SIKIRU KAYODE ADETONA: AWUJALE OF IJEBULAND @80

Sikiru Kayode Adetona, CFR,(we always use name to address the King) Ogbagba  II is an Alaiyeluwa,  Awujale of Ijebuland .(Ti Gbogb Ijebu T’ile T’oko). Born to Anikilaya 1 Ogbagba Royal family of Ijebu-Ode ,to Prince Rufai Adetona, whilst his mother was Alhaja Ajibabi Adetona (née Onashile), on May, 10, 1934.  

He attended Baptist School, Ereko, Ijebu Ode; Ogbere United Primary School, Oke Agbo, Ijebu Igbo; and Ansar-Ud-Deen School, Ijebu Ode between 1943 and 1950. For his secondary education, he was at Olu-Iwa (now Adeola Odutola) College, Ijebu Ode from 1951 to 1956. Between 1957 and 1958 he took up appointment with the then Audit Department of the Western Region. Ibadan. He   resigned his appointment in 1958 to pursue further studies in accountancy in the United Kingdom.       

He was recalled back home in 1959 to become the next Awujale having been put forward by his father, who was next in line to the throne. On January 18, 1960, the Head of the Ijebu Ode Regency Council, the Ogbeni-Oja, Chief Timothy Adeola Odutola formally presented the new traditional ruler to the whole world .He became king on the 2nd day of April, 1960. Alaiyeluwa S.K.Adetona has three wives and nine (9) children and has ruled Ijebuland from 1960 till date.

He has several honorary degrees including the Doctor of Law (LL.D) from the University of Technology, Yola; Doctor of Civil Law (D.CL) from Ogun State University, now Olabisi Onabanjo University amongst other awards. He is an honest statesman, an astute businessman and a symbol of peace and unity.

The ‘Awujale served in the Western House of Obas, he has been Chairman of the Ogun State Council of Traditional Rulers, he has served as special envoy to South Africa, also as member of the Political Reform Assembly and as Chancellor of a Federal University, his book also shows that at many critical moments in Nigerian history he has been privileged to exercise influence, offer advice and guide the new leaders, but nonetheless, he laments the violation of the traditional institution by ambitious arrivistes as the root cause of the Nigerian crisis, even as he points out the opportunism of the traditional ruling elite.’

Ti omode o ba ba itan, a  ba aroba, In his biography titled  AWUJALE-The Autobiography of Alaiyeluwa Oba S.K Adetona, Ogbagba (II Pp. 50-52) Alayeluwa described the colonial experience of the Ijebus Thus:  “Then the White man came. They showed great curiosity about our land and wanted a foothold in Ijebu-Ode but we would not let them in. They wanted access to the land as shortcut to reach the hinterland. They wanted access to advance their religion. They wanted access to extend their domination. We rebuffed the first missionaries.

The consuls were rebuffed. Both the missionaries and the consuls were miffed by Ijebu’s intransigence in the protection of our land…

The final blow to attack us came in 1892 when, following a much doctored treaty, slanted totally in favour of the British, the Ijebus still resisted the entry of the consul’s representative and their religious counterparts. The British responded by unleashing their military might on us as a punishment for daring to protect our land and for our isolationist policy. We were no match for their superior firepower.

This was the Magbon expedition. It must be remembered that before the incursion of the Whites into our land, our institutional structure as outlined earlier, had held the community together. This was now violently dismantled. Having conquered the land, the

White man smashed our leadership and their spiritual hold. They took over our government, along with the control of the land and our religious establishment. This conquest whittled down the institutional forces that had long reigned before the advent of the Whites.

In replacement came their colonial government, the cross and much later the crescent. The effects of the Magbon war were devastating on Ijebu-Ode and the Awujale in particular. Soon after the British occupation, most of the subordinate chiefs in the outlying districts began to question, disown and abandon the authority of the Awujale in favour of the colonial administrative officer who took over the administration of the land.

Religious converts particularly, challenged the Awujale’s powers to adjudicate on conflicts… The colonialists initially found favour with the educated elite, and religious converts, favourable to displacement of the Chiefs. Language, religion and education were the connection cord between the elite and the colonialists. It is ironic that many of those favoured elites were the offspring’s of those who had been sold away as slaves.

The leadership ladder was turned upside down and the traditional chiefs were now at the mercy of the colonialists and their former slaves.

All the same from the early 1900s to 1960, it was the same educated elite who were in the vanguard of the nationalists’ movement leading to independence. They fought to replace the colonialists, although unfortunately without giving much thought to culture heritage and cultural modification to weld the old and the new. This displacement marks the beginning till today of a nation not at ease with its roots.

The advent of the Whites gave birth to two worlds in one society: that is, an ebbing traditional system and a flagging Western system. It is a muddle that we have not totally resolved such that the politicians took over from the colonialists and the military in similar vein, took over from the politicians, while sidelining the traditional rulers.

This background history was given to me and the unwritten lesson that could be drawn from it was that it was now up to me to raise the status of my forefather’s office that had been in decline to its old prestige, if not higher”

According to Alaiyeluwa Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, he put it on record that “prior to the advent of colonial rule, the administration of Ijebu, then known as the Ijebu ‘nation’, was firmly under the authority of the Awujale. By the time I got into office in 1960, there were only a few Obas in position in Ijebuland and the notable ones among them are the Dagburewe of Idowa, Ajalorun of Ijebu Ife, Orimolusi of Ijebu-Igbo, Lenuwa of Ode-Omi, Akija of Ikija, Onipe of Ibuarijan, Olowu of Owu-Ijebu, Ebumawe of Ago-Iwoye and Oloko of Ijebu Mushin. THESE WERE THE SENIOR OBAS UNDER THE AWUJALE”. However, the above is now history as Awujale has elevated some chiefs to the position of Obaship.

Oba S K Adetona, an experience Oba, proffers three guidelines as to how a traditional ruler can maintain his integrity, namely: 'traditional ruler must have an independent means of livelihood, and not be vulnerable to the "caprice of the politicians in power." A traditional ruler must also be neutral in political matters and three; he must be "stubborn and unwavering in his refusal to compromise the truth or the integrity of the Obaship institution, whatever the occasion." 

Awujale, a down to earth personality said “Corruption has become part of our life in this country, from our leaders and even the Obas are not left out, there is corruption everywhere. It is the greatest problem facing us as a country, and we have to overcome it to move forward.”

 Oba S K Adetona The Awujale of Ijebuland ,wants the myths around the enthronement and burial of kings exposed, he insists on the modernization of the institution in relation to ancient practices. On this very idea, i disagree with Alaiyeluwa, because the myths around the enthronement and burial of kings is what we regards as sacred, hence the secrecy must go on.

Happy 80th Anniversary Bami.