The Are Ona
Kakanfo of Yoruba land, Chief Gani Adams, at the weekend, reiterated strong
commitment to unite the Yoruba nation and make it prosperous and strong to the
admiration of all stakeholders.
This, he also said, would be of good point of reference to other ethnic
nationalities such as the Hausa and Igbo among others in Nigeria.
Adams made this submission at the weekend in Ira in Oyun Local Government Area of Kwara
State during the annual celebration of Oya festival, championed by his Olokun festival
which he started five years ago.
He said: “After installation, my major assignment
is to ensure the unity of Yoruba race, continue to promote and sustain the
identity of Yoruba race and most
importantly, I will try to harness the potential of Yoruba nation and Yoruba in
diaspora.
"Thereafter, I will go spiritual and pray for the
Yoruba nation. This is because no matter your strategy, prayer is the key. I
will continue to pray for the prosperous Yoruba race, and by then, we can have
a prosperous Yoruba race we can be proud of. That is a nation within a nation
in Nigeria which would be a good reference point to others.’’
He also urged the state government to build a myth
around the Oya festival, make it very attractive and tar the road leading to
the groove.
The Yoruba leader stated that it has great tourism
potential that would be a major source of income for the government as tourists
would be visiting there annually for celebrations from Caribbean countries and
even local tourists in Nigeria and from the neighboring African countries.
According to him, “While I commend the present
administration in Kwara State for tarring the main road leading to Ira, because
it was not like this last year, I am appealing to them through the Ministry of
Culture and Tourism to work on the Oya groove in Ira, build and make it
attractive so that we will always hold the festival there.
“The Osun
Osogbo festival is normally held in its
groove, the Oodua festival is normally held beside the groove, so we can’t
continue to justify holding the festival in a secondary school.
"The road that leads to Oya groove must also
be tarred and they have to build myth around Oya based on her history. The
Caribbean countries in particular love Oya as a spirit, they want to associate
with her.’’
Adams further tasked the leaders to lead the
followers back to their roots, saying: “The obvious disconnect from our roots
in Nigeria are the bane of our current multifarious challenges such as economic
recession, insecurity, religious intolerance and ethnicity,” which he noted
were nowhere to be found in the olden days.
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