TASCE: Abiodun renames College of Education after Awujale. 

Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State has formally renamed the Tai-Solarin College of Education (TASCE), Omu-Ajose as the Sikiru Adetona College of Education, Science and Technology (SACOETEC) with a pledge that the institution would remain a College of Education with the mandate to groom middle level teachers for the educational System of the country.

 Abiodun who made this known during the formal unveiling of Sikiru Adetona College of Education, Science and Technology, said that his administration would not relent in its quest to make the institution an envy of others in the country.

While noting that despite the change in the name, the governor pointed out that the institution will continue to run its degree programmes, as well as accommodate science and technology courses.

He declared that his administration would be supporting the College in the area of infrastructure, disclosing that the ongoing reconstruction of road from Ala passing through Omu-Ijebu would soon be commissioned.

"We are gathered today to celebrate a milestone to a glorious future for this institution. Today Tai Solarin College of Education will cease to exist and in its place, we now have Sikiru Adetona College of Education Science and Technology, Omu-Ajose.

"The College will remain a College of Education with a mandate to groom middle level teachers for our educational System. The College will continue to run its degree programmes in affiliation with universities.

"We will also be supporting the College in the area of infrastructure; in fact, very soon, we will  commission the internal roads of the College and the road from Ala passing through Omu," he said.

Abiodun who said that Ijebuland has prospered under the Awujale, also commended the monarch for single handedly establishing a world-class International Institute of Governance at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye.

He further acknowledged the monarch for not only creating room for development in the land, an praised him for also facilitating developmental programmes through his friends and associates into the state.

The state helmsman who also called on the sons and daughters of Ijebuland to see the unveiling of new college as a challenge to make their presence felt in the institution, said: "Just as Ijebuland is blessed with long and progressive reign of Kabiyesi, the time has come for us to join hands in creating a legacy for Kabiyesi by investing heavily in this institution".

The Speaker, Ogun State House of Assembly, Olakunle Oluomo, who noted that there was no dissenting voice when the bill to change the name of the institution was brought to the House, added that the contribution of the monarch to the growth of education in the state is highly commendable.

Earlier in his remarks, the Chairman of the Governing Council of the institution, Adeyemi Adefulu, said that the emergence of the college as Sikiru Adetona College of Education, Science and Technology was part of the massive and fundamental re-organisation of the college.

Adefulu while noting that the Governing-Council has been instrumental in achieving stability in the college, said that the council has zero tolerance for indiscipline and lawlessness.

He, however, commended Governor Abiodun for his immeasurable support for the institution, submitting that, "the saving of TASCE now Sikiru Adetona College of Education, Science and Technology(SACOETEC) from perdition is sufficient proof of the governor's commitment to educational development and adroit management".

The Awujale and Paramount ruler of Ijebuland,Oba Sikiru Adetona while commending the Governor for his leadership style, said that his various performances speak volume of a man who is well accepted by the people.

Oba Adetona who opined that the forthcoming coming election is a done deal for the governor, said that the governor is fully in control of things in the state.

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 Arimoro 

Farotimi Okunade was a Yoruba prince of the Egbedi Quarters and a direct descendant of Owa Ofokutu ( 27th ruler of Ilesha)…. His drummers sang of his military feats and sang in his praise saying : a re omo ro L’ese oke.’… ( one who takes off his enemy’s head at the foot of the sacred hill)….the cognomen got him his name “Arimoro.’

He was a sworn enemy of Ibadan… reason being that during previous campaigns including Ijebu Ere and Ara expeditions, Ilesha always fought against Ibadan…. twice in the past, Ilesha was on the losing start and Ibadan wariors raided Ijesha in reprisal…. In these two raids, all his possessions and family were carted away to Ibadan as booty of war. With the painful loss, he swore to avenge the humiliation and resist Ibadan till his last breadth. To better prepare himself for future engagements, he formed a band of warriors and built a private militia.

His first opportunity came at the Igbajo war. Igbajo was a cosmopolitan city of many Yoruba factions ( hence the name Igbajo, meaning community of different people). Ijesha wanted to annex Igbajo in a campaign to absorb all lesser kingdoms in the region as well as reduce Ibadan’s influence in the region…. the Bale of Ibadan sent Balogun Akere to reinforce Igbajo. The Balogun showed the legendary battle skills of Ibadan and totally subjugated the Ijesha warriors. Many of the generals of Ijesha perished in the battle, including Lejoka, Risinkin and Lejofi. Arimoro managed to escape but he had to go underground for a while to rebuild his militia.

Three years later, Ibadan launched a full scale war on Ijesha. Once again, Arimoro played a great role in the war and for the first time, Ibadan warriors noticed him as a potential problem. After series of combats with which Ibadan closed in dangerously on Ijesha, Arimoro escaped to Akure to avoid being caught and executed. A siege was laid by Ibadan on Ijesha to cut it off from the outside world and push to people of Ijesha to near starvation. This forced Ijesha to surrender and submit to the sovereignty of Ibadan.

While in Akure, Arimoro received constant sad news of how Ibadan totally subjugated his ancestral home into a tributary vassal of Ibadan and the imposed Ajeles. For few years after, he waited for another opportunity to defend his ancestral home from exile. During his campaigns at Akure, he met Fabunmi of Oke Mesi and identified with the rising momentum to rebel against Ibadan in the region. when events finally led to a full scale revolt against Ibadan Ajeles, Arimoro took part in the riots. After the massacre of the Ajeles at Ekiti, he went back home with his militia and took the front row place in a similar full scale revolt against ajeles in the region leading with example by killing the Ajeles at Ilesha. In a short while, all the Ajeles of the region would be massacred as was the case at Ekiti.

He joined the Ekiti Parapo army and fought alongside folk heroes like Ogedengbe and Fabunmi. After the end of the war, he came back to Ilesha in 1887 as a war hero. In 1896, he was offered the throne of Ilesha but he refused, as he had all political interests and chieftancy offers prior, claiming that his motivation for his ancestral home was nothing but love. He stepped down for his brother Haastrup to take the throne.

Arimoro died in 1898 at a very old age.

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 JACOB ODULATE, THE MAN WHO INVENTED ALABUKUN POWDER OVER 100 YEARS AGO

Alabukun, one of the oldest drugs in Nigeria and even is still very relevant and popular today. However, not many know the Jacob Odulate aka Blessed Jacob, a Nigerian pharmacist, inventor and entrepreneur and the brain behind the brand that has remained relevant selling in all parts of Nigeria, Benin republic, Cameroon, Ghana and some parts of Europe.

1.Jacob Sogboyega Odulate aka Blessed Jacob was born into a polygamous family in 1884.

2.He was originally from Ikorodu in Lagos State but later moved to the neighbouring Ogun State.

3.At age 14, he trekked for three months from Ikorodu before reaching Abeokuta to establish himself.

4. Blessed Jacob managed to create a brand from what served as his consulting room and workshop in Abeokuta. His modest headquarters was at the Sapon Area, not far from where he later built his famous three-storey building in Ijemo Agbadu.

5.In 1918, he invented the legendary Alabukun powder which is now a hit in the world’s most populous nation and in other West African nations.

6.He sent his children to study at some of the best universities in Durham, Newcastle, United States of America and London. e.g Mrs. Folake Odulate (later to become Chief. Mrs. Folake Solanke) who is the first female lawyer in Nigeria to wear the silk and she also became the first female Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN). In 1966, she established the first law firm by a Nigerian female at Ibadan, Oyo State and named it Alabukun Chambers in honour of her great father.

7. Apart from making the drugs, the energetic Blessed Jacob also produced other brands like Alabukun mentholine, other preparations and an annual journal called Alabukun Almanac which was widely distributed in Abeokuta and eventually all over Nigeria between the 1920s and 1950s.

8.He died in 1962 at age 78.

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 THE HISTORY AND MYSTERY OF BILIKISU SUNGBO SHRINE IN IJEBU ODE, OGUN STATE, SOUTH WEST NIGERIA 🇳🇬  

The burial place of the legendary and biblical Queen of Sheba, locally known among Yoruba people as Bilikisu Sungbo, has turned a place of worship and tourism in Nigeria. Millions of people visit annually from different parts of the world to share the mystery surrounding Bilikisu Sungbo grave-turned-shrine located in Oke-Eri, Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria. 

The historical queen, Bilikisu Sungbo, was said to have traveled all the way from Ethiopia down to Ijebu-Ode where she died and was buried. The natives of Ijebu-Ode hold strong and popular claims about the identity of the controversial Bilikisu Sungbo. They claimed that she was the Queen of Sheba mentioned in the bible to have visited the wise king Solomon at height of his powers. They also claimed that Bilikisu Sungbo was the Quranic Queen Baliqs of Ethopia (from which the name Bilikisu was derived) who visited king Sulaiman. Another source has it that Bilikisu Sungbo was a wealthy woman and the leader of a group of women potters who traveled to far away places. Also, she was believed to possess supernatural powers with which she dug ditches around villages in Ijebu-Ode.

The tradition of the Ijebu people forbid women and dogs to visit the spot where Bilikisu Sungbo was buried. At the shrine, there is a small open ground with no grass growing on it. This place is said to be the place where the ancient queen was washed before being buried, and because of her supernatural powers, no plant or grass can ever grow on the spot.

In 1995, Bilikisu Sungbo’s shrine was added to the cultural category of UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Bilikisu Sungbo ‘grave-shrine’ will forever remain a pride of Ijebu-Ode people.

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 The Mugbamugba War – Second Attempt by Yorubas to Regain Control of Ilorin

After the Fulani Jamma murdered Are-Ona-Kakanfo Afonja and seized control of Ilorin, Abdulsalam, the son of Shehu Alimi, became the first Fulani ruler of Ilorin.

Abdulsalam ruled with the title of Emir and not Oba which proved that the Yorubas had completely lost control of Ilorin, a Yoruba town, to the Fulanis.

In a bid to restore the control of Ilorin in the hands of the Yoruba people, Toyeje, the Baale of Ogbomoso and the new Are-Ona-Kakanfo, led an attack on Ilorin to expel the Fulanis but failed

After sometime, between the months of March and April when garden egg (Igba) was ripe for harvest, another attempt was made by the Yorubas to chase Fulani people out of Ilorin but failed again.

During this period, the whole land was already devastated by the previous wars and consequently there were no farms for foraging. Ilorin had also ran out of food, so both sides had no food to eat than garden egg (ìgbá) thus the war was named Mugbamugba.

The Yorubas suffered untold defeat in the Mugbamugba war. They did not know how else they could fight the Fulanis who were expert horsemen with potent charms. Monija, the king of Rabbah and a mercenary fighting on the side of the Yorubas, fled to his town leaving the Yorubas to their fate.

To crown their victory, the Fulanis of Ilorin attacked all towns in the directions of Offa, Erinle and Igbona. The Olofa of Offa with Asegbe (his Ilari) escaped to Ikoyi.

References:

Johnson, Samuel; The History of the Yorubas; Lagos; CSS Limited; 1921; pg. 80-81

Omipidan, Teslim; The true and sad story of how Afonja lost Ilorin and its kingship to Fulani people; OldNaija

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