RE – Crisis Rocks Obaro of Kabba’s Appointment; The True Perspective

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Kabba-Owe Oke-Meta Group
Address: Kabba Town Hall, Obaro Way, Kabba, Kogi State.
Motto: Truth is Immutable
Date: 13th August, 2018.
RE: CRISIS ROCKS OBARO OF KABBA’S APPOINTMENT: THE TRUE PERSPECTIVE
The attention of Kabba Owe-Oke-Meta Group consisting of the three Royal Ruling Groups of Katu, Kabba and Odolu in Kabba, headquarters of Kabba-Bunu Local Government Area of Kogi State, has been drawn to the widely circulated press statement signed by three members of Ilajo Family, a subset of Kabba Royal Ruling Group and published in some major newspapers that ‘‘the appointment of Chief Solomon Dele Owoniyi, the Obatonse of Oweland, as the new Obaro of Kabba and Chairman of Okun Traditional Council of Chiefs has created tension in Kabba Community and that the Ilajo family has rejected the appointment’’.
The aim of this rejoinder is to state the true perspective and debunk the lies contained in the press statement.
It is a fact which can be verified that Kabba Community has witnessed peace in all ramifications since the announcement of Chief Solomon Dele Owoniyi, the Obatonse of Oweland, as the 44th Obaro of Kabba, on 19th July, 2018 by the Executive Governor of Kogi State, His Excellency, Alhaji Yahaya Adoza Bello.
It is the stock in trade of the Ilajo family to always parrot falsehood with respect to the Obaro Stool in particular and on the history, customs and tradition of Kabba people in general. The writers of the press statement in their unpardonable write-up, have tried, severally without success, to change the history of Owe, Kabba people, with the assertion this time around that Odolu, one of the triumvirate Family Groups that makes up Owe-Kabba, the other two Family Groups that complete the triumvirate, that is, Katu and Okaba, “was suburban… a separate settlement outside Kabba with its own ruler”.
This is utter falsehood!
The fact, however, is that Owe (Kabba) people are one from the same ancestry as they are descendants of three hunter brothers, who were princes of Ile-Ife known as Aro (begot the three Katu Group of families-Atipa, Isoro and Abata), Reka who sired the six Okaba Group of families-Lemila, Idogba, Odogba, Ilajo, Ugbo and Okere), and Balaja (his descendants are the four Odolu Group of families-Ogbagi, Ijemu, Irasi and Teko). These thirteen families, inclusive of Ilajo family, constitute the Oke-Meta Owe-Kabba, which from the ancient coinage is a symbol of the totality of Owe-Kabba, its monolithism and indivisibility in terms of history, culture and polity.
The writers in the figment of their imagination also asserted that the appointment of His Royal Majesty, Oba Daniel Aka, Gbadebo I, who reigned from 1957-1982, was made from “outside the traditional home of the throne and stool of the Obaro of Kabba which is the Ilajo Royal Family”. This warped position that Obaro Stool is the preserve of Ilajo family had been pooh-poohed by colonial records, research works and Commissions of Inquiry on the Obaro Stool.
In fact an Ilajo man, Mr. James Alonge, grandson of Mokelu, First Ilajo Obaro in a petition to the District Officer in 1933 said ‘‘…the Aro (Obaro) had never been, and, was not in Kabba. It was in the village called Katu and the person there under the Aro (Obaro) Title at Katu Village was Aiyerumi, known as the Obaro Aiyerumi of Katu…’’.  This points to the fact that there were previous Obaros in Kabba that were non-Ilajos.
Eva Krapf-Askari, a German anthropologist, in her research work on Kabba history in 1966 stated that ‘‘ the primacy of Kabba over the settlements, as well as the association of the Obaroship with Kabba (to the exclusion of Katu and Odolu) and its assignation to the Ilajo clan (to the exclusion of all other Owe clans), were consequences of the fact that the Nupe had found an Ilajo  Obaro in Kabba, and that both they and the British after them had helped to perpetuate this situation through indirect rule’’.
Prof. Jerome Gefu, an Ilajo man in his thesis submitted to Ahmadu Bello University for the award of Bachelor Degree categorically said that ‘‘one might say that the members of the Ilajo clan, having had a taste of power simply did not wish to relinquish it. However, according to the stated norms of the society, the titles of the Ololu grade (Obaro,Obadofin,Obajemu) ideally were to be rotated amongst the clans. Furthermore, following the general myth of the Yoruba, the people of Kabba trace their origin to a common ancestor who was a princely son of Ile-Ife, thus implying that all descendants of this ancestor have the right to claim the Obaroship or the other Ololu titles’’.
More importantly, the extant law, Edict No 12 of 1995 (Obaro of Kabba: Filling of Chieftaincy Vacancy and Guidelines for the Rotation of Ololu Titles) regulating the appointment of Obaro and other Ololus recognised the three Royal Ruling Groups as the Odolu Ruling Family Group; the Katu Ruling Family Group; and the Kabba Ruling Family Group, and not Mokelu, Ajibohokun and Ajinuhi as falsely stated in the press statement.
The assertion in the press statement that the appointment of His Royal Majesty, Solomon Dele Owoniyi as the Obaro of Kabba was not in consonance with the tradition and culture of Oweland and is an aberration to the traditional set-up of the community is balderdash.
Ascendancy to Obaro Stool is rooted in the culture of the people, as aspirants to the throne must be a titled holder of either Igemo or Orota. Aspirants must signify their intentions by paying traditional filing fees to the three Kingmakers who are the Obadofin, Obajemu and Obani. Obadofin and Obajemu are the Ololus, while the Obani is the Head of the Orotas in Owe Culture. Besides, the aspirants also pay traditional filing fees to the Head of Omodo family. Aspirants must also be members of the thirteen (13) royal families from the three Royal Ruling Groups of Katu, Kabba and Odolu. Names of the aspirants would be tendered before the Ifa oracle for consultation and the best will be chosen as dictated by Ifa divination. In line with the extant law, the chosen aspirant will be presented by the Kingmakers to the government for consideration and approval.
All these processes were observed before the appointment of Chief Solomon Dele Owoniyi, as the new Obaro.
The public should note that the current Obani of Oweland is Chief Afolabi Toluhi, an Ilajo man. He collected the traditional filing fees of intention from all the contestants to the throne.
The question which the Ilajo family should answer is why should the Obani collect the traditional filing fees of intention from the contestants if they were not qualified to ascend the throne?
We are amazed by the choice of words of the writers who chose to ignore decency by stating that the appointment of the new Obaro was an “embarrassment to the entire Okun traditional set up by making a ‘‘commoner’’ in Odolu, the Head of Okun Traditional Council”.
The Owe-Kabba people from the Ruling Groups of Katu, Kabba and Odolu are known together as Ijumu, which is used to express their togetherness on Ebora (Owe Supreme deity) secrecy and confidence. It also signifies their nobility as descendants of the three hunter princes from Ile-Ife.
Therefore, it is a preposterous suggestion for anyone in his right mind to regard any of the descendants of Aro, Reka and Balaja, a commoner. It is a common fact that all the thirteen families in Oweland, including Ilajo, have common things that bind them together: they all have lands; they are entitled to take chieftaincy title of Igemo/Orota; and worship Ebora (Owe supreme deity) together. It should clearly be stated for the awareness of those not familiar with the Owe traditional set-up, that the Ilajos are the fourth out of six families in Okaba Group in terms of seniority and the seventh in Owe when the thirteen families are grouped together. The question we may ask is, is it possible for the seventh family to be senior or superior to those before him? The answer is certainly, No!
In order to curry the favour and support from outside, particularly from other ruling families in Nigeria, the Ilajo family in the press statement said “we hope that the entire royalty in Nigeria will grasp the kernel of this press release and stand up to this affront by protecting its own kind, mindful of the saying that what goes round comes round”.
It will be necessary to remind them and the public to note that the 1957 Rotational Order of the Obaro Stool was put in place by Sir Ahmadu Bello, the late Premier of Northern Region and the Sardauna of Sokoto, who was a descendant of Othman Dan-Fodio, founder of the Sokoto Caliphate. If the Sardauna was convinced of the stand of the Ilajos, he would not have approved the rotational order recommended by Makama Bida Panel. Sardauna was a prince of the caliphate and he would have defended his so called fellow “princes” from Kabba.
The Makama Report confirmed the right of the three ruling groups of Katu, Kabba and Odolu comprising the thirteen Royal Families to the Obaro stool. The Makama Bida Panel Report paved way for the appointment of the then Chief D.O. Aka from Idogba royal clan, as the 42nd Obaro of Kabba.
We call on His Excellency not to be distracted by the fables and tales of the Ilajos. We are aware that it took Government more than two years before the appointment of Chief Solomon Dele Owoniyi was approved as the Obaro-elect. During this period, Government carried out systematic investigation on the culture and norms of the Owe-Kabba people. The appointment was also in tandem with the existing law, Edict No. 12 of 1995 which regulates the appointment of Ololus. By the rotational order of the Edict, it is the turn of Odolu Ruling Group to produce Obaro and the new Obaro is from the Ruling Group.
It should be emphasized that the vast majority of our people and the non-indigenes living in Kabba are in support of the appointment. People troop in daily to show affection and solidarity with the new Obaro in his palace. We are quite convinced that this appointment will usher in the most desired peace and tranquility and we thank the Governor, His Excellency, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, for being on the side of truth and justice.
In conclusion, we urge the Ilajo family to reflect on the damage which their falsehood and warped obsession that they are the only Royal Ruling Family in Oweland has caused the Community. They should join hands with the other royal families and the new Obaro to see how our community will be transformed for the good and interest of the people. As fellow Ijumu, they should work with other noble families, descendants of Aro, Reka and Balaja, to ensure that our Community attained the pride of place and the rallying point to indigenes, non-indigenes and the Okun people in general.
We all owe Kabba, our Jerusalem, the duty to correctly preserve her culture, norms and tradition.
Owe agbe gha o. Ase!
Signed:
Chief J. A. Femi, – Head, Katu Ruling Family Group
Chief T. Olurinjon – Head, Kabba Ruling Family Group
Chief Joseph Ajayi Oshatuyi – Head, Odolu Ruling Family Group

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