From Oluseye Ojo, Ibadan
The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi III, has revealed how he and the late Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero, successfuly fought a battle with the Federal Government for the institution of traditional rulers in Nigeria to enjoy five per cent allocation from every local government.
He made the revelation on Thursday when he played host to the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Aminu Ado-Bayeroa, who paid him a visit in his palace in Oyo town.
The Emir was accompanied to the palace by dignitaries, including Sarkin Samari, Agege, Lagos, Alhaji Ibrahim Garba Tafida; Oba of Yoruba in Kano, Alhaji Murtala Alimi; Chief Executive Officer, Lords Promotion/Consultant to the Emir of Kano, Dr. Olusegun Okeowo; and Special Adviser to Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State on Culture and Tourism, Akeem Ige.
According to Alaafin, “I have written a lot about the roles of traditional rulers and why the traditional people must be allowed to convene for the greater good of this country.
“I am happy with your late father, we fought a battle and won the five per cent allocation that every local government must set aside for traditional rulers from its allocation from Federal Government.
“I will continue to do my best to fight for the institution of traditional rulers. We are the bedrock of the society. If you take away traditional rulers from Nigeria, there will be no Nigeria again.”
Alaafin expressed reservations that the traditional rulers seem not to understand how Nigeria is being run again. He also referred to what the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar, said recently that insurgents have been the ones dictating happenings in many communities in the North East.
“As Sultan said, people are being abducted in their homes. They don’t pick people on the roads again alone. They go to houses and abduct people. In our town, we’ll do our best for our people. We will continue to stand for peace to reign,” Oba Adeyemi stated.
The Emir of Kano, Alhaji Aminu Ado-Bayero, earlier in his address, stated that “It is an honour to visit the Alaafin today (Thursday) as we visit the Southwest tor the second time since ascending the position of our forefathers. We have come to Oyo to continue a very
ancient relationship that was cultivated and nurtured by my
late father. We have come to Oyo to seek the wisdom and blessings of Your Majesty. We have come to Oyo to demonstrate to our people that we are all tied by thread of common destiny.
“The history of Oyo, like that of Kano, predates modern-day Nigeria by hundreds of years. The people ot Oyo, like the people of Kano, have developed very sophisticated system of
political, commercial and military expertise that was unequalled.
“Modern day Oyo, like modern day Kano, is a centre of excellence in education, culture and commerce. It is therefore, essential that we continue to demonstrate these qualities to the world and to generations of young Nigerians
so that they may come to know our true history, which would re-enforce their confidence as they face a very challenging
and globalized world. Luckily for me, I am with Baba today, whom I can say is an icon when it comes to history. May Allah continue to guide us all.”
The Emir also stated that “We bring love, fraternity and special best wishes and greetings trom our people in Kano. Our two entities have many things in common. Both our towns have this pride of bearing the names of states. We also hold the prime positions of being legendary, big time major trading posts as well as major religious entities, that cannot be ignored.
“It is with a great sense of pride that we recount the many historical ties, which link our part of the country to Oyo due to its pre-eminence in trade just like Kano. Oyo has been known to have a rich history of trade links with many entities in the West African Sub region.
“I wish to reiterate my commitment to the warm relationship you had with my late father and look forward to benefitting from your fatherly advice and counsel whenever and wherever the situation arises. I also wish to commend the fatherly role Your Majesty has continued to play as the host of one of the largest Hausa communities in Nigeria.”