ARABA YEMI ELEBUIBON: YORUBA CULTURAL AMBASSADOR EXTRAORDINARY

Chief Ifayemi Elebuibon, an author,paywright, is a popular Ifa priest from South-western part of Nigeria. The 11th Araba of Oshogbo,  was born in Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria. He cames from a family acclaimed to be one of the authorites on Yoruba Traditional Institutions, A direct descendant of Olutimehin, one of Co-founder of the City of Osogbo. He began his priesthood training at age four.

He received his formal education through correspondence courses. His parents insisted on his through grounding in the traditional institution and culture through his apprenticeship with renowned priests of the day. Araba Ifayemi is a poet, performing artist, play write, herbalist and practising babalawo (ifa priest). He has published several books, and scholarly papers on various aspects of Yoruba traditional religion and culture.

Araba Ifayemi is also a recording artist with several credits on Yoruba poetic genre known as Ewi. His mostly social commentaries and parallax snaps cultural philosophy.

His traditional morality drama, Ifa Olokun Asorodayo called from Odu Ifa, was presented on Nigeria National Television Network popular series.

Yemi is an international scholar in-residence at San Francisco State University in California, USA, where he lectures on African Traditional religion and philosophy.

He is the founder of Ancient Philosophy International, Osogbo, Nigeria a Centre dedicated to teach African traditional religion and preforming arts.

He has trained a lot of students and initiated many into the tradition.

Yemi numerous awards and recognitions include lifetime achievement chieftancy as the Araba of Osogbo a title that elevated him to a venerated position in the priesthood hierarchy.
He has also been honored with a doctorate degree of the Brandice University USA. He is an associate staff at Institute of Cultural. he was appointed a vice chairman of Board of Traditional Medicine, Osun State. He is also the current president of International Congress of Orisa tradition and culture, Nigeria Chapter.

He maintain a botanica and mini-museum at his House of Culture that has become a must stop for visitors to Osogbo for teh city annual Osun Festival.
Yemi has travelled to many parts of the world at the invitation of organizations, institutions, colleges, and universities and local governments.
Membership and Awards include;Member of Rotary Club Osogbo; Member of Yoruba Centre of Excellence; Trophy Second Prize Bauch Nafest 89; Merit Award; Justice of Peace, Government of Osun State; Merit Award Osogbo Progressive Union; Silver Trophy Government of Oyo State by Sasa Eniyan Ore Sanya;An honourary decorated degree of traditional religion upon the Recomendation (USA 27-7-1993); etc.

OONI ENITAN OGUNWUSI IS THE REALITY OF OUR TIME~~ WOLE SOYINKA

The Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, sometime ago that the position of Olugbo of Ugbo, Oba Frederick Akinruntan, who described Moremi Ajasoro as a traitor did not deserve any response.

He contended that “the position of Olugbo does not touch the reality on Moremi and his position does not deserve a response or not worthy of response”.
He said, “There is controversy about the origin of someone whom we know as the origin of Yoruba race, kingdom, black race and humanity. The controversy may continue for long but the reality I that Kabiesi, the Ooni of Ife above all Ile-Ife is the cradle of humanity.

“We know what we know; we know what we accept and believe and that remains the fact. I have just gone to see the statue of Moremi and the controversy on Moremi her, I have heard. I learnt that some people said that Moremi, the heroine, is a traitor. That does not touch any part of reality of what Moremi is or was. And I don’t want you (Ooni) to spend any time or energy at all responding to counter or alternative theories. It is not necessary.”

According to him, the influence of Ile-Ife transcends Nigeria and Africa. “If you walk on the street of Cuba or Brazil, somebody will tap you on your shoulder because they know you are black, they say ‘who are you?’ And you say ‘I am Osun, Ogun, Sango’. At the end, they will ask you how is the Ooni? It means the Yoruba race, culture is beyond this environment,” he added.

Describing Ooni as the Yoruba’s reality, he maintained that the race’s culture had gone beyond speculation, just as he said “it is natural and spiritual. The historical status of   Ile-ife as the cradle of the mankind remains incontrovertible and Ooni Enitan Ogunwusi is the reality of our time”.