ROYAL fathers including the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi, the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III, and the Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Adetona will on July 29, 2016 converge in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital to mark the 50th memorial of the death of the first military governor of Western Region, Col Adekunle Fajuyi.
Other personalities expected at the event include governors from the South West states, senators and House of Representatives members, cultural and political leaders, professional bodies and youth associations.
Organisers of the event, the Yoruba Think-Tank, an association of Yoruba professionals, made this known in a release made available to Tribune Online in Lagos on Tuesday through Mr Yinka Odumakin, saying the anniversary would be marked with a lecture by an Award-winning professor of English and poet, Niyi Osundare.
According to him, the lecture titled, “Fajuyi: The Politics of Remembrance,” will be followed by discussions featuring speakers from the academia and civil society, including the serving Overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly, Pastor Tunde Bakare; ex-Managing Director of Guarranty Trust Bank, Mr Fola Adeola and Professor of African-American Studies University of California-Davis, United States, Wale Adebanwi.
He said the event, which holds at the International Conference Centre, University Of Ibadan would be chaired by General Olufemi Olutoye (rtd.) starting from 9am.
It would be recalled that Col Fajuyi was hosting then Head of State, General Aguiyi Ironsi, in Ibadan on July 29, 1966 when coup plotters struck.
Fajuyi refused to abandon his guest when all pleas that they (coupists) should spare his guest failed and consequently was shot dead with Ironsi and their bodies dumped at Lalupon, with his action being acknowledged as that of a quintessential omoluabi.
Ooni, Alaafin, Awujale, govs, others converge in Ibadan to celebrate Fajuyi
and then