6th August, 2015
By Tayo Ogunbiyi
My interest concerning Ile-Ife stems from an understandable emotional attachment to the ancient town. Though not an indigene of the antique town, my formative years were spent in Ile-Ife. The memories of my early years in Ile-Ife remain part of the most cherished aspects of my life. I had both my primary and secondary education at Ile-Ife. My first degree thesis, at the University of Ilorin, partly centered on the primordial town.
Ile –Ife is unique in many ways. It is the tradition power house and the custodian of the ancient tradition of the Yoruba race. As a young and curious undergraduate studying history, I was enthralled by the mystical aura surrounding Ile-Ife. I wanted to know as much as I could about this deeply mystifying ancestral home of the Yoruba nation. I could recollect that my search took me to the late Chief M. A. Fabunmi, who was then the Odole Atobase of Ile-Ife. Chief Fabunmi was a living encyclopedia of the rich oral history of Ile-Ife. He knew the history of Ile-Ife inside out. One could actually affirm that whatever the late Chief did not know about Ile-Ife’s history did not, perhaps, exist. For days, Chief Fabunmi took me on about many astonishing tales that further highlight the reverent place of Ile-Ife in Yoruba tradition and history. According to him, Ile-Ife is the centre of Yoruba cosmology being the first place of human habitation in the world.
It is “the spring where the sun rises before any other place in the world”.
Chief Fabunmi further revealed that the palace of the Ooni, the venerated traditional ruler of the ancient town, has several ‘sacred rooms’ where the king discusses with the deities (and Ile-Ife boasts of an assortment of deities as it is claimed that diverse traditional rites are performed on a daily basis to these deities all through the year with the exception of one particular day which the Ooni alone knows) from time to time. Not only that, the palace, according to Chief Fabunmi, has certain links where the deeply initiated could connect directly with ‘Olodumare’, who is considered by the Yorubas to be the Supreme Being. There are also revelations about certain doors that must not be opened within the ambience of the palace by the uninitiated.
Ife’s traditional ruler, the Ooni of Ife is one of the most highly revered kings in Africa. Almost every king in Yoruba land got his beaded crown from the Oduduwa house which is personified by the Ooni. In the political history of our country, especially in the post colonial era, the Ooni played vital role in the nation building process. Sir Adesoji Tadeniawo Aderemi, who ruled in Ile-Ife between 1930 and1980, played significant role in the politics of the defunct western region. His successor, Oba Okunade Sijuwade, has simply followed in this rich tradition as he has intervened in several political crises that could have thrown the country into political turmoil since his assumption of the throne in 1980.
In Ile-Ife, ancient traditional values are held as sacrosanct and the Ooni, who is the custodian of this tradition, is at the centre of it all. We live in a modern and technology driven age where hitherto highly revered ancient traditional norms and customs are either being gradually eroded or have actually been completely gotten rid of. But, being the “Source of the human race”, tradition rarely dies in Ile-Ife. Being the very basis of the existence of the town, the death of tradition in Ife could only mean the demise of the ancient town itself. As blood is to the body, so is tradition to Ile-Ife.
The current debate surrounding the transition of the Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade further underscores the rich traditional values and customs of the ancient town. Traditional and social media recently went to town about the news of the demise of the Ooni in far away London. As the news was gaining ground, the Chief Priest of the ancient town, Oba Olajide Farotimi Faloba, who is traditionally empowered to make available such information, promptly came out to debunk the news, affirming that the respected monarch is alive. Equally, while on a recent visit to Osun State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the Royal Traditional Council of Ife informed the governor that the Ooni of Ife was alive, contrary to the news being peddled in the media.
The way things currently stand, there seems to be a stalemate. The Ooni was curiously absent at the recent wedding of one his sons in Lagos. His absence at the event has further heightened fears about the monarch’s real condition. Indeed, many, though without any concrete proof, are convinced that the revered monarch has gone to join his ancestors. Could it then be that the Chiefs that constitute the Royal Traditional Council of Ife are lying about actual state of things?
As it has been previously established, Ile-Ife is a deeply traditional town. The Ooni personifies the rich tradition of the ancient town. Supposing the Ooni has, indeed, passed on, traditionally, the Royal Traditional Council of Ife has the onerous task of first knowing and equally breaking the news to the entire public. The Ooni is not just an ordinary person. He is the custodian of the rich heritage of the House of Oduduwa. As such, if the delicate issue of an Ooni’s death is not properly handled, according to tradition, it could lead to dire consequences. The Chiefs have the traditional task of averting such.
So, the announcement of the death of an Ooni must follow due traditional process. Such announcement can only be made by the Obalufe of Ife, being the only person authorised by convention to do so and until he does that, the king implicitly lives on. Therefore, we need to respect this age-long tradition of Ile-Ife. Since it is the same tradition that produced the current Ooni, we must respect the words of the Chiefs who are the preservers of the tradition. Tradition bequeathed Oba Okunade Sijuwade on us; we must keep faith with the same tradition to acquaint us about his supposed demise.
—Ogunbiyi is of the Features Unit, Lagos State Ministry of Information & Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja.