Oba Adeyemi Obalanlege: Politicians Must Keep Their Hands Off Kingship Selection

As the Olota of Ota, Oba Adeyemi Obalanlege, prepares to mark his 60th birthday, the monarch reflects on an extraordinary journey from the streets of Mushin to the newsroom, the lecture hall and ultimately the throne. In this revealing interview with Sunday Okobi, the professor of Communication Studies recounts how journalism shaped his worldview, speaks on faith, leadership and public service, and delivers a strong warning against the growing politicisation of kingship selection, which he says is eroding the dignity and credibility of the traditional institution. Excerpt 

In few days, you will be 60. What life’s lessons have shaped your journey from academia to the throne?

 Firstly, I have to thank the Almighty God for sparing my life to 60, and I hope to spend many more years on earth. Right from my youth, I’ve learnt so much. I was born in Mushin, Lagos; you know that’s a turbulent area. I attended St Jude’s Primary School at Ilasa. Later, I moved on to Ansar-u-Deen Primary School, Isolo, and because my mom was a primary school teacher, I had to move with her to Isolo. But from age 7, I had been minding the shop for my mom. That was when we used to have morning and afternoon school. My mom would go to work in the morning, and I would go to school in the afternoon. During the morning time, I would be in the shop, just within that Ladipo Street; you know how busy Ladipo Street was, and still is, up till now. At seven, I had been selling goods for my mom, and I did very well. It was because I was useful; that’s why she had to go in the morning, and I would go in the afternoon. And by the time I was leaving for afternoon school, she wouldn’t be back, so I had to lock the store myself and keep the key somewhere where she would pick it up when she returned. So, right from my primary school days, I had been taking responsibilities; so, my life’s journey was a bit difficult, but I think that up till now, I’ve been capable.

And then I attended a boarding secondary school at Iganmode Grammar School at Ota in Ogun State, but my parents didn’t want me to go into the town; they didn’t want anybody to know me. All they wanted was to keep me in the boarding house, but when they later found out that I had been going around town – that was my third year – they sent me back to Lagos. That was when I completed my secondary school at Metropolitan College, Isolo, and later had my A-Level at Ansar-u-Deen College, Isolo as well. And during this period, we had our own house at Isolo, and my mom also continued with the supermarket while she was also teaching. I attended the Ogun State Polytechnic, where I studied Mass Communication – both ND and HND. But in the midst of that, I lost my dad, then I went for a one-year Industrial Attachment where I worked with Fasi Yusuf at Obanikoro. He used to run a Mass Communication, Advertising, and Public Relations company. It was during that time I told him I wanted to work for him permanently; he agreed that he would love to take me, but he would want me to finish my HND. That was when he spoke with Blackson, the publisher of The Mail, who gave me a job as the Ogun State correspondent. I was posted to Abeokuta, and I started my HND as well. While I was on my HND I was the student leader, and also the Ogun State correspondent for The Mail. I was into so many things, and they knew at the office. After that, I joined Lagos State Polytechnic as the Public Relations Officer. I had built up a lot of profile then in the media and if you go to Ogun State Polytechnic then, almost all our colleagues would be everywhere in media houses, from NTA, Guardian, and others. So, whenever I sent any press release, it would just go straight, and my rector then, Engineer Oloro, would be wondering how I was doing this. I had so many friends in the media. Wherever I worked, they always wanted to hold on to me – even at the Crescent University, where I lectured, they held on to me for almost six years until I told them I wanted to rest. Even at THISDAY, I was the travel editor. I left THISDAY during the turbulent General Abacha’s time. That was when I went abroad. I got admission at the University of Leicester for my Master’s in Mass Communication. So, when I finished my programme, I started teaching journalism at the University of East London. During my time at the University of East London, I got a scholarship at the University of Antwerp in Belgium for my PhD in Communication Studies. After my PhD, I left for the University of Lincoln in the North of England. I was there for almost 12 years before I decided to return to Nigeria. When I came, I taught briefly at the Lagos State University. Later, I moved to Crescent University as a Senior Lecturer. While there, I contested for the senatorial seat for Ogun West, but it was given to my uncle (Gbolahan Dada), so I worked for him.

Life, to me, is very easy, but one thing I detest is cheating. I was selected as the Olota of Ota. Initially, I didn’t want to take it, but after so much persuasion, I decided to contest, and they all voted for me.

 Definitely, you must have had some achievements; some things in life that gave and still give you satisfaction each time you reminisce. Can you just share a few of those experiences?

One, I’ll talk about my days at the Ogun State Polytechnic as a students’ union leader. I was the union leader in my department, the Association of Mass Communication Students. I was also the public relations officer of the Students’ Union, but everyone thought I was the president. There was a day we had to attend an Aluta gathering at the University of Ilorin, under Bamidele Aturu then. We had issues with Alex Akinyele, the federal government, and NANS, and they said we shouldn’t attend any students’ union rally or meeting. NANS was even proscribed, but we went ahead and went to Ilorin. After the meeting, when we were coming back, the SSS mounted a roadblock and rounded us up at Auchi. They took us to the SSS office. When we got there, they stripped us naked and put us in a room and switched on an air conditioner, and we were very cold. Then they asked Sylvester then President, ‘Who is your president?’ and he pointed at me. It was very funny. When we were released, that became the topic throughout the students’ union then, and because of that, I won with the help of so many people. Then, I also worked briefly with the Republic Newspaper; I worked with Lanre Arogundade. Actually, I took over from Lanre as the NUJ chapel chairman when he left, and then Prof. Idowu Shobowale was the managing director. We were struggling because, you know, in journalism, you don’t get paid on time; even the pay wasn’t really good. Honestly, journalism made me what I am today, and because of the networking and the exposure, I know so many people today.

Your trajectory shows that you have activism in your blood, with what you said about being involved in unionism in the school. Now that you are on the throne, how are you galvanising the traditional institution to become relevant in a democratic setting?

 We have a problem with the traditional institution presently; thanks to politicians, things are not going the way they are supposed to go. Even in those days, we employed traditional ways in choosing kings and also in engaging in traditional rites. But it has been politicised, and that is why things are not going the way they should. Today, you just find out that people who are not even members of the traditional institution, who are not even princes overnight, would become princes and kings. It has been politicised, and that is not helping us. The respect is no longer there. I also want to appeal to the politicians to look into this and see how we can go back to the basics. Otherwise, the end of the traditional institution is very near. The end is very near, because we have forgotten who we are. We believed in ourselves, and all these security lapses would never happen in Yorubaland because we have our own traditional ways of securing our towns; but nowadays, when you choose a king who doesn’t come from a royal family, he wouldn’t know what to do. And sometimes, the chiefs and other traditional members of the kingdom withdraw because that wasn’t their choice. The fact that they imposed somebody on them is enough to destabilise our tradition. Sadly, that is what has been happening. However, in Ota, we thank God that our traditional institution is very stable. You can see that Ota is one of the safest places in Yorubaland. We have so many people who are not even from Ota living here, because we do what is expected of us. We know when to consult our gods, and we know when we are supposed to do the rituals. Sometimes, we have to impose a curfew and do what is expected of us. Tradition is still intact in Ota, but when you look at other places, imagine kidnapping a king in Yorubaland in daylight; it’s an abomination! Our tradition is fading away, and we need to do something about it. I believe politicians should stay out of the traditional institutions so that things can get back to normal.

 Many young people in Ota and across Nigeria feel disconnected from the traditional institutions. How are you working to make the palace, culture, and heritage relevant and inspiring to the youth of this land?

 In Ota, they (the youths) are not disconnected; they are part of us. You will see some of our youths even outside waiting to see me even though I’m not in the palace. They always came around to consult with me. In Ota, we organise so many traditional events, like the Iganmode festival, Egungun festival, and others. In fact, Ota is the headquarters of Egungun. When we ended the Egungun festival this year, the Alaafiin was here to celebrate with us. And when you look at our youth, they are very much into our traditions, even the dance, Ewi competition, and all other traditional events. So, youth are not disconnected.

Most of the roads in the state are in a deplorable condition. What is the traditional institution doing to encourage the Ogun State Government to address the situation?

Well, for now, you know I always engage the government, and whenever I engage them, they respond. But the problem is that Ota is one of the most industrialised areas, so I think the government may have to change to concrete roads. Now, another round of repair is going on-all the portholes are being repaired presently, but an industrialised town like Ota, with many trailers going up and down, needs a concrete road. And that is what is going on around the Joju area now. Also, a lot of people believe that the Ogun State Government is not doing anything, but they are trying their best; however, they need to change the materials they are using for the roads.

We have Dangote trucks going up and down and all these factory supplies-the Honda parts are assembled here in Ota, and motorcycles, generators, and other assembly plants are in Ota-even waste recycling (plants), and so many companies like the Tower Aluminum and GeePee are in Ota, coupled with the fact that a lot of things are going on in Ota. So, we expect the government to focus on concrete roads rather than asphalt.

 Apart from the government, like you rightly noted, there are so many investors and companies in Ota. As the Olota of Ota, how often do you engage these companies, including the private sector, and what do they bring to the table?

We do engage them a lot. We had an Economic Summit last year where the vice president was represented. And, you know, for them alone, without government support, it won’t be easy. I know that the Tower Road in the industrial estate, which hosts the Europe Global, is being fixed by them. I think it was only recently that Senator Olamilekan actually approved the construction of the road to be tarred. And so many other companies have been engaging in community service and social responsibilities, and some even gave us transformers. While I was away, Tower Aluminum gave us two transformers, and some other companies did too. So, they have been trying their best, but you know, it has not been properly coordinated. But even the Sango-Ota-Idi Iroko Road was facilitated by me. I started working with the Minister of Works, Babatunde Fashola; I went to Abuja with my friends, Kayode Opeifa and Mrs. Oorelope, to see Fashola. I called her myself (and told her) you have to go with me to see Fashola. That was when I was informed that Globacom was to take it over, but the cost was so high for him that he dropped it. 

We engaged Senator Olamilekan and he facilitated the present construction that is going on in the town. Also, it’s the rainy season that is making the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway project a bit disorganised, but I believe that by August, when the rain subsides, the construction will probably speed up.

 I am glad that you said you’re committed to the youths. What kind of educational or empowerment programmes do you have for them in Ota?

We have so many programmes for the youth. We have given so many scholarships to them, and several times, we’ve given them many pieces of equipment to empower their skills, and I have done that personally. Whenever I travel, I buy several pieces of equipment and machines for some of the guys that work for me, including carpenters and mechanics. I’ve organised so many training programmes for them, and after the training, we empower them with different pieces of equipment for tailoring, welding, transportation, among others. Even the president has equipped a skill acquisition centre for us, where we have the Ogun State job centre for youths looking for work. We also have a catering facility where youths are trained in catering. Presently, we are working with Covenant University to introduce a mobile phone assembly plant within the skills acquisition centre.