Ibadan, reputed to be the largest city in West Africa, has lots of myths woven around it. Oje Market is one of the many markets in the city and has one of the biggest and richest cultural sections. Taiwo Abiodun visited the ancient market and reports.
As you approach the market din of voices herald you into its wide open bosom, welcome to Oje Market in Ibadan, one of the country’s largest cultural markets. The leaves on the Akoko and Odan trees dance in the air as if in response to the deafening noise! Men, women, the old and the young haggle over price and quality of wares on sale.
Children who should be in school hawk wares around the market. The market is a typical theatre, play your part and leave the state.
Fighting, haggling, hot arguments, heated discussions, running around, hissing, cursing, and cheating – all take place in the market. While some walk, some others crawl or run past.
The ancient Oje Market is rough and dirty. It is bordered around by old and dilapidated buildings with rusted iron roofing sheets. The market has many entrances and exits, giving a nod to the Yoruba proverb that many roads lead into and out of the market. One could go in through the dilapidated houses, sharp corners, rough roads, or even behind the houses. Some of the mud houses have become part of the market.
A place for fabrics
The market is home to assorted fabrics, both local and international. Displayed in shops are Yoruba traditional clothes like aso oke, sanyan , alaari, and ornamental beads of different makes and sizes, meant for both the lowly and high in status, and of course for those from the royal houses depending on their status in the society. This is what the market is popularly known for. Women and men are there to market their products. Not only this, one could find assorted herbs meant for different ailments and diseases.
Not left out are different species of kola nuts. There are also a thousand and one kinds of clay pots meant for different things, from sacrifices to libation. It is reputed to be the most popular market not only in Ibadan but in West Africa at large!
Attesting to the fame of the market, Chief Raufu Yesufu Delesolu, 70, who has just being upgraded from the status of Mogaji to the higher status of Gbonka of Ibadan, said “Foreigners do visit the market to buy traditional fabrics and ornamental beads. I remember that the whites used to come here for shopping before going back to their countries. There was a time when Oyo Town tried to emulate us by having Oje Market and people decided to be going there until the market fell and nobody goes there again. It died a natural death. In the end only few marketers and buyers patronised them, they later came back to Ibadan here. There is no other place to be compared with this Oje Market in Nigeria.”
Located in the central Ibadan, Oje Market has been there for over a century. It is less than a kilometre to the Olubadan of Ibadan’s palace, the paramount ruler of the city. According to Delesolu, the market is over 100 years old, adding that, it is in fact, the oldest market selling Yoruba fabrics where traders come from all over Africa to patronise every 17th day
History of the market
According to the Gbonka of Ibadan, the market has been there since 1884 during the reign of Oba Oluyole. The name, Oje is derived from a town not far from Ijeru near Ilorin where many people were living in the 1800s. But when war broke out with the Fulani the inhabitants were scattered and from there they migrated to Ibadan. He continued: “In order to know where these people should stay, they consulted an oracle, which instructed their leader to put all their sacrificial materials in a mortar and continue going round Ibadan Town until he is tired. Thus, the leader obeyed the instruction and when he could no longer carry the heavy load of the mortar and its contents he stopped at Idi Ayunre. Later, they continued and got to a place where they cleared the bush and saw cowry’ shells, lead, and tubers of yam among other things. Shocked to have discovered (Oje) lead, it reminded them of their roots where they came from (Oje not far from Ijeru near Ilorin). They then named the place after their former place, and called it Oje Market. Today the people who later inhabited Oje Town near Ilorin observe Oje festival every year. The Oyo, Ilorin, Iseyin, Ogbomoso, Iwo, Offa- Ile and other Yoruba -speaking people later were coming down here to sell their hand-woven clothes. The market then became a meeting point for business transactions of native Yoruba clothings not only in Yoruba land but in Africa as a whole as traders come from Cotonou, Togo, Ghana, among others.”
He said most people who claimed to be Ibadan indigenes are not from Ibadan, “ I can tell you authoritatively that 90per cent of those claiming to be Ibadan are from Oyo, Ilorin, Iseyin, Ogbomoso, Iwo, Offa- Ile and other neighbouring Yoruba- speaking towns. In fact, the first medical doctor in Ibadan, Dr Agbaje is not from Ibadan,” he said authoritatively.
The Oje Market myth
The rumour that some strange people are usually seen in Oje Market in the dead of the night, thus making many believe that they are either fairies or elves, was debunked by Delesolu. He described the story as untrue. He said that the market is very rich in terms of having fabric materials to sell, thus making the traders always busy as they come early and leave late in the night. “It is the only market that buyers and sellers come early to and leave very late in the night. They could be there as early as 4am and stay till 2am in the following morning as people from all walks of life thronged there to buy and sell.”
It is a popular belief that strong and powerful people do go to the market to either do evil or go there for powerful protection via witchcraft or wizardry, but again, Delesolu denied this.
Asked whether the story of seeing elves in the night in the market is true, the Delesolu of Oje denied the rumour saying, “it is a rumour that the dead do come there to partake in buying and selling. The fact is that some of these traders come as early as possible while some stay till the early morning. So seeing them would make people think they are seeing spirits! You will see drivers who would like to leave as early as possible to their various destinations while the same thing is applicable to these so called market women who will wake up as early as possible, as if they don’t sleep in their houses. It is a rumour that the dead wake up and join the marketers to sell and buy things here. I have never heard such in my life,” he responded.
Eroding culture
The Gbonka of Ibadan decried how our culture is being eroded. He said, “Ten years ago some Aladura members went to destroy the Igi Ayunre tree, but they were stung by the bees. The place is where we used to worship Esu, and this is where the Duronkika masquerade used to pay homage to the god before embarking on his festival. But the masquerade is still observed till date while the velvet clothes (aso aran) our forefathers exchanged for slaves from the colonialists and used by these masquerades are still there till today.
Speaking on the usefulness of Akoko leaves he said, “the Akoko and odan trees have been there for over 150 years, the trees are money – spinning, in fact, we all met the trees there. The leaves are called Akoko leaves which are used for coronation on our chiefs. The leaves are very important and crucial in Yoruba land. In fact, it is what we use during an important period and time of coronation of any important personality.”
Igbejo Delesolu
Inside the market is a traditional court called Igbejo Delesolu , (Delesolu’s Court) where petty cases are settled, it manages the affairs of the market. At the entrance of the court are people going in for either consultation or settlement. It is a peace meeting place for marketers who are aggrieved. According to Alhaji Ganiyu Oladeji Ekaanoye Delesolu (a retiree from the Dental Department of the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan), who is among the local judges settling disputes, he said “We settle disputes here and whatever decision we take here is final. We settle petty cases like fighting for spaces, petty thievery, rumour mongering and back biting among the market women who are fond of causing chaos and snatching their boyfriends or customers. But when a case is beyond us we would refer them to the police station. We don’t rush to the police station to report cases. Hardly will you see these market women going to the police station to report themselves except cases of robbery and some others difficult to settle. There is relative peace here. We know how to control and caution anyone of them and sincerely speaking’ we are doing well in settlement here.”
Igbejo Delesolu has been in existence for over 130 years with the settlement of landed property. Illiterate but matured and wise were employed to act as judges to preside over cases.
Mysterious crocodile
Situated at the centre of the market is a pond housing a crocodile. The pond was designed by the Delesolu family. According to the Gbonka, the crocodile is a must wherever Oje Market is located. “It is a tradition that the crocodile must be kept here. I met it like that. The first one died in 1939 and my father who later became the Mogaji (head of the Delesolu family and the market) came to the throne in 1940, and between then and 1942 another crocodile was brought into the market. And it has been here since. We use to feed it with live chicken.“
On the importance of the crocodile, he said with total conviction that the crocodile is highly medicinal. “Women looking for the fruits of the womb do come here. Some women who are looking for children are often advised to come and give hen or chicken to the crocodile and that they would have a child. Many have done this and are blessed with children. Some were here to give thanks to the crocodile. Not only this, those who are sick and their cases become hopeless in hospitals use to come here to seek healing! It is not funny, it is real!” he said.
He continued “A chief matron whom I would not mention her name came here as advised by her spiritualist (Babalawo) to come and scoop its water. She came here and took some of the water the crocodile swam in and she used it to bath for healing , and for seeking for the fruit of the womb. It worked. She came here later to give thanks. Many traditional healing homes and traditional medicine men (Babalawo) used to come here to take away the eggs of the crocodile.”
(High Chief ) Mrs Mode Omonigbehin who trades in ornamental beads of different makes said she has been in the trade for decades. “It has been long I have been here. I am making my money and God has been doing it. This is one of the largest markets here in West Africa where you can buy these types of beads. She described the market as the most valuable in the world.
Iyaafin Jemilat Oyinlola has been selling kola-nuts for long in the market, according to her, she gets to the market by 8am and closes by 6pm, she said “both the white people and Nigerians come here to buy kola nuts from us, they are used for wedding ceremonies, gifts , birthdays among others.“
Another respondent, Mrs Oyetunde Falaisi, who is a herb seller said she has been in the market for a very long time and would not like to go to another place to sell, “I have been selling this products for the past 20 years. I inherited the business from my grandmother.” And Alhaja Sikiratu Delesolu said she too has been coming to the market for over 30 years. She claims she has been in the business since 1974. “I am from the family of Delesolu and have been in this business for over three decades. I have trained my children from the proceeds and built houses to shelter myself. The Oje Market is a blessing for us and for Ibadan at large.”
Another woman who sells herbs describes the place as a gift to human being, “This is the business I was born into. I have nothing to do. I am not an herbalist but herbs seller. I know the nitty gritty of cutting the herbs from the bush, I know the names they are called but at the same time I am not an herbalist. It is the job of the herbalist to tell us what the roots and herbs are meant for.”
Oje Market is no doubt a market with its own peculiar oddities.
