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Tag: Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi 111

  • Alaafin to Buhari: No meaningful rural transformation without councils’ autonomy

    Alaafin to Buhari: No meaningful rural transformation without councils’ autonomy

    The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi 111, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari, to confer with relevant stakeholders and commence work as a matter utmost national importance, towards granting autonomy to local governments’ administration in the country.

    He also called on members of the States’ Houses of Assembly to demonstrate that they derive their sovereignty from the people and
    support the National Assembly’s concerted efforts in granting autonomy to local governments. The country, monarch said, will be a better place when this autonomy is granted, as history will therefore remember all those who have, and who will support this genuine demand.

    Oba Adeyemi made the call today when members of National Union of Local Government Employees [NULGE] comprising the executives, leaders, and women representatives from the four local governments Afijio, Atiba, Oyo-East and Oyo-West] that constitute Oyo Federal Constituency paid him a Save Our Souls visit.

    According to him, ‘’ The quest for deeper and viable democratic instrument that will create the means for regular interactions between the people and the government, for proper service delivery and alleviation of poverty among the local population necessitated the idea of unfettered autonomy for local governments in the country. Many of the democratic nations of the world, including United States of America, Brazil, and India have come to terms with the need to strengthen local governments and make them functional in scope and operation.

    The socio-economic reality of the modern world has imperatively compelled every serious nation to improve the standard of living of the local population through a viable and efficient local administration’’. He noted that despite the desperate economic notion behind
    colonialism, the British colonial government in Nigeria after the amalgamation realised the paramount need for robust governance at the
    grassroots, hence their style of local administration though a facade, yet, they were conscious of its importance. ‘’Regrettably, development of the grassroots which should always be the concern of every responsible and responsive political system has not been the primary focus, as development and participation have continued to escape people of the grassroots.

    Development remains insignificant if it does not positively affect the lives of those in the periphery of decision making arrangement. Local Governments in Nigeria were created as the third tier of government whose objective are to ensure effective, measurable and efficient service delivery to the people. Why then are these genuine motives being stultified, council workers and rural dwellers are made to suffer for the unjust cause?’’.

    Earlier, the State Public Relations Officer of NULGE, Pastor John Ojo, said there is no doubt that Local government autonomy will bring about rapid transformation to the grassroots, unlike the present situation of stunted growth and inaction, adding that grassroots development will tremendously reduce rural urban drift, congestion and criminal propensity in our city centres. ‘’If autonomy is granted local governments, there will definitely be a reduction in rural urban drift which will equally reduce organised crimes in the country .Council workers would not be owed salaries for months as is presently the case in the state’’.

    Read Also: Buhari to tour Southeast states

  • Alaafin urges govt to protect common heritage

    Alaafin urges govt to protect common heritage

    he Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi 111, has urged the government to include traditional history in the curriculum of schools.

    He said this would protect the common heritage of Nigerians as brothers with a common destiny.

    Oba Adeyemi said this would help children understand the physical, as well as the spiritual properties of the society.

    Speaking with reporters yesterday, the paramount ruler said if oral history and verbal art are not to be lost in time, they and the languages in which they are expressed must be safeguarded.

    He said: ‘’It is a known fact that several languages of the world are endangered and threatened with extinction. The death of any language is the death of an invaluable cultural heritage. We need to vigorously promote the study of our history, languages and cultures.”

     

    The tendency for educated Nigerians not being able to speak Nigerian languages should be urgently addressed. If we cannot speak our languages, which embody our philosophies, wisdom and proverbs, we lost an essential contribution of our Nation to the collective pool of human civilization”.

     

    He however noted that whatever human intellectual pursuit we have it must have a past which forms with the departure point for present and future endeavours ,adding that, that is why all knowledge is historical.

     

    He stated that apart from being an essential fact of a people’s heritage, language is a marker of identity, in the sense that it represents what is peculiar to a people and its culture.

     

    “The traditional attitude to oral tradition was one of respect and cultural pride, however with the absent of western education, traditional religion came to be associated with paganism. Add to this is the fact that western education and the colonial style of administration were both based on a written tradition. As a result, an unlettered person gifted for his or her oratory and steeped in traditional culture,came to be seen merely as a simple illiterate and an idol worshipper”.

     

    Oba Ayemi pointed out that our forefathers paid special attention to the names of their offsprings ,adding that this is one of the reasons why young couples in the past send messages to their villages asking their parents to send names when their wives give birth to babies.

     

    “So, to develop the human person, we must have a reference point and time perspective, and history provides the milestone against which we can measure how much distance we have covered”.

     

    While further advocating that books and teaching aids used in our educational system and products of society with most of their messages drawn from the Nigerian experiences, Alaafin submitted that mother tongue should be the basis of cultural education, while the development of Nigerian languages should be vehicles of expressing modern ideas and thought-processes.

     

     

     

     

  • Fed Govt extols Sango’s heroic attributes

    Fed Govt extols Sango’s heroic attributes

    The ancient city of Oyo town was in festive mood as sons and daughters of Oduduwa converged on the city to mark this year’s Sango Festival hosted by the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi (111).

    The week-long celebration of the rich Yoruba culture and tradition began last Thursday will end on Saturday.

    Minister of Tourism, Culture, and National Orientation, Chief Edem Duke, who was represented by Professor Akin Alao of the Obafemi Awolowo University, [OAU], Ile-Ife, Osun State, said the celebration of Sango, one of the founding fathers of the ancient Oyo Kingdom, has left behind ‘an enduring legacy of constitutional government, a model of which is yet to be surpassed by any modern contraption.’

    “Pre-colonial system of government in Oyo was constructed on an elaborate system of checks and balances, which made adequate provisions for and accommodated the culture and sensibilities of the people that produced it. In essence, it was a people’s original design to meet the wishes and aspirations of the people and their definition of development,’’ he said.

    According to the Minister, ‘we are at a momentous and critical stage in the historical development of our country, when we are looking back, trying to re-define the system of government in order to establish a responsible and responsive government. I have no doubt that a thorough study of the knowledge system and society that produced the archetypal African system here in Oyo will [provide that direction we missed in the past.’

    The celebration of Sango, Duke added, provides everyone with a rare opportunity to define his or her attitude to culture by identifying with the virtues of Sango, and in so doing equip ourselves with an understanding of these virtues that transformed Sango from being just the fourth ruler of the kingdom of Oyo to global brand that he has become today..

    “In this era of African cultural re-0awakening, the life, leadership, administration and government under Sango as Alaafin here in Oyo should be explored in the strictest academic tradition and the ennobling values intellectualized. The life of Alaafin Sango would definitely be an excellent example in leadership, considering the fact that his rule of Oyo was for less than a decade.”

    He submitted that the festival gives another opportunity to examine and conceptualize the entire building qualities of Sango and use that as a possibly template for efforts in nation-building.

    Said he: ’’Yoruba cultural studies should go beyond a study of the performing traditions, but should now begin to emphasise scholarship in the intellectual foundation of this universal culture. The Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation under my watch and leadership will support your genuine efforts to promote the study of

    Sango, the celebration of the festival in his honour and the appropriation of the virtues of leadership demonstrated by Sango. The Yoruba Diaspora is an ever-expanding world, next only to the J in terms of relevance and number. Sango indeed is at the heart of this expanding world of the Yoruba and competing favourably with other religions to explain spiritual and physical mysteries.’’

    The Ministry, Minister also disclosed will provide substantial support for efforts to expand the celebration of Sango Festival as part of a grand agenda in cultural tourism and the study of Sango’s leadership and heroic attributes as basis for national orientation.

    While describing the Alaafin as one of Africa’s most celebrated and cerebral traditional rulers, Duke pointed out that the ancient city of Oyo, remains the home of tradition and the spot at which the most celebrated African political system was designed, implemented and perfected to excellence. The Minister however enjoined Yoruba in Diaspora to immerse themselves in their religious and traditions for spiritual strengthening, personal fulfillment in life, global understanding and harmony.

    “You should look beyond the challenges of nation-building we are currently facing in Nigeria and concentrate attention on the spiritual significance of your home coming to rebuild your cultural identity and spiritual self-rediscovery.’’

    Explaining the essence of the festival, the Alaafin noted that considering the happenings around the world in contemporary times, there is the need for Yoruba as a people to retain our traditional and cultural identity in the face of the global village, which the world has become as a result of fast-improving technology.

    The paramount ruler stressed that while great countries celebrate their glorious past, Africans do not give much reverence to theirs due to super-imposition of the two main religions of Islam and Christianity.

    “Unfortunately, preachers of these two religions are known for etching their sermons and creed into the consciousness of Africans’ psyche, which have conditioned our sense of appreciation and thinking.

    “The colonial mentality has blindfolded us and made us to perceive erroneously our invaluable culture and tradition as fetish. This has also resulted in the way we picture our past heroes and great men of valour and virtues, who should be immortalised, venerated and celebrated. Not only that, their deeds, acts and wise sayings were worthy of compiled, documented, reserved and preserved for generation yet unborn,’’ he added.

    Oba Adeyemi urged the Yorubas to give necessary supports to tradition and culture so that the race can stand out in the world.

    He also advised parents to always teach their wards Yoruba language saying that ‘research had shown that children that learn Yoruba easily understand other languages’.

    He however admonished parents to teach their children on how to dress well especially in the Yoruba attires, saying ‘you don’t need to dress naked before you are appreciated’.

  • Alaafin tasks Jonathan, NASS on true federalism

    Alaafin tasks Jonathan, NASS on true federalism

    The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi 111, has warned that the only thing that can save Nigeria and guarantee its future indivisible entity is to revert to true federal system of government.

    Oba Adeyemi who said this in his palace while breaking fast with members of the Oyo State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) led by its chairman, Mr. Gbenga Opadotun, urged President Goodluck Jonathan and members of the National Assembly to work together to save the country from collapse.

    According to him, with too many powers at the centre and the states going cap in hand every month to beg for money, there will not be meaningful development.
    The monarch said if states are allowed to control their resources, they will grow at their own pace while it will ease the tension of politicians scrambling to take over power at the federal level.

    Similarly, Oba Adeyemi called for constitutional roles for traditional rulers to be guaranteed in order for them to contribute their quota meaningfully towards making Nigeria great as envisaged by its founding fathers.

    While kicking against those working against giving roles to the royal fathers especially in decision making and advisory roles, he said the development amounts to postponing the evil day for the nation’s corporate and peaceful co-existence.
    According to him, “There is nowhere in the world where an important and vital segment of a society would be excluded from the administration and survive. We are just wasting our time. The Clifford constitution of 1922 tried to find a role for the traditional rulers in the legislative council.
    The British in their wisdom included the Obas although purely on advisory capacity – it worked. Remember that what we have today is federal system of government. The essence of federalism is that we are different people, different nation, customs, religion, administration, history, culture, language.
    “When you have diversity of culture, diversity of religion, way of life, the best form of contribution would be federal system. If you don’t take into cognisance all these and you are running away from essence and the social element of that diversity, you must formulate a policy that would go in line and unison to what people want.”