Day I danced in the public and was cautioned—Ex-Regent

Princess Oluwatoyin Akinmolayan, the Yeyeoba of Itegun Ijesa in Oriade Local Government Area of Osun State was a regent between February 2012 and May 2016 before one of her younger brothers emerged as the traditional ruler of the community. In this interview by DAPO FALADE, she speaks on the responsibilities entailed in serving the traditional institution, among other issues.  Excerpts:

What was your profession before becoming the regent?

I am a teacher and I am still in service till date. However, they gave me some preferences when I became a regent; I was not doing some works and immediately I became a regent, my employers gave me an office because I was in the classroom. Although I was due for a duty post because I was already on Level 14, but it had not been ratified by then. However, the regency quickened the process and I was given an office. In that office too, they don’t give me much work to do because they were aware of my position as a regent. So, as a civil servant, working in Lagos, I was a regent in Osun State.

How were you able to combine the two offices, working in Lagos and being the regent of your community?

Yes, God helped me out. When my late father, the immediate past traditional ruler of my community, was on the throne, he did not even stay much in our home town because he was a business man; he had most of his businesses in Kwara State. He told the people then that he was not ready to become the Oba because of his businesses and they dragged the issue for a while before they eventually begged him to become the traditional ruler of our community. You know, you cannot compel such a person to stay in the community. So, that is what made it easier for me too to be able to serve out my tenure as a regent, even while working in Lagos. If my father had stayed permanently at home, it would not have been easy for me to be operating from outside my community. When I became the regent, I used my father’s method to rule over the affairs of my community. While working in Lagos, I do go to my community twice or thrice in a month to attend to the needs of my people, especially when we want to clear cheques for the salaries of  high chiefs. And when there were some vitals issues for me to attend to, I would go home and clarify them. But above all, we do communicate nearly every day; to know about what was happening to my people.

How and why did the mantle fall on you?

I did not really know, but I happened to be the first female child of my late father. But my daddy never told me when he was alive that I would become a regent one day. Even until I became a regent, though I had been hearing about it, it didn’t have any meaning to me. My father died in Ilorin on January 26, 2012 and we sent one of his sons home to inform the people. They now insisted that I must be the one to come. I was agitated and I started arguing with my aunts and uncles on why it should be me because there were certain things I didn’t want to involve myself in. Their traditional ruler died and I felt anybody could tell his people about his demise. But one of my aunties persuaded me not to do that. That was how we left Ilorin for my home town. When we got there, they were happy and they told us what tradition demanded that we bring in respect of the burial of our late father. One of them told me how our daddy struggled for the town; he happened to be the first traditional ruler in the community to wear the beaded crown. So, they said they don’t want his name to perish. He got the beaded crown for the community in 2009; he started falling sick from that time. He did not really enjoy the crown, that was what pained the people and they felt the stool should not slip from our family. I didn’t know they were giving me the preamble, but I told them no problem, we will give them somebody from the family and I left.

We buried our father on February 2, 2012; of course, we did not know how they did it. But we were told that we would perform a 7-day traditional rites for the late traditional ruler and I happened to be on ground throughout the period. On the seventh day, one of my uncles, who is now late, called me as the eldest child and told me, ‘you have not given us kola’ and I replied, ‘but you did not ask for kola’. I now gave one of my aunties N1, 000 to go to Ijebu-Jesa Market to buy kola. I told her to buy big ones because I just wanted to satisfy them as I have much respect for traditional rites.

When we brought the kola nut, they called all of us-honestly, I didn’t know they had any plan, the Olodogo of Odogo was in attendance, Prince Olashore from Iloko-Ijesa (that time, we had lost the Owaloko of Iloko, Oba Oladele Olashore, who happened to be my father’s best friend) and some other dignitaries were there too. I was thinking they were there to pay the last respect to my father.

History has it that we originated from Aramoko-Ekiti, about 150 years ago, after a power tussle over kingship and they took some deities with them. One of the deities is still in front of the palace till now. They asked us about our father’s clothes, his cap, the royal bead and I told one of my siblings to bring them out. Then, they said we should come outside the palace, they used the kola nut to pray and we were told the prayer has been answered, then, they prostrated before me, shouting kabiyesi o. In bewilderment, I asked if they were prostrating for the agbada. It was then that Prince Olashore told me that they knew that, as an educationist, if I had pre-knowledge of what they were about doing, I will not accept and that was why they didn’t tell me. They proclaimed me the regent and paid homage to me and wore my father’s agbada on me, along with the royal bead on my neck.

Was there anything fetish done before you were proclaimed the regent?

No, nothing of such happened. They just used the kola to ask if I am the divine choice. And I want to believe that that was what happened because the elderly man shouted ‘obi yee’. All that was done happened in the presence of everybody. There was nothing secret about it. The only thing was that immediately I was proclaimed the regent, they were putting salt along the way and I was told to step on it. From there, we danced round the town and returned to the palace. We came back and I was surprised and confused, asking what will I do? Especially when I saw old men and women remove their caps and head ties to say kabiyesi to me. I was like, ‘God, what type of position is this?’ But God made it easier for me.

What were your roles as a regent?

Well, it was basically to see to the governance of the community; to see to the smooth running of the entire place; to settle disputes among and within my people; and for the monetary aspect, if there is anything coming from the government to the town, I will be the one to get it. I was the sole signatory to my community’s account. So, those were the things I did as a regent.

What is the difference between your role as the Yeyeoba and your role as a regent?

According to what they told me, the Yeyeoba is more important than the regent because I cannot kneel down for the traditional ruler as I am his mother. My brother, who is now the traditional ruler of our community, seeks advice from me; he consults me on a number of issues. And if there is anything that he wants to happen in the community, they will let me know. So, I play my role as an adviser and as somebody that runs the government, along with the traditional ruler.

Has being the Yeyeoba changed anything about you?

Nothing has changed because I have been telling my people, from 2014 that I am tired of being a regent. It is when you get there that you will know what it entails to be a regent. An oba cannot eat outside so, invariably, I too cannot eat outside and I will be feeling hungry. In my natural being, I used to behave like a man; I drive and when somebody drives wrongly in front of me, I will get down from my car and tongue-lash him. But as a regent, I cannot do that; you cannot dance anyhow, especially in the public. Immediately I became a regent, I had a social function. I love dancing and enjoying myself. I went to that function in Lagos but I had forgotten that I am a regent. When the musician started playing, I just stood up, with all the regalia of a regent and started dancing, in the public. An elderly woman came to me, she tapped me and said, ‘Oba kii jo ni gbangba’. I said, ‘I am in soup, what kind of responsibility is this? God should just help me through’. So, I don’t know and I cannot understand why some regents would not want to leave the throne, because I am free now. If I didn’t tell you I was a regent, there is no way you would have known. And as the Yeyeoba too, I am still a princess and it doesn’t change my status. The fact still remains that my father happened to be an Oba and my brother is now the Oba of our community. So, I am fulfilled.

As a regent, what are the things you missed in your private life?

You are not free as a regent. Everything is about constitution, tradition and culture. You cannot behave as an ordinary human being in public. Anywhere I go, there must be that royal bead on my neck, even if I am going to the office. There are times I put on my daddy’s agbada on it and I am not free in such attire. Later, I modernised it; I sowed trousers and the tops, most ankara materials like a man’s own but with feminine touch.

I didn’t live a free life as a regent. Even my children, at times, I don’t time and enough attention for them. I will be in town attending to community matters while my child in the boarding school will be missing me. There are times, I will send people to go and see her for me. Those are some of the tasks that go along with regency.

Considering modernization, will you advise that regency be cancelled?

No, it should not be cancelled. However, it is not every society that embraces regency, not even in the entire Ijesaland where I come from. An example is Iloko-Ijesa where the next person to the late Oba is the person ruling the community. There, you don’t have any regent. But the fact still remains that those who have close relationship with Ekiti, the tradition demands that immediately the Oba passes on, the first female child becomes the regent. Doing this makes it easier for them to direct the affairs of the community until the appointment of another traditional ruler. This is because a male acting as an Oba may not want to leave the throne when a substantive Oba is eventually elected and appointed. Since our tradition did not endorse a female child becoming an Oba, such a regent knows that she would, one day, leave as she is holding that post temporarily. And something you are holding temporarily should not be a problem for you whenever you are leaving.

Between the regency and your teaching profession, which one will you prefer?

The question is so confusing because when I became a regent, they gave us stipend. I learnt that before then, it was the same salary that my late father used to receive that the regents were receiving. But when I became regent, I learnt that something happened and the money was reduced and the token isn’t enough for us. I could recollect that the regent of Ere-Ijesa came to me, seeking for my face but I was in Lagos. The message came to me that she wanted to see me. I visited her in her own palace when I returned from Lagos and she told me that she would like me to talk to the late Owaloko of Iloko Ijesa for a review of the salary of the regents. We started the process, but unfortunately, he, Oba Olashore, traveled abroad but did not return to Nigeria alive.

In essence, my own work as a teacher is what will sustain me for life because even when I eventually retire, I am still going to have my benefits from the government and that is what I am using to sustain myself. However, it is the honour that we have in regency that is the perk. Wherever you go, they will recognise you. An incident happened and I will like to share it with you here. The late Owaloko was celebrating his 18th coronation anniversary and I happened to be there as the only regent. We attended the church service and it was announced that all the royal fathers should be attended to in one place. I looked at myself and I said, ‘am I a royal father?’ This was an event where we had the likes of the late Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade, among other important Yoruba traditional rulers. Who am I?

After the service, we went to the place reserved for us and I was watching how the drama would play out. There were about 10 body guards to the late Ooni, doing different jobs. It was then that I remembered that omooba kii se bi eru. Why am I looking askance? I just gathered myself together; I went to my high chiefs. I told them about the announcement and they said they heard. One of them, having realised that it was just two weeks after I became the regent, notice that I was fidgeting. The high chief, who happened to be an age mate of late father, said to me, like a military command, ‘Regent, we don’t belong to that place as royal blood does not run in our vein. But you belong there. O ya, follow them’. But I became more fearful; how can I sit with these big obas? But I started going, with my horse tail. When I wanted to enter into the place where we are to be entertained, I discovered that all the policemen were saluting me and paying homage. With that encouragement, I entered into the place.

Only the Obas were there and we were told to serve ourselves and there was a solemn music being played by a bandsman on the stand. One of the Obas came to me and asked, ‘regent, what will you take? I want to serve you’. I told him I want small fried rice with small white rice and he served me. I was fulfilled. Those were part of the honours.