In 1987, Oba Yesufu Oloyede Asanke, the Olubadan of Ibadan, invited the Chief Press Secretary to the Military governor of Oyo State, Mr. Lekan Alabi to become the Mogaji of his family. What a good news it was to Mr. Alabi, but there was a rub. The Federal Ministry government of Buhari/Idiagbon had barred conferment of traditional Chieftaincy titles on government officials. It also directed title holders in the service to either renounce them or quit service.
That was how Lekan Alabi’s installation was put in a abeyance. He was, however, destined to be a chief and head of his family. Time unfolded and much later and precisely on October 30,1994, the Oyetunji Olundegun family of Isale Ijebu unanimously nominated him the head of the family and was formally approved by His Royal Majesty, Oba Adegboyega Adeyemo Operinde 1 and the Olubadan Advisory Council.
That was the synopsis of how the president Ekefa Olubadan, High Chief Lekan Alabi, started ascending the rungs of elevation that leads to Obaship in Ibadan. It was a fulfillment of Oba Asanke’s prediction that Alabi would be Mogaji of his family at God’s own time as he was earlier stopped from ascending the Mogaji stool in 1987 because he was the Chief Press Secretary in a military government.
As agreed, and having obtained permission from the acting Military Governor, I proceeded to the palace where I met the council in session. Kabiyesi the Olubadan, after introducing the high chiefs present, told them that I was the Press Secretary, who had been impersonated along with him. But according to the royal father, since I was a personal staff of the military governor, on whom he had no control, he would not know what the governor and i intended to do on the matter.
I requested that I be allowed to make a telephone call to my boss (the military governor), who was holidaying in Lagos. Upon contact, the military governor directed me to inform Kabiyesi that I would abide by his royal decision concerning the impersonators.
Before I left the palace that day for my office, however, Kabiyesi and the Chiefs were happy to learn that truly I was Kabiyesi’s son, as I am a descendant of Ekerin Ajengbe and Oyetunji Olundegun clans of Oritamerin and Isale Jebu areas of Ibadan respectively. My family (Ekerin Ajengbe) had produced three traditional high Chiefs of the ranks of Ekerin Balogun and Agbaakin Balogun of Ibadanland. The Olubadan, Oba Asanike, in particular was delighted at my pedigree.
Weeks after the royal resolution of the flour case, my office assistant, Isaka Oladele. One day received a call from the palace that I should see Kabiyesi unfailingly. After the close of office, again I went to the Idi Aro Palace to keep the appointment with Kabiyesi. On getting there, it became apparent that an elderly, fellow townsman who is my namesake was the one the Olubadan wanted to see concerning arrangements for his installation as a Chief, Kabiyesi implored me to rub my hands over my stomach (not to take offence) at the mix-up.
CONTACT WITH OLUBADAN PALACE
On Wednesday July 08, 1987, as I was stepping out of my office to the Executive Council Chambers in the old Oyo State Military Governor’s office in Ibadan for the swearing-in-ceremony of government committed members by the then Garrison Commander of the 2 Mechanised Division of the Nigerian Army who was acting for the Military Governor who was on annual vacation, the telephone in my office range Fate again intervened, as I stepped back to take the call. What a right decision it proved to be. As I was dashing out to join the acting governor’s learn for the swearing-in ceremony, frolicking was the last indulgence I could afford to grant any caller. But events would reveal that the caller (the Marketing Manager of the Eagle Flour Mill, Ibadan) was not in for frolicks either. His call saved what would have been a lifetime embarassment to me and by implication, my boss, the military governor had some fraudsters got away with their well-hatched scam or what is now popularly called “419”.
I had told the mill manager to please call me back as I was on my way out to an important assignment within the premises. But he (the caller) would not take that insisting that I returned his call as he was doing you and your boss (the military Governor) a favour” What favour? I dared him, but he replied that since I was rushing to an assignment, I should return the call.
Immediately the swearing-in ceremony was over, I rushed back to my office to return the call and what transpired between me and the caller or rather my saving angel’ led to my describing the call as monument. He had called to confirm if truly I had sent two proxies to solicit and collect some bags of flour as PR (free) mill’s products.
Upon my insistence for a clearer picture of what was really going on at his (caller’s) end. I was told that someone, impersonating my humble self, had earlier sent a written request in my name for free supply of some products of the flour mill. Thereafter, the fake Lekan Alabi persistently kept calling the Managing Director of the mill on telephone demanding to know when the PR supplies would be delivered as he Lekan Alabi was about to embark on a state tour with his boss, the military governor’.
The persistent telephone calls from the ‘Press Secretary’ must have infuriated the expatriate Managing Director of the flour mill so much so that he summoned an emergency management meeting with a plea to any member who was familiar with the ‘press secretary’ to appeal to him (the applicant) for patience concerning his request. That was what prompted the Marketing Manager to call me as he suspected that someone was definitely playing pranks. To cap it all, the ‘press secretary’ and his people had arrived at the mill to collect the allocation, the beleaguered Marketing Manager said.
I was full of immense gratitude for his (caller’s) kind obligation and attenstation to my good character. I then implored him to please do all he could to ensure that the fake ‘Lekan Alabi’ and his gang in their premises did not leave their premises as I was on my way. I narrated the above story to the ag. Military Governor who not only gave me the go-ahead to “go” and uphold your image”, but was kind enough to assign two military personnel and a police serveant to escort me and the Director of Protocol to the mill.
The impersonators were arrested and taken to the Orita Challenge Police Station on the Ibadan-Ijebyu-Ode road I thought that was the end of the road for the impersonators and the matter I was wrong. Please see the report of the incident below.
National concord issue of 9th July 1987. Page 11 Two in Police net for
Impersonating Olubadan
from Femi Onayemi-Regional Editor, Ibadan
‘Two middle-aged businessmen who impersonated the Olubadan of Ibadanland in an attempt to make ‘quick cash’ landed in Police net in the Oyo State capital yesterday.
‘The two men, whose names police are withholding were nabbed as they wanted to collect certain quantities of some essential commoditee ‘free of charge’ from an Ibadan flour mill.
‘They had tricked the management of Eagle Flour (Nigeria) Limited into believing that the commodities worth more than N10,000 were actually requested for by Oba Oloyede Asanike II.
National Concord learnt that the two suspects submitted a request for an allocation of 30 bags of flour and 20 bags of semovita from the company last Monday purporting it to emanate from Oba Asanike.
‘The request, according to sources, was contained in an official letter, which bore the Olubadan’s letter-heading including the crown trade-mark xxxxxxxxxxxx
were listed in the letter as senior Ibadan chiefs for whom the commodities were purportedly being requested.
“Luck however ran against the two suspects yesterday as they showed up at the Ibadan/Lagos expressway premises of the company to collect the commodities.
“They were arrested by alerted plain-clothed policemen at the invitation of suspecting commercial manager with the company, Mr. Felix Dokpesi.
“The commercial manager had earlier in the day contacted the Olubadan’s Palace for confirmationof Oba Asanike’s purported request.
“Also contacted by Mr. Dokpesi, according to sources, was the press secretary to the state governor, Mr. Lekan Alabi, whose name was allegedly linked by the suspects with Oba Asanike’s purported request”.
A few days after the fake press secretary had been handed over to the Police for prosecution, I got a call from the Palace of the Olubadan, Oba Yesufu Oloyede Asanike, Kabiyesi that he wanted to see me urgently, his secretary informed me. I promised to visit the palace after the close of the day’s business.
On getting to the Idi Aro palace of the Olubadan, Kabiyesi said my presence would be needed at the palace the next day as the parents of the impersonators who had also forged Kabiyesi’s signature to apply for flour had been summoned to appear before the Olubadan Advisory Council xxxxx would want to confer a traditional title on me, as soon as practicable.
To achieve this, I needed to, first, be appointed the head (Mogaji) of our family. But the big clog on the way of Kabiyesi’s lofty design for me and my family was the subsisting decree promulgated by the Buhari/Idiagbon military government that barred all public officers from holding traditional chieftaincy titles. Those already conferred with traditional titles before the decree was promulgated were either to repudiate them or quit the service.
My boss, the military governor, was well disposed to the royal proposal. But his hands were tied by the decree. When I reverted back to the Olubadan about this dilemma, his reply was, “if they prevent you from taking your ancestors’ title now, they will not be there to prevent you when God says it is His time for you to be appointed” How true!
I was unanimously nominated by my family, the Oyetunji Olundegun Family of Isale Ijebu as the Mogaji (Head)) on October 30, 1994.
My nomination was formally approved by HRM, Oba Adegboyega Adeyemo, Operinde 1, the Olubadan of Ibadanland and the Olubadan Advisory Council on November 21st, 1994 making true the prediction of the late Oba Yesufu Oloyede Asanike 1, the 37th Olubadan of Ibadanland.
READ ALSO: LAUNCH OF 5G NETWORK IN CHINA LINKED TO CORONAVIRUS
Send Us News, Gist, more... to citypeopleng@gmail.com | Twitter: @CitypeopleMagz
