VOICE AIR MEDIA, News Update

Opo ma ye o

Orise! Ooo ri p’ohunda!!

The above lines were part of the incantation, led by Chief Subale Olafisoye Akinnawo, which heralded the transition of Kabiyesi, Oba Frederick Adegunle Aroloye, Arubiefin IV, the Owa of Idanre Kingdom on Tuesday, July 30, 2024.

The announcement was authorised by the Lisa of Idanre Kingdom, Chief Christopher Oluwole Akindolire, who is the Kingdom’s Prime Minister. He also is the official Head of the ritualists, including the Aghoro and the Babalawo. Only he has the authority to declare the Oba’s transition, which he did in the palace on Wednesday, August 1, 2024.

The declaration, Opo ma ye o (the pillar has fallen) in the opening incantation is rooted in Idanre anthem, part of which prays as follows: Du-un ma’sopo odede/Ma-ma d’ule yeghe o (May nothing happens to the front pillar/So the house may not fall). The lines are a prelude to a more substantive prayer in the anthem: Du-un ma s’Oloja Udane/D’ogwa jee oye o (literally, May the Oloja (Ogwa) live long so the kingdom may prosper under his reign).

Oba Adegunle Aroloye ascended the throne in 1976 after 7 years of community turmoil over which of two brothers would succeed their father, Oba Aladegbule Aroloye, Arubiefin III, who transitioned in 1969. The community was as divided over the choice as was the royal family itself. On the one hand, majority of Idanre people, led largely by the reigning politicians at the time, supported the younger brother, Benson Aroloye.

On the other hand, however, the older brother, Adegunle Aroloye, had the support of the elite within and outside the royal family. At the end of the day, he got the nod of the then Western State Government, which had two prominent Idanre sons among the elite on the cabinet at the time. This brief historical excursion is for those Idanre sons and daughters, about 50 years old or younger, who had no idea about that past in the history of their town, and who have known only Oba Adegunle Aroloye all their lives.

What was remarkable about Oba Adegunle Aroloye was his ability to meet the challenges emanating from the long tussle with equanimity and determination to change the course of Idanre history for the better. He started out by reaching out to key supporters of his younger brother to solicit their cooperation. Some of the politicians rebuffed him and prolonged the enmity, but I did not.

I was moved that the prospective king came to my father’s house, looking for me, shortly after the announcement that he would be the next Ogwa of Idanre. He was already 50 years old, while I was only thirty-something, and a young lecturer at the University of Ife. He said he knew I was not a politician, but he wanted me to appeal to my politician friends to cooperate with him. I promised I would do so to the best of my ability. “We did not want you to be King, but God has made you King. You are now our King. I will support you”, I told him. His genuine appeal for cooperation inspired me to collaborate with my friend and big brother, Olu Akindolire, now High Chief Lisa of Idanre Kingdom, to write the petition asking for the separation of Idanre from Ifedore Local Government. It led to the establishment of Idanre Local Government Area as we know it today.

Despite the initial hostility of local politicians, Oba Adegunle Aroloye pushed ahead. Building on his father’s foundation, which welcomed missionary proselytisation, the establishment of missionary schools, the adoption of cocoa as a cash crop, and the decision to descend from Oke Idanre to the valley below, Oba Adegunle Aroloye brought many innovations and unprecedented development to Idanre Kingdom. Following his father’s example, education expanded in Idanre in leaps and bounds. Beyond expansion of primary education, the number of secondary schools increased from two, when he ascended the throne in 1976, to over 30 in 2024. In addition, there was a vocational school and a polytechnic. Virtually every household in Idanre today boasts of a university graduate. More than any community of its size, Idanre has also produced professionals in every discipline of human endeavour. Moreover, Idanre was never left out of the government of Ondo state while he was on the throne.

He also democratised royalty by elevating four community Chiefs, previously known as Olu, to the status of Oba, namely, Oba Alade, Oba Atosin, Oba Ofosu, and Oba Abababubu, while new Olu were installed in newly emerging communities, such as in Omi Ifun, where my late friend, Chief Frederick Ilemobayo, was the new Olu. This development has since become a growing trend in many Yoruba kingdoms.

Beyond this development, Idanre Kingdom witnessed unprecedented peace and harmony. This is particularly noticeable in local politics, where the bitterness of the past has given way to negotiations and peaceful coexistence between members of different political parties. Although skirmishes still exist around election time, Idanre voters today ignore politics as usual by voting for candidates they consider worthy of their votes.

Accordingly, in the 2023 elections, they voted out those who they thought did not perform and voted in those who had contributed to the development of the Kingdom, regardless of political party.

Perhaps what was most remarkable about Oba Adegunle Aroloye was his humanity. He was humble, selfless, kind, empathetic, and compassionate. He once told me that he felt the pain when a child was flogged or otherwise beaten. He was ready and willing to assist anyone who approached him for one kind of assistance or the other. Above all, he was a personality to behold—tall, handsome, and lovable.

These qualities and his contributions to his kingdom and the state endeared him to fellow monarchs as well as successive state governments.

Accordingly, more than any other Oba in the state, Oba Adegunle Aroloye served as the Chairman of Ondo State Council of Traditional Rulers on three different occasions (including when Ondo and Ekiti were one and the same state). In this capacity, he represented the larger Ondo state in the defunct National Council of States.

For those who only knew Oba Adegunle Aroloye as the Owa of Idanre, it is necessary that, though he was born into royalty, he went through the mills of growth and development like most of them. He attended public schools. He started his education at St Paul’s Primary School at Oke Idanre but completed it at Odode, the valley below. He started his secondary education at Western Boys High School in Benin and completed it at Hussey College, Warri. After a short stint as a Clerical Assistant in the Federal Ministry of Works, he proceeded to London to study public administration at the old Belham and Tooting College of Commerce. Upon the completion of his studies, he worked in the London City Council for several years before returning to Nigeria.

As Oba Adegunle Aroloye is interned today at Oke Idanre beside his father, his legacies will continue to endear him to the people of Idanre, Ondo state, and the nation at large. His embrace of peace, harmony, and love of his people should be rewarded by peaceful succession to the throne he so well dignified.

Source: The Nation Newspaper