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As
a preamble to this article, I am pleased to acknowledge that I have read
the recent interview conducted and published on the Internet by one
Muyiwa Adeyemi and one Gbolabo Gbadamosi with the current Olowo of Owo,
His Royal Highness Oba David Victor Folagbade Olateru-Olagbegi the
Third. That interview has graphically buoyed my determination to
document this exploration as it affects the Institution of the Deji of
Akure which I know very well, and for which I have already done a three
piece serialized articles, all of which have been widely publicized in
the major websites of Nigeria including the Lagosforum and Gamji to
mention a few. Why
am I doing this from time to time, some of you might ask? I am
doing it because I am totally pissed off, and terribly concerned that
very little is being documented for future generations in our society
from one major city to another, and from one community to another. I
recently got an E-mail message from an Akure man named Samuel Dare
Adelusimo. I initially believed the gentleman was resident in the Up
came for him, one of my articles on the Deji of Akure in which I have
mentioned the name "Adelusimo" Mr. Dare was pleasantly
surprised to see the article, as he had always wanted to know something
about the history of his place of birth. In his own words, he had found
one of the articles, long past his bed time. But once he had started
reading it, however, he had admitted to me, he could not stop until he
had finished the whole piece, and he still wanted more. He had therefore
picked up his Laptop the following day, and he wrote me a mail I would
never forget. He was simply asking to know more of the history of his
town, if I can help. Who can tell how many Adelusimos are scattered all
over the world, and who may need some help in getting to know their
roots. It is bad, in my opinion, if the only help or lead such people
could get, is through a foreign source. It is, in fact, a big shame, and
it needs not be so, if some of us who know something about our homeland
would be kind and good enough to just share it in writing, for whatever
it may be worth. That, in a nutshell, is my motivation for doing this
piece, and I am doing it for an institution that I was born into, and
that I can claim to know a whole lot about. It is true that I live
abroad, but as observed by Awo, I am, first and foremost, an Akure man,
and I am proud of it. I
am addressing in this article how the DejI’s office as an institution
has changed in the last 100 years and how the institution is defined by
its times and the individuals heading it at any given point in our
history. I,
again, want to agree with Kabiyesi Olowo Folagbade Olateru-Olagbegi the
Third, but with a slight modification. The Olowo had said that when the
British handed over to Nigerians on I
would want to start this exploration from That
unique development has robbed off on the Deji’s Institution in a way
that his status as the grand child of Oduduwa and his direct descent
from the Owa Obokun of Oba
Afunbiowo was decidedly the most powerful Deji in the last 100 years.
His force of personality was such that had made Akure a force to reckon
with in that era. Among his famous cognomens that have acknowledged that
leverage and esteem are briefly summarized below in Akure dialect and
folklore: Aga
amori re, Ot’O ye gboro, o m"Oyinbo goke. Iwerepe gbara re, gba
gi oko, Okun Arabaribi, Afunbiowo
was a Deji with a difference, powerful but self-effacing at the same
time. Yes, he was a great friend of the British administrators, because
he had found a way to make the local District Officer/Government his
greatest weapon to get his job done, and to give victory to Akure under
his tenure in every major confrontation Akure ever had with Idanre in
the 1952 Akure/Idanre War or even earlier on with Olowo Ajike over
land dispute, even though, he himself was a descendant of Idanre,
because his own mother Queen mother Adojolomo was the first daughter of
Sasere Lagokun of Idanre. He was called "Iwerepe Gbara re, gba igi
oko" because he was known to be head and shoulders above his peers
in traditional medicine and power in that era, that many of his
peers usually ran to, when they faced insoluble crisis in their
various domains, One of such peers or colleagues who had
sought his help was the late Kabiyesi Ewi of Ado-Ekiti Oba Daniel
Aladesanmi Anirare, the first educated Ewi and a product of St.
Andrew’s College, Oyo. He was actually sent on exile to Akure and he
almost lost his throne. He had sought the Deji’s help for him to
regain his throne, and he, sure, did, with some help from God and his
older colleague, Deji Afunbiowo Adesida. the First. The
late Kabiyesi Ogoga of Ikere, Oba Adewumi , the great musician was
another example. He too had also run into deep trouble with Ikere people
and was forced to seek asylum in Akure with Oba Afunbiowo as his host.
He had sought the DejI’s help too late for Oba Afunbiowo to be of too
much help to him, because Ikere Kingmakers had quickly moved to name a
successor in Kabiyesi Oba Fabikun, before the Deji was able to step in.
Oba Afunbiowo was really larger than life as people believed he was an
expert in regenerative medicine, based on African traditional herbs and
potions. He could look very old and sick today, but look very young and
agile the next day, even when he was over one hundred years old. It was
something I personally witnessed, and most Akure elders of that era
would confirm the same, if you want to double-check this information. He
was 120 years old or thereabout when Queen Elizabeth The Second had
visited He
was one Deji without any blemish. And he was powerful enough in local
herbs and traditional medicine to turn daylight into total darkness, if
he wanted to, and yet he was the most humble person you would ever know.
He never ate or drank in the public, and when he went out on trips,
outside Akure, he took along with him his chair or the stool that he
would sit on, in much the same way like Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku
Akpolokpolo does today, any where he goes. Deji Afunbiowo was a breed
apart to tell you the truth. The only person he feared, apart from God
was one of his wives from Ita- Ogbolu. in Akure North Local Government.
I frequently heard him talk about that wife in public and many others
did, in those days. Queen mother Eyelua was the woman, and what
was amazing was the fact that Eyelua was just one of his more than 200
wives, but she occupied a special place in the heart of Kabiyesi for
reasons we could only conjecture at the time. Queen mother Eyelua
was the mother of Prince M. Adedeji who must now be in his 90s, if not
more. Prince Adedeji is the Obadua of Akure princes, up till this
moment, if you want to double-check this fact. Deji Afunbiowo was the
last Deji to fully observe Akure royal traditions in ways that his
successors had never been able to match. 365 days in a year, there was
one ceremony or the other where fowls, pigeons, goats, sheep and native
cows (erinla) had to be slaughtered to appease the more than 200 gods
within the shrines or pantheons in the Deji’s Palace. For that reason
as a young boy the palace was my favorite place to hang out because
there was so much food and fun. Myself and Ralph Alabi the current
Chairman of Guinness Nigeria PLC, were never too far way from the palace
because we were both grand children of Afunbiowo. He was the last Deji
to own a huge ranch at the backyard of the Deji’s palace which is one
of the biggest palaces which has now been declared a national monument
in There
was one aspect of kabiyesi's profile I could never forget as one of his
several grand children who was raised in the same Palace by my grand
mother, Queen mother Alojo Adesida, herself a daughter of Kabiyesi Alani
of Idoani, who had come to Akure to be married to the Deji. All
the famous traditional masquerades in Akure namely "Alamudu"
usually identified with one Adufe Igbemo, "Aladoko", "Olumuto,
Orun Ona Ogbe" usually identified with one of the late Faderos of
Oda near Akure, and Areyemusire usually identified with one late Adebayo
of Gbangbalogun Street at Irowo Quarters, Akure, all took their turns to
come entertain Deji Afunbiowo during the Egungun festival in Akure. I
recall one particular year in 1954 when Aladoko carried by Adufe Igbemo
came to entertain Afunbowo at Ojukoto Hall in the Palace. DejI
Ooye o, Afunbiowo, Aluko Fini Oloro, Ijo mirin Oja, emi Adufe
Igbemo ni ma joko Adufe
Igbemo was able to sneak in, that line, because he thought Afunbiowo or
his listeners were not paying attention, or would not fully comprehend
the full implication of what he was saying to Kabiyesi. But to
Kabiyesi’s credit, he had wonderful ears for that kind of rhetoric. He
had actually caught the moment like very few in the crowd was able to
do. Kabiyesi had immediately shot back to the surprise of most people in
the crowd, when he very quickly and jokingly assured Adufe Igbemo,
"that would never happen. In the next after life, there is never
going to be a role reversal between me and you. You are coming back as
Adufe Igbemo and I am coming back as the same royalty I have always
been." All that everyone could do was to burst into uncontrollable
laughter. It was vintage Afunbiowo per excellence. He was a man. He was
fond of telling Akure people at every important gathering , "Emi
Deji Afunbiowo ni e ma ba titi aiye raiye", meaning "It is me
you will always meet here on the throne because I am here for good, and
God is not finished with me yet." To which Akure people would
always respond in unison, "A se, Kabiyesi". 47 years later the
prediction had been right on target if you ask me. It is he the same
Adesida offspring that is still ruling Akure, as we speak. Those who say
there is no power in words had better think again. Need I say more,
before I go to my next point? I
cannot help but go back to the assertion made by the new Olowo that the
major culprits in relegating the traditional institution in Nigeria were
the Military in particular and the politicians as a close second. It was
a correct observation, but the little addendum I must add is that the
erosion of the traditional institutions in Nigeria had actually started
with the advent of the Colonial Government which had ushered in some
element of order through the codification and enforcement of Law through
out the country. Before then, at least in Akure, for all I know, the
Deji and his chiefs had always represented the supreme authority in
Akure and could make and unmake before the British had arrived at our
shores. To illustrate the limitless power that traditional rulers had at
the time, I recall here how Deji Odundun in particular, once had his
favorite wife beheaded for daring to pull a little joke on him in the
bath room. The poor woman had merely joked with Deji Odundun, while
giving him a helping hand using the sponge to scrub his Back and to give
him a clean bath. The woman in an innocent moment of humor had joked
with her husband telling him, "Kabiyesi, it is unbelievable that a
man with such a small stature and physique, like you are, could be
exercising so much power and intimidating people like you sometimes do
in this city" Kabiyesi had simply replied without showing any
emotion or pulling punches that her observation was correct, but that he
would make her a living witness of the impact of that remark in a little
while. But the first thing he did after leaving the bathroom was to
order the woman beheaded. No questions asked. It was that bad. It was
those kinds of barbaric and autocratic power that the Colonial
Government had helped to clean up. But by so doing they have also eroded
the power and stature of traditional rulers across the land. Yes, the
Military had played a major role, following the first coup on January
15th in 1966 when Decree number one was first issued reducing
traditional rulers to the back seat, as correctly observed by the new
Olowo. But before then, the politicians had done their worst to clip the
wings of traditional rulers across the country in very profound ways. A
major milestone in that effort was reached when the politicians in the
old Western Nigeria in particular had disbanded Local Government Police
which had somewhat enhanced the authority of traditional rulers in some
respect. I recall an event in Akure in 1953 when the Akure Local
Government Police led by one Police Chief named Ogunshakin, had clashed
with the towns masquerades during the Egungun Festival. Some of the
masquerades and their back-up men were actually arrested and detained,
for a little while, for threatening public peace. Hell had immediately
broken loose as the supporters of the masquerades had trooped out in a
massive demonstration complaining that the Local Government Police which
was supposed to work for Kabiyesi had actually undermined his authority,
by arresting his masquerades. They had sworn there was never going to be
peace in the town, until the masquerades were released. They sang in
unison as follows and I quote:
I
have dwelt more on Deji Afunbiowo in this write-up because he had ruled
for 60 years out of the 100 years within my frame of reference. I will
now briefly touch on how the Institution has changed under the three
Dejis that had followed Afunbiowo on the throne. The
first is DejI Ademuagun Agunsoye Adesida the Second, the first educated
Deji and a a UK trained Lawyer by profession, who had ruled from 1957 to
1973 ascending the throne at 32 and joining his ancestors at the young
age of 48. He had tried, like his father, to uphold the power and
stature of the Institution, but he could do, but so little, because his
youthfulness, his education and exposure as a student in the UK and
Dublin, had taken their toll. He had done things that would be
considered totally inconceivable during his father's era. He was known
to be a chain smoker and an alcoholic of some kind. But he had something
going for him that cannot be denied, to this very day. That thing was
charisma. He was the most photogenic and arguably the most handsome Deji
of all times. He was our own moral equivalent of John F. Kennedy without
any question. His legacy was more glamour and charm than anything
concrete, I might add. A lot of Akure people still feel a sense of
nostalgia about him till tomorrow, even though he had left the throne
roughly 30 years ago or more. The
next Deji, Oba Adelegan Otitubiosun Adesida the Third had ascended the
throne in 1975, and had made his transition in 1991. His reign, in some
unique sense, was a carbon copy of his father’s, but he came to the
throne a very unpopular figure because he was viewed as too old and did
not have the charisma of his younger predecessor, but in terms of
achievements and good things happening to Akure under his watch, he
would be considered next in line to his father, Deji Afunbiowo. He
himself had rightly described himself as a Government selected Deji
because. He had come to office with little support from the rank and
file of Akure people across the board. You could even say he got his
chance to be a Deji with some surreptitious support from the Federal
Military Government led by the same General Obasanjo who under normal
conditions should have no business in deciding who becomes a Deji in all
of our history. The Justice Ademola Adenekan Commission of Inquiry set
up by Chief Akinyemi of Ilesha, as Commissioner for Chieftaincy in the
old West, would have derailed his selection by the majority of
kingmakers in Akure. For some reason, Prince Adelegan using some
powerful connection to reach out to Obasanjo for help. General Obasanjo
had summoned Governor Jemibewon to his office to order him not to waste
time looking at the Justice Adenekan Ademola’s report. He should just
go and announce the approval of his Government for Prince Adelegan who
had received the majority vote of the Kingmakers. That was how Prince
Adelegan who had attended Ondo Boys High School for only two years, had
ended up becoming the DejI in 1975 just before Akure had become the
State capital. Because Deji Adelegan knew he did not enjoy the support
of his people, to begin with, he had spent all his life on the throne
acting as a stoogie of Government in power, much to the displeasure of
some element of Akure people. He was fond of telling people, at every
opportunity, he had become the Deji through the mercy of God and the
overwhelming support of the then Military Government. He was the first
Deji to ever publicly and openly declare his faith was more important to
him, and the first to be seen kneeling before the altar at St. David’s
Cathedral, in Akure to openly take the holy communion from a common
priest. It was a spectacle never before seen in any of our rulers before
him The esteem associated with the Deji as an institution actually took
a nosedive under his tenure for that reason and others. Under him,
"Iru Okun" which was the symbol commonly used to summon people
to the Deji's palace at will, had totally lost its mystique under
Kabiyesi Otutubiosun. But his time as the Deji was quite good and
promising for Akure, minus the political bloodshed that enveloped the
city, following the Omoboriowo election rigging in 1983, his tenure was
relatively peaceful. In
1991 came Deji Adebobajo Ataiyese Adesida the Fourth, a retired
Assistant Commissioner of Police who had come to office with tremendous
popular support of the King makers and the people, at the age of 64. He
was a good man by nature who could not hurt a fly. He had meant well for
Akure and would have done more, had he lived longer. He had broken more
of the barbaric rules and customs associated with the Deji’s title by
his initial reluctance to take many more wives, on ascending the throne.
As a matter of history, he was the second Deji in history who did not
produce a child or what was generally referred to as an" Omo Orite"
or crown prince as observed by the new Olowo in his latest interview.
He, sure, had many children before ascending the throne, but he
definitely did not give any priority to having children after becoming
the DejI, because he really did not see himself as changing dippers at
that age. In years gone by, his tenure as Deji would have been viewed as
a taboo in Akure tradition. Till tomorrow, when the Council of Chiefs
which regularly meets weekly at Chief Asamo’s Court in Akure, and when
they make obeisance to all previous Dejis in a ritual, sometimes called
"Oluku" that is celebrated with Kola nuts which are later
passed around and shared and eaten by them all. Deji Adebobajo’s kola
nuts would, for ever, be thrown away or set aside, because he had not
produced an heir, after becoming a Deji. Only one other Deji in Akure
history had been known to receive the same treatment for precisely the
same reason. But that has not tainted the fact that he was a great Deji
in many other respects. I was personally close to him and I knew he had
a good heart. Not producing an "Omo orite" was more of a
personal choice because he did not quite understand the import of that
ritual while he was still alive. The
DejI as an institution is likely to continue to change and probably
deteriorate in the foreseeable future as new incumbents are forced on
Akure by the creation of additional ruling Houses from one monolithic
Line generally known as the one and only Asodeboyede Ruling line. The
new candidates/ pretenders coming in, are more likely to further erode
the power and esteem of the Deji in years to come, because of the
changing times and because most of them are going to lack legitimacy. i
won't be surprised if an Igbo or an Igbira man, who had lived all his
life in Akure, and had money, and connection in Government, one day
became a Deji in Akure.. There was one such Igbo Cocoa magnate who took
Akure by storm, one time, by taking one of the most prestigious titles
reserved for money bags in our town. I won't be surprised if such a man
eventually claim to be a distant relation of Asodeboyede who had
wondered like Ekalederhan a prince of Benin who eventually became the
Oni of Ife in the ongoing controversy between Oba Sijuwade and Oba
Erediauwa of Benin which is stranger than fiction, if you ask me. If the
current DejI-Elect Prince Adelabu Ileri Oluwa eventually makes it to the
throne, which is a clear possibility, at this point, despite stiff
opposition from many quarters, he would be the first ordained pastor of
a church to ever ascend the throne of Akure. If anybody says that is not
going to redefine the Institution in very profound ways, for better or
for worse, I say that person may be daydreaming or hallucinating. I
rest my case. Dr. Wunmi Akintide. |