Sons and daughters of Osogbo, the Osun State capital recently celebrated Oroki Day amid renewed efforts to move the town forward from its present state. TUNDE BUSARI reports.
The euphoria of the successful hosting of the Osun Osogbo Festival hardly subsided when all the indigenes of Osogbo, under the aegis of the Osogbo Progressive Union (OPU) converged on the upgraded Osogbo Township Stadium on Ikirun Road and celebrated the annual Oroki Day.
OPU is Osogbo’s apex non-political organisation formed on August 22, 1946 in Osogbo with a view to fostering unity and facilitating rapid development of the town which would later become the capital city of Osun State.
Months of intense preparation by the organising committee, led by Chief Moshood Adeyemo and Leye Odetoyinbo, melted into hours as the main bowl of the stadium was filled by various social associations, whose members and representatives were decked in uniform Ankara fabrics.
Seated under different sizes of canopies erected on the field, the associations were a beauty to behold in their all-blue Ankara fabrics, watching the proceedings anchored by the National Public Relations Officer of the OPU, Alhaji Oyesiku Adelu who was assisted by two others also decked in the same attire.
It was a day of fun with a live band of Shaba Dapo, an Osogbo-based highlife crooner, intermittently dishing out beautiful numbers of his songs to the applause of the large crowd of people who were dancing from their respective seats.
While the executive members of OPU had arrived the venue hours before the Ataoja of Osogbo, Oba Jimoh Olanipekun entered the stadium alongside his chiefs, invited guests, particularly political office holders came later in company of their party supporters.
When the guests, some of whom also dressed in the same attire, arrived the stadium, they all made it to the state box where the Ataoja and the Ataoja-In-Council were seated and looked forward for another successful occasion.
The scene was a perfect blend of different political parties in one gathering. Although there were apprehension suggesting possible clash among supporters, which was nipped in the bud by the organizing committee, which put in place preventive measures that achieved the desired result at the end of the day.
When the Ataoja was invited to deliver his welcome address, a speech he delivered extempore, he expressed his appreciation to members of all parties in attendance and encouraged them to eschew politics of bitterness, saying they should be united by the urge to improve the lives of the masses.
Oba Olanipekun specifically extolled the virtue of the governor of Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola and his deputy, an indigene of Osogbo for what he described as the transformation the government brought to the state thereby elevating it to the true status of capital of the state.
He reminded the gathering of the significance of the event and explained it in the area of socialising, interacting and discussing further development of Osogbo, saying that the people should not relent in their efforts in ensuring that the town gets to the Promised Land.
He also sued for peace and appealed to the elders to forgive the erring youths while also appealing to the youths to always respect the elders because of their wealth of experience, which he said, was not on sale in the market.
“I appreciate all political appointees, royal fathers, the Ilumoyes, Baales, Asoju Obas, the Elders Forum, the executives and members of OPU Home Branch, National and Diaspora, the Iyalojas, the artisans, NURTW, RTEAN, NUT, NLC, various family compounds, sons and daughters of Osogbo here present,” he said.
Unlike the Ataoja, who gave his speech while seated, the president of OPU, Ambassador Rasak Siyanbola, walked onto the field where he was surrounded by members of his executive.
It was a delight listening to the retired diplomat intimating the gathering the journey of his administration since he came on board under an arguably free and fair election in 2011. Like the Ataoja, the president also extended the appreciation of the OPU to the Aregbesola-led government on its developmental projects in Osogbo and other parts of the state, praying to God to provide more fund for the government to complete the projects before its tenure expires in 2018.
Having eulogised the government, the president used the occasion to raise the alarm on the rise in criminal activities in the town in recent time. Of particular concern, he recalled, was the menace of suspected land grabbers who have become a thorn in the flesh of property developers and construction workers at sites at different locations of the town.
“We have lately witnessed the escapade of hoodlums, miscreants who have imported fear into Osogbo with their diabolical activities. We have also witnessed the menace of land grabbers, bullies and land speculators who go about terrorising would-be landlords, thereby extorting money from them.
“We also experienced in Osun State generally and Osogbo in particular, ritualists, cultists, and all other men of the underworld that are carrying out series of homicide murder and ritual killings. A clear example was the murder of the UNIOSUN bio-chemistry final year student, Timileyin Shonibare who was murdered in cold blood. We pray that God Almighty will provide succor for the family and give the parents enough fortitude to bear the loss,” he said.
The representative of Aregbesola, the Chief of Staff, Gboyega Oyetola, reciprocated the gratitude of Osogbo and assured the people of the government’s renewed determination to ensure the town attains the developmental goal of the administration.
Oyetola revealed with emphasis that he was also a stakeholder in the Osogbo project having grown up and indeed attended a secondary school in Osogbo in the 70s, promising to deliver all the words sent to his principal.
“Attending this occasion is like attending my event because of my strong connection to Osogbo where I attended Ife Oluwa Grammar School. The transformation which our administration has done so far is a duty and obligation to fulfill our promise to the good people of Osogbo,” he said.
The deputy governor, Mrs Titi Laoye-Tomori spoke as an illustrious daughter of the soil, thanking Oyetola for standing in for their principal and encouraging the OPU to always come up with such befitting outings to assert the position of Osogbo as a town of civilised sons and daughters, which is also blessed with human and capital resources.
“I am happy to witness this occasion not as a deputy governor but as one of the hosts of our guests. We thank you for honouring our invites. We thank you for showing maturity that we can sit together despite our political differences. May God bless all our guests and take Osogbo to a greater height in our lifetime,” she prayed.
A member of Osogbo Professionals, an elitist social group, Dr Kamorudeen Kadiri said the unity of the people of the town is sacrosanct in order to position Osogbo in its rightful place among other capital cities in the country. The academic stated that the age when Osogbo was pushed into the rear by other towns was gone, challenging indigenes to rise up and contribute their quotas in the effort to move the town forward.
No efforts, Kadri said, should be spared to assert the authority of Osogbo when and where it matters, adding that the town is blessed with the required resources to compete favourably at any level within and outside the country.
“My brothers and sisters must try as much as possible to make them visible on the course aimed at positioning our town well. We are all doing well and we are not going to relent in our effort. Osogbo Professionals of which I am a member within the short time has demonstrated a renewed spirit of oneness which the town needs to join the league of developed cities in the country,” he said.
The national PRO, Oyesiku Adelu appraised the event and expressed his satisfaction at the success achieved just as he promised a better outing in the subsequent editions from 2018. Impressed by the peace that reigned while the programme lasted despite certain tension, Oyesiku added that the credit should go to the organising committee and the entire members for playing different roles in managing the tension and saving the town another controversy.
“We cannot afford not to get it right. We know that all eyes are on us before and during the event. So, we ensure everything that could ignite problem was handled with maturity and respect. Our politicians really showed understanding and we are most grateful for this. Because of the status of Osogbo as the capital of a whole state, there is no way we could organise an event as this without open invitation across board. Once it is made clear that the OPU is non-partisan, we are covered to extend invitations to as many guests as possible. We should not forget that the event also is a way to drive developmental goals of the town. And you will agree with me that expanded invitation can achieve this for us,” he said.
and then