I was once a houseboy —Oloba of Oba-Ile

The newly installed Oloba of Oba-Ile, Osun State, Oba Adekunle Oyeyemi, is a Canada returnee, having sojourned in North American country for over three decades. A PhD holder in the Clinical Psychology, Oba Oyeyemi says his return is a divine call given his unique history. He speaks with TUNDE BUSARI 24 hours before he received his staff of office. 

You must have passed through some experience during the selection process. Can you share this with us?

The experience I passed through during the process was not different from what I expected. In other words, I knew it would be so. But there is no doubt that it was an exciting experience regardless of the form it took. In the course of the experience, I realized that majority of the people of the town knew what I did not know. These are the people God used to make today a reality. At this juncture, I want to sincerely express my appreciation to all that God used to make the journey possible. With the kind of support I received from them, I knew the future of this town is very bright. So, there is no regret passing through the experience.

What is the name of your ruling house?

I am from Adegun Ruling House. The ruling house is in Elemo compound, an important compound in this town.

What was life like for you before the day your name was announced as the new Oloba. ?

It may be of interest to you that I left this town in 1968 and went to Lagos where I served as  a houseboy to make ends meet until I studied Engineering and later Clinical Psychology and made my mark in the US and Canada. I have a PhD in Clinical Psychology and did modestly well up there before I returned home to ascend the throne. I have every reason to thank God for the grace he gave me to leave here as nobody and return as a king. It is uncommon favour that could not have come from anywhere else.

Is the Oba you met the same you left in 1968?

Things have changed. It is not peculiar to Oba alone. Even in the country. Don’t forget that the year we are talking about was the period when the Civil War was going on. Can you now see the transformation that the country has witnessed after the war in 1970? Same applies here. But one thing, one important thing I found out on my return is that our people are moving away from their communal mentality to individuality. This is one of the areas I am going to work on. There used to be spirit of collectivism in every one in this town. We got to do things together for the overall interest of the town. We need reorientation and I will champion the course as the Oloba. There is nothing you can compare to indivisibility. It makes the town strong and it also attracts good people to the town. My people need this reorientation. They need to know that nowhere in the whole world develops without the people. They need to know that nobody will do it for us. Our collective effort will do it. I thank God that the journey has now started.

Why didn’t you have your PhD in Engineering, your first course of study?

I hope it won’t be funny to you that boredom took me away from Mechanical Engineering, with due respect to the practitioners. At a stage, I found out that engineering was what I wanted myself to be but psychology was everything God had helped me to be. I hope you understand my drift. Without sounding immodest, I am successful in that field today by the grace of God. Conveniently, I can say psychology is me and I am psychology.

Is it now safe to use Dr as a prefix to your name?

I want you to use it as suffix, so to say. In fact, a traditional ruler advised me to use it after my names.

Some discuss crime challenge in Nigeria from psychological perspective. Can you share your view on this topic as an expert in that field?

Crime rate in Nigeria is a symptom of the fundamental problem. To be honest with you and the government of Nigeria at all levels, we cannot reduce the crime rate until we begin to address the fundamental problem.

How can you describe the role played by the Osun State government during your selection?

I want to thank the government for rising to the occasion and show that government is in place. The Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola did well. Same goes to his deputy and the SSG. They all allowed themselves to be used by God for the peace of my town. I thank them. They allowed the process to take a natural course and wrote their names in the history of the town as harbingers of peace. It is not only here, their sense of decency in handling traditional ruler issue in other towns is commendable. I will continue to thank them for their effort. I am also assuring them that I will commit myself to further development of the state.

You must have a working plan on how to bring your people together after the issue of succession has been settled. What is your plan?

That should be the next step to take but we have to understand that there must be willingness of all parties in this course. As the traditional ruler, I will do everything humanly possible to bring everybody together. I will not even mind to seek help of other people to achieve this because unity of the town is paramount to me. The development I am talking about cannot be achieved with a divided town. I am positive and really optimistic that we are going to get there. There is nothing else I am looking for which God has not blessed me with. For me to have left here in 1968 as a boy and returned as king, I need to do everything possible to praise the God and develop a large heart to accommodate everybody. Together, we are all going to get to the promise land.

The influence of western civilization on our culture is destructive. As a traditional ruler, don’t you think you have a role to play in salvaging the situation?

Of course, as the custodian of culture and tradition, we are expected to play important role in preserving our cultural heritage. This is exactly what we are going to do. I am of the opinion that we must return to the root. If we return to that level and are less political, traditional rulers can effectively play this role well. I can see my colleagues doing one thing or the other in their domains in this respect. I will not be an exception. You can start to understand this by the cultural performance being held here in the palace when you arrived.  Although it is part of the coronation programme, it is also an exhibition of our heritage. You can see how colourful the masquerades are. You can also see the entertainment side of them. What this is telling you is that we have rich culture which we should not allow to go into extinction. But all hands as they say must be on deck.

How adaptable is your Olori to her new status as wife of a royal father as against wife of PhD holder?

I think she is in transition period. And I think it is good to allow her pass through this period. One day, she is excited, another day she is cold. I know this is natural coming from an entirely different environment but I know with time she will adjust. That is my advice to her. She has to adjust to the position of Olori, she has to understand that the position is divine. It is an act of God.

What is your final word to the people of Oba-Ile?

I want to tell them and in fact assure them that there is room for everybody to develop. They should not leave me alone on this assignment. It is our collective responsibility to develop the town. All my sons and daughters at home and in the diaspora must come and take their rightful place in the developmental process. I am confident that we are going to be happy at the end of the day.