are not where we used to be. For those screaming economic downturn, I am wont to ask what economy? We have been a country with no economy aside being the dumping ground of finished goods from China and other countries. While the Asian Tigers are competing on how to be the best in terms of production, privileged elites in Nigeria are competing to outdo one another on consumerism.

Our shame as a nation reached abysmal levels when we became the butt of jokes of others as it relates to a product that we used to be its sixth largest producer. Petroleum was our major, if not the only product, yet we unashamedly sold it in its raw form, and then spent our hard-earned foreign exchange to import the same product in its refined form, thereby costing us not just several by products but millions of primary and secondary employment.

The current government, however, came with a three-pronged approach of security, anti-corruption and revamping the economy. In the last ten months even the blind can see that the North East that was almost totally lost to the rampaging Boko Haram murderers has regained relative peace and the monumental corruption that had hitherto hampered our growth as a nation is now being fought with renewed vigour. The erstwhile comatose EFCC has regained a new impetus to take on economy scavengers headlong (never mind the Awada Kerikeri posturing of former President Obasanjo).

There is no gainsaying that until security is fully in place, the economy will continue to suffer gridlock. But be that as it may, the federal government is doing its best under the circumstances it found itself. The Nigerian custom service is declaring revenue within months beyond what the revenue agency has ever declared in the past years.

Make no mistake about it, the Nigeria that president Buhari inherited was almost a broken entity characterised by dwindling revenue due to the plummeting international crude oil prices, mounting domestic and foreign debt, tumbling foreign reserves and a wicked gang up of supposed leaders who were doing nothing but stealing and looting the country with reckless abandon.

Recall that when this administration took over, 27 states owed between 5-12 month arrears of salaries of civil servants. Yet, I hear people wailing that the president Buhari has done nothing? Bombs were exploding all over the country like firecrackers, but today we have relative peace and people still think the president is sleeping? Military chiefs saddled with security of our lives and properties are today singing like canaries and confessing to how much they stole individually and collectively, and I still hear some trumpeting that Buhari has done nothing? Over N3 trillion which would have been stolen by "ghosts" have been saved due to strict adherence to TSA yet some say Buhari isn't doing anything?

Frankly speaking, we are not where we should be. But it was Cheryl James, who posited that Change is not an event, it's a process. If in ten months we have come this far, the least we can do as patriots is to support the government to do more.

We are not helping anybody by wishing the government to fail just so that we can say "I told you so". What patriots should do in times like this is to support the government with intelligent criticism and advice on getting it right, not moaning for the heck of it or wishing for the failure of government.

I have seen a lot of positives in the past ten months. I have also observed some things that can be done better. However, I will opt for where we are today rather than where we were about twelve months ago.

This brings to mind George Bernard Shaw's poignant counsel that "Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything."

Agreed that Nigeria deserves more than it is getting, but who can build without a foundation? President Buhari is uniquely placed to rebuild Nigeria from the shambolic country he met. But to make Nigeria work for Nigerians, the one they fondly call Mai Gaskiya needs the unalloyed support of the long suffering masses because as John Kenneth Galbraith posits "People of privilege will always risk their complete destruction rather than surrender any material part of their advantage. Intellectual myopia, often called stupidity, is no doubt a reason".

Ayobami Oyalowo, a deputy director of media and publicity of the APC Presidential Campaign Organisation, writes from Abuja.