Oba Adekunle Oyeyemi, the Oloba of Oba-Ile, Osun State speaks with TUNDE BUSARI on his childhood and transition to adulthood which he explains was punctuated by incidents beyond his control; he reflects on his challenges and attributes his present position to divine grace.
How would you describe your journey till you ascended to the throne in 2017?
To be honest with you, my journey was full of challenges that go with man’s struggle and his survival. But I must say that God always shows His face to me at every critical point of the journey. I have taken stock of it and realised that my God is truly omnipresent. He watches over me and intervenes in my favour when it matters most; when I don’t need any other thing but divine intervention.
How would you describe yourself as a young boy?
There is no other way I can describe myself than being a boy with a strong mind. To some extent, this may sound abstract to you but that was me while I was growing up here in this town. I grew up on the farm where my father was in charge of all of us and his younger brothers. We would be in the farm and work, especially at the weekends and during holidays. I said I was strong minded because as young as I was, I deliberately choose what I wanted to do in terms of size and portion of the work to do. My brothers did not see what I saw, so they called me a lazy person because I did not do things their own way. They often called me a stubborn boy. But I did not care. They would be shocked to see me doing better in a portion I assigned for myself.
What message were you passing to them and particularly your father?
I was not consciously passing any message but I knew I was doing what my spirit found more accommodating. It was later in life that I realised that I was gradually building my self-belief and confidence with which I live my life till date. I am a determined person such that there is nothing I set out to do that I won’t accomplish. The road may be rough; I don’t care. The bottom line is that I must achieve the task. It was that self-belief that pushed me to walk to my father to tell him I was done in Oba-Ile; that I needed to relocate.
Where did you relocate to?
I thought I had done well by accepting to return to farm in class one of modern school.
Can you shed more light on this?
I was offered admission into the Ansar-Ud-Deen Modern School, Sabo, Osogbo. But I was recalled back home by my father who insisted I must be on the farm with him. I was devastated because I was one of the best students in the class. I topped my class all through my primary school. Our teachers were then looking forward to seeing me in higher school. But I had to drop out. At age 19, I was holding only primary school certificate.
Where did you go from Oba-Ile?
I told my father that I wanted to travel to Lagos to live with an uncle who is late now.
Why Lagos? Have you gone there before?
I had never been to Lagos. Don’t forget I said I was a strong minded person. I did not look at any dangers that I might face in Lagos. Rather I saw a bright future awaiting me there.
What was your father’s response?
He listened to me and to my surprise, he said it was okay. I could not believe my eyes. It was a dream come true. It was something I did not expect to come so easy. Then I began mental calculation on how I would make the trip and realise my dream.
What actually did you have in mind to do in Lagos?
Honestly I did not have any clear cut thing to do. I just needed to leave Oba-Ile and Lagos was my destination.
How did you get to your destination?
I packed my box filled with my native dresses; I had no shirt or trousers but I did not care. I was focused. I left Oba-Ile very early in the morning for Osogbo where I joined a train coming from the North. As I said that God would always come to me when it matters most, I got to the station when the train was about to take off. I quickly bought my ticket and took my seat.
How can you describe the journey from Osogbo to Lagos, taking such journey for the first time?
It was a memorable journey. I saw the bush running on both sides when the train was on motion. It was so strange with the fast rate at which the bush was running. I was naïve. I was too focused to note other things that happened on the train during the journey till we eventually arrived Iddo Terminus.
Where did you go from there?
I had the address of where I was going. So, I had no problem. Don’t forget I said I was already 19 years. I joined buses and got to Ajegunle where my uncle was living with his wife and children.
How did you continue your education?
I did not continue immediately. I worked at local government and later at Apapa Port. It was while I was working at the port that I had the opportunity to enroll at an evening school at Onike, Yaba. I did not waste the opportunity.
Who sponsored you?
That was not the opportunity I am talking about. I sponsored myself from the savings I made. I passed my exams in few years and gained admission into the Technical College after which I became an engineer. This story is not a newspaper thing because of space constraint as you would say.
How did you make it to become a Phd holder in Psychology instead of Engineering?
That was another hand of God. I worked here in Nigeria and later got a federal government scholarship which enabled me to study in the US; from there to Canada where I had my Phd in Rehabilitation Counselling.
How would you describe the year you have spent on the throne?
It was a year only God can claim its credit. It is beyond my power. I became the Oloba with a determination to change a lot of things in the town. I believed the town is long due for transformation and that was what I started as soon as I entered the palace. I am very happy to tell you that Oba-Ile is not the same again. Even the Olori herself is contributing her quota by organising women in the town for environmental sanitation exercise. She marked this year’s World Women’s Day here in the palace and the Deputy Governor of the state also witnessed it. The women who participated at the Women’s Day celebration had good stories to tell through their remarks at the end of the event.
Were you also there?
I did not say it was a women affair that I should not be there. I was there to give Olori moral support. I was there with her to welcome the deputy governor. I also spoke with the women and they were all excited.
This must be an indication of where your town will be in the nearest future.
It is going to be a shame for me not to impact heavily on my town. Then my long sojourn abroad is a waste. But I know my sojourn is an asset; so I am determined to improve this town.
Having held different positions in the past, can you compare any with the throne?
The throne is a sacred place. It is not an ordinary seat. That is why desperate ones don’t get to the throne. God ordains whoever will get there. I am happy that I am adjusting very fast to the palace. It is service to my people and nothing more.
and then