On pilgrimage to Nigeria
Baptism of fire for king of Yoruba clan in America
By MAURICE ARCHIBONG
Thursday,
January 24, 2008
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•L-R:
Fancy the facial marks of Yoruba-Americans, Chief Olaitan
and Ol’Oyotunji of Oyotunji, Beaufort, South Carolina.
PHOTOS: MAURICE
ARCHIBONG |
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The traditional ruler of Oyotunji, a Yoruba community in
America, had a baptism of fire on arrival in Nigeria following
his detention for two nights at Seme Border. The communal
king, Oba Adejuigbe Adefunmi II, was arrested in connection
with alleged possession of narcotic drugs.
The man, who holds the title Ol'Oyotunji, is monarch of the
Yoruba enclave, which stands within Beaufort in the US State
of South Carolina.
Oyotunji, the name of the miniature village in Sheldon, Beaufort,
alludes to a resurrection of the ancient Yoruba Kingdom of
Oyo in southwestern Nigeria, and Oba Adefunmi, 31, said he
succeeded his late father, Oba Efuntola Adefunmi I, premiere
Ol'Oyotunji of Oyotunji, to the throne.
Apart from the monarch, Mr. Akintunde Meredith, another member
of the team of seven African-Americans, said to be on a pilgrimage
to Nigeria, also spent two nights in custody with officers
of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at Seme
Border, Nigeria’s southwestern frontier neighbouring
Benin Republic. Mr. Meredith, 24, is a stepbrother of the
Ol'Oyotunji.
The five remaining members of the delegation were however
allowed to continue with their sojourn in Nigeria, but they
simply could not. Instead, the quintet chose to check into
a hotel and await the fate of their co-travellers. Sources
revealed they had planned to catch some sleep at a nearby
inn, however, even for those that managed to catnap for an
hour or two it must have been a fitful sleep.
According to NDLEA sources at that frontier, a white powdery
substance, suspected to be Category A narcotic, was found
inside the vehicle that the American-born Kabiyesi was riding
in. Category A drugs include cocaine and heroin. Furthermore,
Mr. Meredith was found to be in possession of some 2gm of
weed, suspected to be marijuana.
This led to the arrest of the duo on January 15, which stalled
the journey of the team until two days later, when the oba
and his brother were released. Oba Adefunmi II was freed because
the white powder proved negative after laboratory tests for
narcotics. It was however revealed that, though the grass
found on Meredith was confirmed to be Indian hemp, the young
man was let loose because, going by the quantity he was carrying,
it was probably meant for personal use and not for commercial
purpose. How naïve of Meredith to attempt taking coal
to Newcastle!
Occasionally, NDLEA commands with approval from that agency's
headquarters, release suspected users after counseling, where
the volume of drug found on the person was rather small. In
Meredith's case, however, to continue to detain him for counseling
would have meant further delay for the entire team. This informed
the decision to let him go, and sin no more. But this was
only after older members of the entourage had signed undertakings
to effect the counseling aspect as well as promised to do
all they can to ensure that Meredith does not abuse any drug
throughout their stay in Nigeria.
The team's trip ran into the 48-hour hitch as soon as they
entered Nigeria from Benin Republic. Oba Adefunmi later told
Travels that the group’s spiritual sojourn in Nigeria
actually began on January 8, when their Delta Air flight landed
at Murtala Mohammed International Airport, (MMIA), Ikeja.
He revealed his group had subsequently travelled to Cotonou,
the economic capital of Benin Republic, where a member of
the entourage has her roots. That co-traveller was left in
Benin, where further search for her ancestral origin, was
supposed to take her to Allada.
The other members were subsequently returning to Nigeria when
they encountered that go-slow at Seme Border. The pilgrims
had planned for a seven-day stay in Nigeria billed to end
on January 22, their departure date to the southeastern US
State of Miami. Their interception therefore probably caused
a reduction or an extension of the duration of their visit.
Asked to comment on the suspected narcotic found on him, the
Ol’Oyotunji was quick to stress: "Actually, the
substance was not found on me. It happened to be in the car
that I was riding in. And I never noticed it, until the officers
discovered it. And, when they untied it, I, as a traditional
Yoruba Kabiyesi, recognized the powder as Ifa divination stuff
called Orosun, and I told them so."
Responding to Travels curiosity about his attitude to drugs,
Oba Adefunmi had this to say: "I, as Kabiyesi, do not
do drugs."
Trained as an artistic mason, Adefunmi recalled that his mother,
Mrs. Esuogo Oyewole Adefunmi, had made a similar pilgrimage
to Nigeria in 1971/72. His mom hailed from the US oil-rich
State of Texas. Esuogo and her husband had 23 children but
18 of these offspring were daughters. As a result, there had
been much fanfare, when Prince Adejuigbe was born in 1976.
Much publicity and celebration had greeted the birth of this
baby boy because, after bearing about a dozen daughters, a
male child and heir to the throne had, finally, arrived.
Speaking further on the visitors' motive and itinerary, Oba
Adefunmi said they were in Nigeria to visit Ile-Ife with the
hope of meeting Yoruba traditional rulers, especially in Osun
State. "Nigeria is the ancestral home of all Yoruba,
and Ile-Ife is the spiritual home of all Yoruba people. So,
we came to explore means of more communication and collaboration
between various Yoruba communities and Oyotunji. We want to
promote awareness about the existence of Oyotunji, an Oduduwa
Village in North America," remarked Adefunmi, who is
proprietor of a US-based media outfit called Great Benin Films
and Books.
The Ol'Oyotunji is also a priest of the Oyotunji-based African
Theological Arch-Ministry, which was conceived to promote
African religions and culture in America. This explains his
appearance and regalia, which featured conspicuous facial
marks, a bead-decked staff, flywhisk, and traditional Yoruba
headgear, among others. Many of the other men in the group
also bear "tribal" marks.
The visiting septet also included Mrs. Ifabunmi Sands, elder
sister of the Ol'Oyotunji as well as 59-year-old Chief Apena
Olaitan. Mrs. Sands, whose middle names are Olubiyi Adesoji
Adefunmi, is eldest daughter of the late premiere Oba of Oyotunji.
Sands, 40, is a mother of four (three sons and a daughter),
and the lady, who told Travels that she is into literary studies,
added that she had earlier taken a degree in the sciences
from a college in Sacramento, capital of the State of California
in the US Pacific coast area. Chief Olaitan, whose first name,
Apena, derives from his position in the Ogboni cult, introduced
himself as a high school science and mathematics teacher.
The Apena Ogboni recalled he relocated to Oyotunji in 1978,
eight years after the establishment of that commune.
Aside the tourists' disposition toward Ifa, everyone in the
delegation also boasts some comprehension of the Yoruba language.
In fact, when we sought the view of Chief Olaitan on the marijuana
found on Meredith, and where the group were going from there,
this is what the Ogboni chief had to say: "It is sad
that a mistake by a silly boy brought embarrassment to the
Kabiyesi, our group and country. However, we have consulted
Ifa and we've been assured that it will all end well."
Oba Adefunmi I, the founding father of Oyotunji, was once
known as Walter King, but he jettisoned these epithets in
favour of the Yoruba names of Efuntola Adelabu Adefunmi, among
others, after a visit to Cuba in 1959. He had gone to Cuba
for initiation rites into Yoruba traditional religion. The
late Oba Adefunmi I, who established Oyotunji with 18 US dollars,
30 years ago, was born in Detroit.
Detroit is in the US State of Michigan, whose region is called
Mid West, whereas it is geographically located in North Central
United States. The American City of Detroit, where Adefunmi
I was born, is famed for its automobile industry and the Rhythm
and Blues (R&B) hits' factory, Motown Records. The sports
club Detroit Pistons, the R&B group Detroit Spinners as
well as Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Diana
Ross and the Jackson Five all had their early careers in Detroit.
Although polygamy is illegal under US law, the taking of multiple
wives is allowed in Oyotunji, apparently in emulation of the
custom in pre-Christianity Yoruba society. And as a king,
who lived what he preached, Oba Adefunmi I married 17 wives
in his lifetime! Unlike the late Oba Adefunmi, who sired some
28 children, his successor son is only a father of three,
probably because he is monogamous.
The incumbent traditional ruler however reminded us that he
was still young, and could still acquire an additional wife
or two.
Travels subsequently turned to Mrs. Sands, who is the only
wife of her spouse, to find out, if she would support her
brother's drive toward polygamy. Despite her American citizenship,
Sands responded in the affirmative, adding: "As Africans,
polygamy is not strange to us, so I would encourage him, if
he wished to take another wife. But, I would screen the girl
to find out whether or not she'd make a good wife."
How dare a woman interfere in the business of a king, whose
word is in some quarters considered law? A king is supposed
to be superior to everyone, and therefore could have his way
always, wasn't he? We teased.
Sands again: "I know that Kabiyesi's word is law, but
he's still my kid brother. His life is our life, so I have
the right to screen any woman he wants to take for wife."
After that, we turned to Chief Olaitan to tell us how many
wives he has. "One wife, now," he said. But how
was the population of their community going to grow, when
he, another key figure, is also monogamous? "I support
polygamy," he submitted. However, one could say that
his support was more in theory than practice. To that, Chief
Olaitan agreed but finally revealed, "I'm still looking."
Speaking on the visitors' experience, the NDLEA Commander,
Seme Special Area, Mr. Isa Adoro Umar, told Travels that much
as tourists were welcome, they should bear in mind that his
agency would fish out any one given to drug abuse or trafficking,
adding that the experience of the Americans showed that no
quantity, however small, would escape detection.
Meet Seme’s longest serving anti-drug warrior
This is the story of a worker that never goes home: An unusual
drug operative that works all day and all night. This agent
has worked at Seme almost 13 years, which makes it the longest
serving anti-drug crusader at that border. Like the proverbial
barracks, which remains immotile, even as generations of soldiers
come and go, so is the experience of this foremost enemy of
drug dealers.
However, Seme's longest serving anti-narcotics operative is
not even on the NDLEA payroll and has not been promoted for
more than a decade. But, if these have dampened morale, it
is hard to tell. You could say Afamako, that fabled worker
without wages, has resurrected at Seme.
We are all familiar with the phrase man's inhumanity to man,
but as regards the plight of Seme's longest serving drug operative,
it's a case of man's inhumanity to dog. Believe it or not,
the longest serving enemy of drug users and traffickers at
Seme is a dog!
Over the last 12 years, many officers of the NDLEA have worked
alongside this apparent permanent envoy. Dozens of these NDLEA
personnel have enjoyed promotion, while serving at that frontier
post, whereas the status of the oldest worker has more or
less remained stagnant, despite working endless hours, day
and night. Well, you could say it's a case of "man's
ingratitude to man's best friend."
Interestingly, this faithful animal's name is, wait for this,
Cocaine! Cocaine must be Seme's most famous canine, for virtually
everyone that does business around Nigeria's southwestern
Atlantic coastline neighbouring the Benin Republic beach settlement
of Krake knows Cocaine. Want some more whiff of cocaine? Help
yourself: Fortunately, this is the only cocaine that's safe
to sniff!
An NDLEA source at Seme recalled that a fellow officer, Mr.
Adesina Olumoko, currently an Assistant Superintendent of
Narcotics, brought Cocaine to that station in 1995, while
he served there. Twelve years down the road, Cocaine has neither
been deployed nor promoted. But der Hund, as Germans call
the dog, is not complaining.
Sources revealed Cocaine was much dreaded in its younger days.
In fact, it seemed that the animal wanted to be seen as working
even harder than humans. The situation became even more frightening,
every time Cocaine was treated to a meal of pepper soup. As
if to show appreciation for that fete, Cocaine would deploy
itself to a strategic position and make the route impassable
for any one it suspected was carrying contraband!
On the surface, this canine of cream coloured fur appears
young but at the physiological level, Cocaine is an old dog,
really. Veterinarians say 12 months of the Gregorian calendar
translates as seven or nine years of a dog's life. Thus, since
cocaine entered service 12 years ago, this canine must be
at least 84 years old by now.
We belong to a culture, where people dobale or kunle for an
elder, and Cocaine is as old as some grandpa. But, because
it's a dog, no man bothers to treat Cocaine like the elder
it is. Instead of people kowtowing to Cocaine, they expect
this old one to wag its tail in welcome to them: How disrespectful!
Many officers had described Cocaine as "very intelligent."
Some talked of the dog's ability to tell, when an officer
was going home after closing for the day.
According to such fans of Cocaine, the hound would rise and
walk the person all the way to the car, and stretch its body
in an expression of goodbye.
To enable Cocaine to demonstrate its brilliance, an officer
had offered Cocaine a handshake, to which the canine responded
by lifting one of its forelimbs. However, we were not really
impressed and needed something more convincing. This came,
when we brought out a camera to take shots of Cocaine. Somehow,
the creature became restless, and we wondered: Did this Buster
think we were going to display its photo as some drug suspect
or something? At this point, the animal gave the impression
it wanted out of its cage.
An officer had come around and released Cocaine from its confinement,
and guess what? Cocaine seems to know that it isn't cute to
be seen behind bars, this apparently explained why the animal
became uncomfortable, when we took its shots moments earlier.
It soon became apparent that this canine had more ideas to
flaunt as it strutted toward a column, where its leash was
strung. On reaching that pole, Cocaine turned and gave us
a splendid pose. Howzat!
Are you one of those given to making the snide remark, "Who
born dog?" Cocaine would make you think again.
Be that as it may, the federal government shared out cars
to its workers as part of enhanced welfare package, but Cocaine
was not among the beneficiaries. There was also much talk
of monetization, but even this must have sounded like Greek
to Cocaine.
Now, after 12 years of "meritorious service," Cocaine
must be due for pension or some "disengagement benefit."
Now, let no one tell Cocaine that over a decade's service
has been in vain, otherwise this canine might dig its teeth
in some flesh!
But, who knows? Cocaine may not mind serving for nothing because
in some Nigerian communities, it wouldn’t have lived
to attain its ripe old age. In the settlements, where dog
meat is considered a delicacy, Cocaine would have ended up
in some people’s tummy years ago. Truly, as is often
said, for some animals, it’s a dog’s life. |
