By Hazeez Ayansola
The rebuttal published by Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade I asking for the revocation of the announcement of Chief Sanusi Dotun, the Chairman/ Chief Executive Officer, Ilaji Resorts as the Okanlomo of Yorubaland by Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Babatunde Ogunwusi – Ojaja II came as a rude shock to some of us who had a rare privilege of witnessing the genesis of last Saturday reiteration and amplification of Chief Dotun Sanusi as Okanlomo of Yorubaland’s Designate.
The announcement which now generated unwarranted furore had first been made in 2020 at the palace of Ooni of Ife when Chief Dotun Sanusi in company of prominent sons and daughters of Ibadan and some of his multi billionaire friends paid birthday homage to the highly revered monarch.
The homage which Chief Dotun Sanusi described ‘as a must’ was a return visit to the one paid by Ooni of Ife a year before when the Monarch visited Ilaji Resort to commission the then newly completed Ilaji Resort’s Yoruba Art Gallery.
Being birthday mates, Ooni of Ife drew the first blood, when he made a grand and majestic entrance into Ilaji Resort in 2019 to commission the Gallery which boasts of collections of Yoruba legends artefacts before he left for Ife to meet visitors whom he said had been waiting for him in the palace to celebrate his birthdate with him.
Chief Dotun Sanusi did not disappoint in the following year (2020) when he led dignitaries from all walks of life to pay a thank-you-visit to the monarch. The visit which later turned into a mini party began with the introduction of the prominent personalities that accompanied Chief Dotun Sanusi. It also featured traditional chants, Chief Dotun Sanusi’s speech and light entertainment.
Ooni of Ife while delivering his speech acknowledged Chief Dotun Sanusi’s contributions to the development of culture in Yorubaland and as a mark of his appreciation to the man who has done so much for the preservation of Yoruba culture, he announced Chief Dotun Sanusi as the Okanlomo of Yorubaland Designate.
But for the issue of Corona viruses which was rampaging then, the official ceremony and staff of office would have been presented to Ilaji Resort Boss.
The news of Chief Dotun Sanusi’s announcement as Okanlomo of Yorubaland Designate was well publicized then and there was never a time that the then Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi condemned nor demanded for the revocation of the announcement.
Infact, to show the level of cordiality that existed between Chief Dotun Sanusi and the then Alaafin, the late Monarch, publicly in his palace, endorsed a football competition tagged Ilaji Football League (IFL).
IFL, a ten-team competition envisioned and solely sponsored by Chief Dotun Sanusi, had the participating teams drawn from ten major towns in Oyo State.
The late Alaafin of Oyo during the presentation of the official Jerseys of Oyo FC by Mogaji Nurudeen Akinade, the representative of Chief Dotun Sanusi, lauded the Ilaji Resort’s Boss for creating a platform for the discovery of football talents that are scattered within the hinterlands of Oyo State with a view to making their footballing dreams a reality. The Monarch consequently gave his blessings for Oyo FC to participate in the competition.
The ten teams that participated in the competition include:
Oyo FC, Ogbomoso FC, Iseyin F , Eruwa FC, Igboho F , Igbeti FC, Saki FC, Kishi FC, Ibadan FC and Ilaji FC which happened to be the host team.
And true to the Monarch’s predictions not less than five of the players discovered from that competition are playing very well in some European clubs thereby making their dreams materialized.
If the late Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi whom many knew and regarded as a repository of Yoruba history and custodian of Yoruba culture during his reign did not antagonize nor reject the announcement of Chief Dotun Sanusi as the Okanlomo of Yorubaland five years ago, it is then worrisome but not totally surprising that the present Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade I was only using the announcement as a cover to fester a supremacy battle.
Hazeez Ayansola is a media consultant and a business man write from Ibadan (ayansolahazeez60@gmail.com)
