The former Vice-Chancellor, Obafemi Awolowo University, Prof. Wande Abimbola, once warned that Yoruba language faces the threat of extinction in the next 50 years if urgent steps were not taken to revive it during the third Odua Distinguished Lecture papers where he complained that the essence of Yoruba culture, which included songs, dance, dress and language, had been neglected by the government and individuals.
Abimbola had charged government, parents and guardians to endeavour to allow the young to communicate in Yoruba as this would aid learning of science and technology. His assertion then was supported by the world increasingly recording high cases of endangered languages. Endangered language is a language that is at risk of falling out of use as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural organization (UNESCO) warned that some Nigerian languages are at the risk of dying out and falling out of the communication choice.
It has been argued that since independence, the Yoruba ethnicity had continuously lost its heritage and its people have become Europeans in black skin and its culture fast losing space among elitist homes, public and private and schools while increasing modernisation, globalisation and technology has relegated to the background the sacred and cherished Yoruba culture and tradition which promotes the omoluwabi ethos, the absence of which has crumbled the moral compass of the people.
To curb this dangerous trend and bring back the young ones to embrace their heritage, Oyo State as the pacesetter, put together a cultural and tourism festival which has been described as the first of its kind – Omituntun Pacesetter Cultural Tourism Festival, to honour the Yoruba heritage and preserve the identity of the Oyo State people and the diversity of its abundant natural and cultural resources.
The festival themed, Asa wa… Ipinle wa, was predicated on the belief that culture is important to the identification of people, their way of life, behavioural characteristic of different groups, language, music, dressing, fashion, belief system, cultural values, ethics and norms which have been eroded over time and the understanding by the state government that for development to take place, values must be restored.
Speaking at the finale of the festival which held at Cultural Centre, Ibadan, the Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Dr. Wasiu Olatubosun, noted that the last time any cultural festival was celebrated in the state was 11 years ago during the tenure of Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala, adding that it was held on a low scale unlike the elaborate one that the administration of Governor Seyi Makinde has introduced.
According to him, Engr Makinde has been taking pragmatic steps to promote the culture and tradition of the state and has brought the festival, which he described as the first of its kind, because he is a lover of culture. He emphasised that the state went to NAFEST for the first time in eight years during the first year of the Makindeled administration, adding that the state came fourth.
“The purpose of this is to create a platform to celebrate our heritage and identify talents that can represent the state in competitions while also ensuring UNESCO identifies with this festival. This is primarily a platform to promote the state’s beautiful and enormous cultural values, heritage and tourism potential to the whole world. It has to do mainly with the Yoruba culture and tradition and that is why you see thousands of the custodians of culture here today exhibiting their belief.
“I urge the people to uphold our traditional and cultural legacy while we also promote our tourism potential before we forfeit the essence of our identity to foreigners who are keen to import Yoruba’ cultural heritage. We are, through this festival, promoting the values and good behaviour that the Yoruba culture stands for among the citizens,” Dr Olatubosun stated.
He reiterated that the event, packaged by the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism with support from Goldberg and Ilaji Hotels and Sports Resort and in conjunction with Local Government and Local Council Development Areas within the state was an attestation of the governor’s love for the people, their welfare and the state’s cultural heritage, adding that Governor Makinde has been taking pragmatic steps to promote the culture and tradition of the state as a lover of culture.
And in furtherance of the call that Yoruba be considered a school-based second language to prepare and encourage students to use the Yoruba language they are learning outside of school, the Aare Ona-Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Adams, in his remarks as the chairman at the festival, called on South-west governors to invest in the promotion of Yoruba culture and harness its tourist potential for economic growth and global recognition, adding that promotion of culture would turn Yoruba states to tourist destinations and thereby enhance rapid social and economic development of the area.
He stated that “we are fast losing our identity, it’s becoming difficult for even our children to speak Yoruba language and it’s becoming difficult to identify with our culture. Instead of them to identify with our culture they promote Western culture, they have pride in it and this is very dangerous. We need to start working on the promotion of culture and turn it to tourism potential and upgrade our destination so that the coming generation can be proud.”
Iba Adams described the cultural festival as a significant and important one that would help in the promotion of peace and tranquility within the state and the nation as a whole. He urged the Oyo State Government to develop and maintain all the existing tourist destinations in the state for economic growth and global recognition and advised South-West governors to ensure Yoruba language is a compulsory requirement for admission into state-owned tertiary institutions, emphasizing that Yoruba Language is as important as English and should be made a condition for admission and a compulsory for students during the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examinations.
According to him, culture has to do with the clothes that people of a particular tribe wear, the language they speak, and so many things that are peculiar to a particular ethnic tribe, including the food they eat which differentiates them from others which forms the heritage of the people and their identity.
“Our culture is how we are. What the Oyo State government is doing today is very unique, very significant to the progress, peace and tranquility of the state. One of our problems in our society is that we neglect our culture and tradition. By the time you neglect your culture and tradition, there may be problems in that society.
“You will lose orderliness and cohesion. Promotion of culture is about projecting ecotourism, and cultural tourism. And by projecting eco and cultural tourism, you are projecting commerce and you are projecting visibility of the structure of that place that you are projecting its culture. You are projecting the visibility of Ibadan, and visibility of Oyo State,” he said.
The finale of the festival, which already had a week-long series of competitions where talents were identified, started with a tour of food courts and arts and crafts exhibition by dignitaries led by Iba Gani Adams and Chief Mrs Tina Ogundoyin, there was also a parade by all local governments and local council development areas as well as traditional religious groups like the Esu devotees, masquerades from different towns, Osun worshippers, Obatala devotees, vigilante groups amongst others as well as many social and professional groups like the Theatre and Movie Producers Association of Nigeria (TAMPAN), various market groups and the hairdressers association amongst many others.
There was also the presentation of awards and prizes to people who excel in the various competitions held earlier and diverse cultural displays.
The participants were all filled with joy that the government had deemed it fit to give traditionalists a voice, emphasising that it had never happened before.
Speaking, the Aare Isese of Yoruba, Surveyor Adefabi Dasola, expressed appreciation to the Oyo state government for organising the festival and reiterated the need to include traditionalists as special assistant on the Cultural and Tourism board.
On his part, Otunba Solomon Oguntolu, the Adiyeju Ode of Igbeti, stated that it is good to uplift the culture as it is the true path to development, adding that, “Yoruba people have neglected their culture for too long and that is why we are facing challenges and suffering unduly.”
It was indeed a parade of colour, fashion and felicitations as people expressed their fate and exhibited their culture without fear of being stigmatised or witch hunted.
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