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Friends, Families Serenade the Ooni with Love and Gifts at 50

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By Eric Elezuo

Golden jubilee anniversaries are one of the most special moments of anyone’s life because for some, it marks halfway into existence, and to many others, it is a moment to reflect and calculate the milestones so far achieved.

Consequently, the milestone age is celebrated with pomp, and for the great custodian of Yoruba culture and Arole Oodua, the Ooni of Ife, HRM Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, the moment was a time to pull all the stops in thanksgiving to God for His goodness and mercies among a whole lot of reasons to celebrate.

As a result, friends, family members, colleagues, associates and the general public gathered at the palace grounds in Ile-Ife, where a mother of all celebrations was held.

Among a host of dignitaries that joined the Ooni to celebrate were Reverend Mother Esther Ajayi, Aare Dele Momodu, Prince Bisi Olatilo, Ajagunla Olubiyi Fadeyi and wife, Erelu Abiola Dosunmu among a host A-list guests.

Others were Oba Michael Odunayo Ajayi, Oba Saheed Elegushi, Prince Adedamola Aderemi, Chief Mrs. Joko Oni, Mrs. Laoye Tomori, Erelu Ngozi Adeleke, Dr. Quincy Olasunbo Ayodele & husband, Evangelist Olufunke Fayose and many others.

Much as by tradition, and by implications of the spiritual tool he occupies, the Ooni was limited to celebrations except for the anniversaries of his coronation, the Monarch, who has from one, found ways to inject modernism into culture and tradition without contradicting principles, gave his 50th birthday a distinct shot, using the opportunity to commission various community based projects. As a result, beyond celebrating birthday, the Ooni used the occasion of his golden jubilee to back to the society that has so honoured him.

The projects commissioned and launched cut across several sectors of the economy including education, health services, youth empowerment/intervention and sports among others. The commissioning had started a few days before the birthday thanksgiving day, and noaedived into the main day proper.

While commissioning the community cinemas in Ile Ife, and supervising the groundbreaking of the Ojaja Film City at Ile Ife Grand Resort and Industrial Park, Osun State, two of the major projects of the Ooni, the special guest of honour, who doubles as the Governor of Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke, described the Ooni as a toast and a gift to the modern age as he has given traditional rulership a face and a place of absolute pride.

A former governor of Lagos State and former Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, was also on hand to commission some of the projects.

The Oni, whose value in Yoruba mythology, is huge, took time out to cut some of the eight gigantic cakes gifted him by several individuals and bodies.

The cakes, on their own, were a showpiece of class, representing the calibre of personality the Ooni has become in the close to nine years since his ascension to the throne of his forefathers. One of the cakes was even designed to reflect the style of the throne, rotating in its magnificent. Others also have a depiction of something significant to the culture and tradition of the people.

The highpoint of the event was the presentation of two car gifts to the Ooni: a black Toyota Land Cruiser and a white brand new white Multi-Purpose Vehicle (MPV) from GAC. The cars were donated by Princess Olubukola Abitoye, Dr. Ayo Abina, Asoju Oodua, Mr. Ayoku Liadi, Mr. Niyi Oyedele, Dr. Oluwatosin Olatujiye and Mr. Bola Adeyinka.

The well attended event, which featured traditional rulers from various parts of Yorubaland, industrialists, politicians of various creed and entertainment buffers, was seranaded by the melodious tunes of ageless King Sunny Ade, Tolu Obey, son of juju music maestro, Chief Ebenezer Obey and others.

Born on October 15, 1974, the Ooni is a people-oriented person, whose passion to help the needy is legendary, prompting him to create diverse avenues to touch the lives of the people including the The House of Oduduwa Foundation, which is the parent structure often used, among other as machinery to achieve these patriotic and philanthropicgestures. He has been variously described by a larger number of the society as a cheerful giver, owing to the selfless ways he has touched people’s lives materially or financially.

An unpentantable lover of Africa and everything African, Ooni operates a medium, TellAfrica, a known information hub in Nigeria and online, notable for connecting Africans all over the world to the realisation of who Africans really are, and not what other races think of them.

In April 2023, Ooni donated 100 hectares of land, situated along Ilesa road, Abayagani, Ile-Ife, to the Nigeria Peace Corps ( NPC) for the construction of South-West Zonal Training School.

The monarch said that his love for the corps warranted the need for the gift to enable them to position their training ground for the southwest zone.

“I have decided to support you in providing vehicles for easy movement in the zone and also provision of housing for officers and the 100 hectares of land.

“Any other things that you forgot to mention please let me know and I will do such at my level best,” the Ooni said.

According to a Wikipedia narrative, Ooni Ogunwusi, shortly after coronation in 2015, met with the Alaafin of Oyo, initiating a new era in the history of the Yoruba States, and marking a significant event in the history of the Yoruba States as it helped to reduce the tension between the two thrones. The Oba is an advocate for the empowerment and emancipation of women and young people.

As a result of the Initiative, Ile-Ife has experienced notable transformations characterized such as beautification, urban redesign, and architectural reconstruction, all directed towards augmenting its attractiveness as a prominent tourist destination under his reign.

Oba Ogunwusi is also a renowned philanthropist, who is committed to humanity and an advocate for the less privileged. He has granted support over the years through the House of Oduduwa Foundation and, most recently, through the Hopes Alive Initiative.

He was born as Prince Adeyeye Enitan of Giesi, one of the four royal families of the House of Oranmiyan, and started his elementary education at Subuola Memorial Nursery and Primary School, Ibadan, and Ibadan District Council, Akobo, Ibadan. He then proceeded to Loyola College, Ibadan, and later to St. Peters Secondary School, Ile-Ife, where he received his secondary school certificate (SSCE). He graduated as an accountant from The Polytechnic, Ibadan.

The Ooni is blessed by with many wives and four children.

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Peddle Drugs and Die: NAFDAC Goes for the Jugular

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By Eric Elezuo

Drug peddlers and their sponsors are in for a harder time if recommendations and proposal of death penalty, by the Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Mrs Mojisola Adeyeye, sails through.

The formation of NAFDAC was inspired by a 1988 World Health Assembly resolution requesting countries’ help in combating the global health threat posed by counterfeit pharmaceuticals

Speaking bitterly at a live television show on the hard-heartedness of peddlers, whose actions, direct and indirect, have caused the deaths of not a few Nigerian children, and in some cases, adults.

According to the Director-General, only stiff penalties will deter peddlers, especially when it leads to the death of children.

She noted that “Somebody bought children’s medicine for N13,000 or something like that, another person was selling about N3,000 in the same mall,” the NAFDAC chief said on Friday’s edition of Channels Television’s The Morning Brief. 

“That raised an alarm. Guess what? There was nothing inside that medicine when we tested it in our Kaduna lab. So, I want the death penalty.

“Because you don’t need to put a gun on the head of a child before you kill that child. Just give that child bad medicine,” Adeyeye said.

The NAFDAC DG is also seeking the cooperation of the judiciary and the National Assembly to make such a move a reality. According to her, the agency is open to partnering with lawmakers and other stakeholders on the matter.

“You cannot fight substandard, falsified medicine in isolation. The agency can do as much as it can but if there is no deterrent, there’s going to be a problem,” she said.

“Somebody brought in 225mg of Tramadol that can kill anybody, fry the brain and you give a judgment of five years in prison or N250,000. Who doesn’t know that that person will go to the ATM and get N250,000?

“That is part of our problem. There are no strict measures to deter [people] from repeating the same thing. We can do as much as we can but if our law is not strong enough, or the judiciary is not strong enough to stand up, we’re going to have a problem.

“So, our judiciary system must be strong enough. But we are working with the National Assembly to make our penalties very stiff.  But if you kill a child by bad medicine, you deserve to die,” she said.

While NAFDAC has a lot on its plate in stemming drug peddling, Adeyeye decried the shortage of manpower in the agency.

She believes with about 2,000 staff members nationwide and limited funding, NAFDAC is constrained in carrying out its activities.

“So, when it comes to staffing, you’re right on the point. We are short-staffed and I am hoping things will be better,” the NAFDAC DG said.

It would be recalled that in times past, and in recent times, the deaths of children from medicine intake has been rift, prompting a form of emergency in the medical sector to checkmate the activities of the saboteurs, who are bent on reaping gains at the expense of life and wellbeing.

Mrs Adeyeye has promptly toed the lines of former NAFDAC DG, the late Dora Akinyuli, who declared an all out against drug peddlers and couriers.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) is a federal agency under the Federal Ministry of Health that is responsible for regulating and controlling the manufacture, importation, exportation, advertisement, distribution, sale, and use of food, drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, chemicals, and packaged water established in 1993 under the health and safety law.

 

The establishment of NAFDAC was to counter the production and sales of adulterated and counterfeit drugs, which has become a menace in Nigeria, and to Nigerians. It would be recalled also that in one incident in 1989, over 150 children died as a result of paracetamol syrup containing diethylene glycol, among a list of other horrifying incidents.

At a certain stage, fake drugs issue was so severe that neighbouring countries such as Ghana and Sierra Leone officially banned the sale of drugs, foods, and beverage products made in Nigeria.

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El-Rufai Lacks Capacity to Win Even Senate Seat – Presidency

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Daniel Bwala, Special Adviser to the President on Policy Communication, has stated that the former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, the lacks the influence to “unsettle” President Bola Tinubu.

Bwala made the remarks during an interview with TVC News on Thursday, stating that former Kaduna State governor does not have the capacity to win even a senate seat.

He emphasized that President Tinubu is not troubled by El-Rufai’s ongoing criticisms of his administration.

Bwala also noted that el-Rufai only gains political prominence when aligning with a strong, revolutionary leader, adding: “Let me tell you something about my elder brother, el-Rufai, and whether we should be concerned.

“There’s a dynamic around him. El-Rufai needs a solid revolutionary figure to thrive. On his own, El-Rufa’i might not even secure a Senate seat.”

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Reps Propose Creation of 31 More States

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The House of Representatives Committee on the review of the 1999 Constitution has proposed the creation of 31 additional states in the country.

Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Benjamin Kalu, who presided over plenary on Thursday read a letter from the committee containing the proposed states.

If approved, this will increase the number of states in Nigeria to 67.

The letter read: “This is to inform members that the House of Representatives Committee on the Review of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as altered), has received legislative proposals for the creation of states and local governments in the following order:

NORTH CENTRAL

1. BENUE ALA STATE from the present Benue State.
2. OKUN STATE from the present Kogi State
3. OKURA STATE from the present Kogi State
4. CONFLUENCE STATE from the present Kogi State
5. APA-AGBA STATE from Benue South Senatorial District
6. APA STATE from the present Benue State.
7. A 37th state, namely FEDERAL CAPITAL TERRITORY, ABUJA

NORTH EAST

8. AMANA STATE from the present Adamawa State.
9. KATAGUM STATE from the present Bauchi State.
10. SAVANNAH STATE from the present Borno State.
11. MURI STATE from the present Taraba State.

NORTH WEST

12. NEW KADUNA STATE and GURARA STATE from the present Kaduna State.
13. TIGA STATE from the present Kano State.
14. KAINJI STATE from the present Kebbi State.
15. GHARI STATE from the present Kano State

SOUTH EAST

16. ETITI STATE as the sixth (6th) state in the South East geopolitical zone.
17. ADADA STATE from the present Enugu State of Nigeria.
18. URASHI STATE as the sixth (6th) state in the South East geopolitical zone.
19. ORLU STATE from the South Eastern Region of Nigeria.
20. ABA STATE from the South Eastern Region of Nigeria.

SOUTH SOUTH

21. OGOJA STATE from the present Cross River State.
22. WARRI STATE from the present Delta State.
23. BORI STATE from the present Rivers State
24. OBOLO STATE from the present Rivers and Akwa Ibom states.

SOUTH WEST

25. TORU-EBE STATE from the present Delta, Edo, and Ondo States.
26. IBADAN STATE from the present Oyo State.
27. LAGOON STATE from the present Lagos State.
28. IJEBU STATE from the present Ogun State.
29. LAGOON STATE from the present Lagos State and Ogun State
30. IBADAN STATE from the present Oyo State.
31. OKE-OGUN and IFE-IJESHA STATES from the Present-day Ogun, Oyo, and Osun states.

The request for states’ creation can only materialise if at least “the third majority of members of the Senate and the House of Representatives (National Assembly) and the House of Assembly in respect of the area, and the Local Government Council in respect of the area is received by the National Assembly.”

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