The Owa Obokun of Ijesaland, Oba Gabriel Adekunle, Aromolaran II, has stated that the Ijesha people have been ‘naturally trained’ to be independent.
He stated this while receiving the gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Senator Ademola Adeleke, in his palace at Ilesa.
The monarch, ahead of the July 16, Osun 2022 gubernatorial election, also called on politicians to limit their campaigns to issues rather than mudslinging and casting aspersions on one another.
In his words, Oba Adekunle Aromolaran II said “Ijeshaland is independent of the state government. That is the nature of all Ijesha people. We don’t depend on the government. These palace edifices were built by the Ijesha people without collecting a Kobo from the state coffer.
“Some individuals go as far as donating a million Naira each. Even when the incumbent governor of the state wanted to contribute, we told him we did not need it. We told him what we wanted him to do was to commission it.
“It is after this they approved the University for us. The incumbent governor did. We have also built hospitals for the elderly people. All these are monies of our own and not the government’s. ” he said.
Speaking earlier, Senator Ademola Adeleke accused the incumbent government of the state to have stolen his ideation of creating a university in Ijeshaland.
Adeleke said this during a courtesy visit to the Palace of Owa Obokun and the paramount ruler of Ijesha land, Oba (Dr) Gabriel Adekunle Aromolaran on Thursday.
He also accused the state government of not going through the recommended procedure for creation of a University.
In his words, he said “in 2018, I talked about the University. It is when I talked about it that they (the opposition) too mentioned it. To create a university has a procedure. Since they got there, the University should have been in place, but fine; we are watching. When we get there we shall abide by procedure.”
Ademola also lamented that Osun state has been plunged into suffering by the current administration and the only way to stop it is by voting him as governor of the state.
“Osun is suffering. If we say we are going to put a stop to it, we will. We don’t do promise and fail. And I have a track record when I was a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I did all I promised. I extended aiding gestures to all of Osun all the time.
“When we were coming, people come out en mass to express their grievances, we noted everything down. There are dilapidated roads all over Osun. This is not how Ilesha was. Even the road that leads to the palace is bad.”
Oba Adekunle Aromolaran said Ademola Adeleke’s visitation is not to berate anyone, but more like one revist his own father.
“We may be hungry, but we are not eating trees here. May God feed us all. We are sufficient. When you get there, don’t forget us. Since it is not a campaign you came for but to check on us, we are fine.” Continue Reading
