HISTORY OF EGBADO PEOPLE OF OGUN STATE

HISTORY OF EGBADO PEOPLE OF OGUN STATE

The Egbado appear to have migrated - possibly from the Ketu, Ile-Ife, or Oyo - to their current area early in the 18th century.

Egbado towns, most importantly Ilaro, Ayetoro, Afon, Imeko, Ipokia and Igbogila, were established in the 18th century to take advantage of the slave trade routes from the inland Oyo empire to the coast at Porto-Novo.

Other towns were Ilobi and Ijanna, which were strategic in protecting the flanks of the slaving routes. The Egbados' were subject to the rule of the Oyo kingdom, which managed them via governor Onisare of Ijanna.

The Oyo were unable to deploy their cavalry force to protect the routes, due to tsetse fly and lack of horse-fodder and thus had to rely on the Egbado people to manage the routes.

The historians Akinjogbin, Morton-Williams and Smith all agree that by the early 18th century this route to the coast was heavily engaged in slave trading, and that slaves were the mainstay of the Oyo economy.

The Egbado later achieved a fragile independence after the fall of the Oyo kingdom, but were subject to frequent attacks from other groups such as the slave-raiding Dahomey (who seized, among others, Princess Sara Forbes Bonetta), and various tribes who wished to force open their own slave-trading routes to the sea.

Ilaro and Ijanna towns had been destroyed by the 1830s. By the 1840s the Egbado had come under the control of the adjacent Egba group, who used the Egbado territory to forge routes to Badagry and the port of Lagos.

By the 1860s the Egba abandoned the route because the British were actively using their formidable navy to try to abolish the slave trade. Consequently, the Egba expelled British missionaries and traders from the area in 1867.

After 1890 the Egbado asked for a British protectorate and got a small armed garrison, thus becoming independent of the Egba. The area became part of the British Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria in 1914, as Egbado Division in Abeokuta Province.

The administrative headquarters were later transferred away, after the creation of the new Ogun State subsumed the old Abeokuta Province.

The modern Egbado/Yewa:
In 1995 the Egbado chose to rename themselves the "Yewa", after the name of the Yewa River that passes through the area they inhabit. They are primarily agriculturalists, but there is some artisan and textile processings.

They are located mainly in the areas of: Ado-Odo/Ota, Ipokia, Yewa South, Yewa North, Imeko Afon, and part of Abeokuta North.

There were complaints that the system of patronage and nepotism in Nigerian politics has caused the area to be neglected in terms of investment[citation needed].

The area developed a popular style of music, called Bolojo, in the 1970s. The population level is uncertain, but may be around 400,000.

Source: Gossip House
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NIGERIAN DRAMATIST: CHIEF (DR.) OSETURA HUBERT ADEDEJI OGUNDE, “A TRUE LEGEND ”.

NIGERIAN DRAMATIST: CHIEF (DR.) OSETURA HUBERT ADEDEJI OGUNDE, “A TRUE LEGEND ”.
....the father of Nigerian theatre.

Chief (Dr.) Osetura  Hubert Adedeji Ogunde

Hubert Ogunde changed the name to Ogunde Theater Party in 1947 and Ogunde Concert Party in 1950. Finally, in 1960, he changed it to Ogunde Theater, a name that remained until his death in 1990. He has been described as "the father of Nigerian theatre, or the father of contemporary Yoruba theatre".

In his career on stage, he wrote more than 50 plays most of which incorporate dramatic action, dance, and music, with a story reflecting the political and social realities of the period. His first production was a church-financed play called The Garden of Eden. It premiered at Glover Memorial Hall, Lagos, in 1944. Its success encouraged Ogunde to produce more plays, and he soon left his job with the police force for a career in the theatre.

Chief Ogunde seen in action 🎬 during one of his film production.

In the 1940s, he released some plays with political commentaries: The Tiger's Empire, Strike and Hunger and Bread and Bullet. During the 1950s, he toured various Nigerian cities with his travelling troupe. In 1964, he released Yoruba Ronu, a play that generated controversy and earned him the wrath of Chief Akintola, premier of the Western Region.

The Ogunde Theater was banned in the Western Region of Nigeria for two years as a result. This ban was only revoked by the new military government of Lt. Col. F. A. Fajuyi on the 4th of February, 1966. In the late 1970s, Ogunde was spurred by the success of Ija Ominira and Ajani Ogun, two pioneering Yoruba feature-length films, to co-produce his first celluloid film, Aiye, in 1979. He released Jaiyesimi, Aropin N'tenia, and Ayanmo, feature-length films influenced by Yoruba mysticism, thereafter.

Ogunde starred in Mister Johnson, the 1990 motion picture that also featured Pierce Brosnan. The movie was shot on location in Toro, near Bauchi, Nigeria.
Ogunde was born in Ososa, near Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria, to the family of Jeremiah Deinbo and Eunice Owotusan Ogunde. His father was a Baptist pastor and his maternal grandfather was a priest of Ifa, an African traditional religion. Ogunde briefly lived within the precincts of his grandfather's compound and was exposed to Ifá, Ogun and many other traditional religious celebrations. Both the Christian and traditional religion of the Yoruba influenced his upbringing. He had his education between 1925 and 1932, attending St John School, Ososa, (1925–28), St Peter's School, Faaji, Lagos, (1928–30) and Wasimi African School, (1931–32).

His first contact with performance art was as a member of Egun Alarinjo during his elementary school days. After completing his education, he worked as a pupil-teacher at St. John's School, and was also church choirmaster and organist.
He later joined the Nigerian police force in March 1941 in Ibadan. In 1943, the police force posted him to the Denton Police Station, Ebute Metta, where he joined an African initiated church, the Church of the Lord (Aladura). In Lagos, he created an amateur drama group, the African Music Research Party, in 1945.
Like many of his theatre contemporaries, such as A. B. David, P. A. Dawodu, Layeni and G. T. Onimole, his theatre career began under the patronage of the Church. In 1944, he co-produced his first folk opera with G. B. Kuyinu, The Garden of Eden and The Throne of God, commissioned by the Lagos-based Church of the Lord (Aladura) founded by Josiah Ositelu. The performance was sanctioned to aid contributions to a Church building fund.The folk opera premiered at Glover Memorial Hall with the chairman of the ceremony, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, in attendance. The play incorporated realism and dramatic action in the acting, dancing and singing of the performers, separating it from the common Native Air Operas predominant in Yorubaland at the time.

This was an innovation that contributed to making it a success. At the request of the Alake of Abeokuta, Ogunde performed "The Garden of Eden" at the Ake Centenary Hall. Encouraged by the success of the play, he went on to write more operas. He wrote and co-directed three religious-themed plays: Africa and God (1944), a folk opera infused with Yoruba cultural themes than were non-existent in The Garden of Eden, Israel in Egypt (1945) and Nebuchadnezzar's Reign and Belshazzar's Feast (1945). In 1946, he resigned his post with the police to become a professional dramatist.
As has already been stated, Ogunde's African Music Research Party, founded in 1945, was the first contemporary professional theatre company in Yorubaland. Previous performance groups were masked theatre troupes called Alarinjo who were dependent on the court or church for support, and who grew in popularity as a result of word of mouth. Ogunde distinguished his group by using promotion methods such as advertisements and posters, and by changing the round stage used by alarinjo performers to one with a proscenium. In addition, he introduced dramatic action and realism in his plays, depending on the audience for commercial support. By these acts Ogunde began the rise of modern professional theatre in Nigeria, a movement in which he remains the most influential practitioner.
After leaving his job as a police constable, Ogunde moved away from his earlier focus on religious themes and started writing plays that were nationalistic and anti-colonial in outlook, a trend in Lagos during the furious forties. During this period, many of his early operas were co-directed by G. B. Kuyinu.

In early 1945, he produced Worse than Crime, a political play infused with Yoruba dance and ancient folk songs. Like most of his early plays, it premiered at Glover Memorial Hall, Lagos. Later in that year, he wrote The Black Forest and Journey to Heaven, two Yoruba operas that also improved on his use of traditional Yoruba folklore. The latter also had a strong Christian influence. In November 1945, he wrote a pro-labour play, Strike and Hunger, motivated by the events of a general strike by labour unions led by Michael Imoudu. In 1946 he wrote and produced Tiger's Empire. Premiering on the 4th of March, 1946, Tiger's Empire was produced by The African Music Research Party and featured Ogunde, Beatrice Oyede and Abike Taiwo. The advertisement for the play was the result of Ogunde's call for "paid actresses". It marked the first time in Yoruba theatre that women were billed to appear in a play as professional artists in their own right. Tiger's Empire was an attack on colonial rule. He followed Tiger's Empire with Darkness and Light.

Later, in 1946, he produced Devil's Money, an African story about a man who entered into a contract with an evil spirit so in an effort to get rich. The folk opera was successful and had a set of twenty-four actors donning costumes. After the death of Herbert Macaulay, he wrote the opera Herbert Macaulay to commemorate the life of the nationalist, who died in 1946. He then released another politically-themed play, Towards Liberty, in 1947. Before 1948, Ogunde plays were staged in Lagos and occasionally in Abeokuta, but his growing popularity in other Western Nigeria provinces made him think about traveling to other cities with his theatre troupe.

In 1948, he went on a tour of major Western Nigerian cities with his group, including stops at Abeokuta, Ibadan, Oyo, Ede and Ogbomosho. When he took his tour to the north, he had two major encounters with the police there due to the political content of Worse than Crime and Tiger's Empire. His first tour outside Nigeria was not well received by the Ghanaian audience, largely because they did not understand the Yoruba language and Ogunde was ignorant about the tastes of the people.
Ogunde then wrote his first satire, Human Parasites, about the craze for Aso ebi (a social culture which encourages both men and women to buy the most expensive materials for social gatherings). “The custom has lent itself to much abuse in that the occasions for celebrating marriages and funerals occur so often that one may be asked by friends to buy ‘Aso Ebi’ more than ten times a year”. "Human Parasites" lampooned the fashionable socialites of Lagos, but many of them were Ogunde's patrons. Around the time that he wrote Human Parasites, he first changed the name of his troupe to Ogunde Theatre Party. Ogunde's plays from this period were folk operas in which the actors on stage sang their lines with limited dialogue.

In 1947, Ogunde and Adesuwa, his wife and frequent co-star, traveled to London to make contacts with theatre agents for the promotion of his shows in England. The talks were not fruitful but while in London, they had the opportunity to take waltz and tap dance classes. In his later operas, he syncretized the waltz with the traditional Batakoto dance and tap dance with the traditional Epa dance.
In 1950, Ogunde continued writing plays with political undertones. Bread and Bullet, first performed in 1950, is a play about the coal miners strike in Enugu that resulted in the shooting of twenty-two people in that year. In Northern Nigeria, the performance of the play was limited to certain areas due to allegations of seditious dialogue. It was during this time that Ogunde introduced the English language to the dialogue of his plays. In January 1950, he staged a reproduction of his 1945 play Black Forest, re-arranging the play to introduce English and Yoruba dialogue. The African music featured was created by both Western and African instruments. The re-produced Black Forest and Bread and Bullet changed his style of drama from Yoruba folk opera to an improvisational theatre where dialogue is spoken. Ogunde then released a string of plays with dialogue either spoken or sung. He released an Islamic morality tale, My Darling Fatima, in 1951. He followed this with three situational comedies: Portmanteau Woman (1952), 'Beggar's Love (1952) and Princess Jaja (1953).

In 1955, his theatre went on a tour of Northern Nigeria that included performances at the Colonial Hotel, Kano. During this time, Ogunde ceased to write as often as he did in order for him to be able to go on grueling road tours to different parts of the country. The Ogunde Theatre Party became a traveling theatre group thereafter. He also changed the name of the group, from Ogunde Theatre Party to Ogunde Concert Party, in 1950.
In 1964, he produced two important plays: Yoruba Ronu and Otitokoro. They both spoke of the political events in Western Nigeria, events which led to the declaration of the state of emergency in 1963. He was the most prominent of the dramatists of the folk opera.

He composed over 40 operas in Yoruba. His play Yoruba Ronu (or "Yoruba Think") was a satirical account of the strife that plagued Yorubaland in the 1960s. The protagonist of the play, Oba Fiwajoye, is betrayed by the actions of his deputy. He is given over into the hands of his enemy, Yeye-Iloba, leading to the imprisonment him and two of his political allies. The deputy then ascends the throne and rules as a tyrant before he is eventually killed by the people. The play was staged at an Egbe Omo Olofin meeting in the presence of NNDP leaders such as Akintola. During the performance, Akintola and a few others walked out, feeling it was a subtle attack on their role in the Western region crisis. It was banned in western Nigeria for two years (1964 to 1966) as a result, but was produced with great success in other parts of the country.

In the 1960s, The advent of Western Nigeria Television (WNTV) gave Ogunde an avenue to reach his audience without traveling. He produced his plays Ayanmo and Mama Eko for the television audience. Ogunde was a representative of Nigeria to Expo 67 in Montreal. On his way back to Nigeria, he stopped at New York and performed at the Apollo Theater in Harlem.

In the late 1970s, film director Ola Balogun directed two successful Yoruba films. The first, "Ajani Ogun", was co-produced with the actor Ade Love. The second, "Ija Ominira", starred Ade Love. Ogunde decided to join the trend. He invited Ola Balogun to direct Aiye, an adaptation of one of his stage plays. Ogunde chose the play partly because it attracted crowds during its run of performances. Unlike the stage act, the film was shot in such a way as to allow for a sequel. The film premiered in 1979, and within a year it had made its money back. Aiye explored Yoruba mysticism, the issue of witchcraft and traditional notions of light and darkness.

Ogunde sold some of his properties to finance the movie. The next Ogunde film was Jaiyesinmi, a sequel to Aiye co-directed by Ogunde and Freddie Goode. His third film was Aropin N'Tenia, another adaptation of a stage play which had premiered in 1964. The film had fewer mystical symbols than those that preceded it. Ogunde provided the funds for the production of all of his movies without exception. His fourth film was Ayanmo, originally adapted from a play that had been dedicated to his wife, Adeshewa, who had died previously. Ogunde established a film village at Ososa, his hometown, to serve as a film shooting studio for his films in 1982. His last two films, Aropin N'tenia and Ayanmo were shot at the Ogunde film village.

Ogunde released many music albums during his career. His distinctive voice marked the songs in these albums which, like his plays and films, demonstrated knowledge of the Yoruba ethos. The albums included Ekun Oniwogbe (about the human conscience), Onimoto (about motor drivers) and Adeshewa (about the loss of his wife and co-star, who died in a tragic accident). The most popular of his albums is Yoruba Ronu, a soundtrack to the play of the same name. He produced over 90 songs in a creative life that stretched from the late 1950s to 1988. From the 1960s onwards, he produced a soundtrack album for each play.

In 1986, he was invited by the Nigerian government to form a national drama troupe. During this time, he represented Nigeria in the Commonwealth Festival of Arts, performing a play called Destiny (which was a re-arranged Ayanmo that he had released earlier in 1970. Destiny was a production with thirty dancers. In the play, Ogunde incorporated some of his favorite dance steps, Ijo-Eleja (or the dance of the fishermen), Asan Ubo-Ikpa from the Ibibio culture, and the kwag-hir from Tivland.
Ogunde established an estate at Ososa. The venue served as the rehearsal center for the national troupe before his passing in 1990. Ogunde married more than ten wives and had many children. The Ogunde Theater was largely a family-run business, and all the wives and children took part in the productions at one time or the other. Some of the children were actors and actresses, while others were drummers, singers and ticket sellers. All of the wives shared the stage with their husband at various points in the history of the theatre.

The manager of the Ogunde Theater, who also happened to be one of the wives, was the former Miss Clementina Oguntimirin. She later became known as Adeshewa Clementina Ogunde or Mama Eko, taking the latter moniker from the popular 1960s play of the same name that she starred in. His other wives included Ibisomi Ogunde, Risikat Ogunde and Emily Kehinde Olukoga-Ogunde.

Ogunde became the leading producer of Yoruba celluloid movies, with J'ayesinmi (Let the world rest) and Aiye (Life!), blazing the trail.
He was ill during the shooting of the film "Mr. Johnson". Chief Ogunde died on the 4th of April, 1990, at London's Cromwell Hospital following a brief illness. A portrait of Ogunde hangs in the National Gallery of Modern Art, Lagos. During his life he had been honoured with a chieftaincy title, thus making him an Oloye of the Yoruba people.

Ogunde Plays are:
• Garden of Eden and the Throne of God (1944)
• Africa and God (1944)
• Israel in Egypt (1945)
• Nebuchadnezzar's Reign and Belshazzar's Feast(1945)
• King Solomon (1945)
• Worse than Crime (1945)
• Journey to Heaven (1945)
• The Black Forest (Igbo Irunmale) (1945)
• Strike and Hunger (1945)
• Tiger's Empire (1946)
• Darkness and Light (1946)
• Mr. Devil's Money (Ayinde) (1946)
• Herbert Macaulay (1946)
• Human Parasites (1946)
• Towards Liberty (1947)
• Swing the Jazz (1947)
• Yours Forever (Morenike) (1948)
• Half and Half (1949)
• Gold Coast Melodies (1949)
• Bread and Bullet (1950)
• My Darling Fatima (1951)
• Portmanteau Woman (1952)
• Beggar's Love (1952)
• Highway Eagle (1953)
• Princess Jaja (1953)
• Village Hospital (Ile Iwosan) (1957)
• Delicate Millionaire (Olowo Ojiji) (1958)
• Songs of Unity (1960)
• Yoruba Ronu (1964)
• Aropin N'tenia (1964)
• Otito Koro (1964)
• Awo Mimo (1965)
• Ire Olokun (1968)
• Keep Nigeria One (1968)
• Mama Eko (1968)
• Oba nta (1969)
• Ogun Pari (1969)
• Oh, Ogunde (1969)
• Ewe Nla (1970)
• Iwa gbemi (1970)
• Ayanmo (1970)
• Onimoto (1971)
• K'ehin Sokun (1971)
• Aiye (1972)
• Ekun Oniwogbe (1974)
• Ewo Gbeja (1975)
• Muritala Mohamed (1976)
• Oree Niwon (1976)
• Nigeria (1977)
• Igba t' ode (1977)
• Orisa N'la (1977)

Films:
• Aiye (1980)
• Jaiyesimi (1981)
• Aropin (1982)
• Ayanmo (1988)
• Mister Johnson

Television:
• Ogunde: Man of the Theatre - BBC (1983)

References:
• Clark, Ebun (1979). Hubert Ogunde: the making of Nigerian theatre. Oxford UNiversity Press.
• Asobele, Timothy (2003). Yoruba cinema of Nigeria. Lagos: Upper Standard Publications.

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INAUGURATION OF THE JKF-BAO TRANSITION COMMITTEE

INAUGURATION OF THE JKF-BAO TRANSITION COMMITTEE

In action, Governor Kayode Fayemi with the Governor-elect Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji and his Deputy Governor-elect, Mrs Monisade Afuye during the transition committee inauguration.

Ekiti State Governor, Dr.Kayode Fayemi inaugurates Transition and Advisory Council Members at the Conference Hall of Governor's Office, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, SouthWest Nigeria.

The Press Release by the Governor as below:

Monday, June 27, 2022 | Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria

2. An Important Time in Our History

 

● Your Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, it is my pleasure to welcome you to this historic event, and to start by congratulating us all on the successful conclusion of the June 18, 2022 gubernatorial election.

 

● I am delighted that the electorate overwhelmingly voted for our great party the APC and our candidates, Mr. Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji and Chief Mrs. Monisade Afuye – now Governor-Elect and Deputy Governor-Elect respectively, to consolidate on the work we have done so far.

 

● Today, Ekiti kete is witnessing the commencement of proceedings towards the historic transition of power from the Kayode Fayemi administration to the Biodun Oyebanji administration – the first of its kind since the enactment of the Ekiti State (Transition) Law 2019.

 

Group Photograph, The Transition Committee with Gov. Kayode Fayemi 

● I would therefore not want the import of this event to be lost on us, as it is a very crucial step in the consolidation of our democracy, especially for us in Ekiti State.

 

3. Consolidation of Our Democracy

 

● Today, Ekiti State is leading the way again as a model sub-national government with the implementation of a carefully crafted law with robust provisions to ensure smooth transition of power from successive administrations of the Government of Ekiti State.

 

● With the Ekiti State (Transition) Law 2019, we have made sure that even in cases where there is an alternation of power between different political parties, those coming after us would be guided to ensure seamless continuity of the vision, the completion of projects, and the upholding of commitments validly entered into.

 

● We are pleased that our efforts would ensure that regardless of electoral outcomes, Ekiti would always win. This is also why one of the enduring legacies to be handed over to the incoming administration is the recently crafted 30-year State Development Plan - 2021 - 2050 which should serve as a critical road map to the new administration and even successive ones.

 

● I would therefore like to make this appeal to Ekiti Kete, that in the coming years, we all remain vigilant and cooperative to uphold this non-partisan new and better way of doing things, and the sacred tradition we are establishing today.

 

 

4. Confidence in the Incoming Administration

 

● Your Excellencies, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, I am delighted to commence this process of transition, knowing that our beloved homeland would be in safe hands. The Governor-elect, Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji would be coming to office on the back of his record as an experienced public administrator who is well-educated and well-travelled – a true homegrown son of the soil who has his fingers on the pulse of the yearnings of the people.

 

● He has been a central figure in my administration from 2010 – 2014, and 2018 – 2022, who deservedly shares in the credit for all we have been able to do for the good people of Ekiti state. As the former Secretary to the State Government, he shares in our records of achievement in Good Governance that has seen considerable improvements in the ease-of-doing-business, and earned us the second position in the Disbursement Linked Indicators mileage of the World Bank/FGN backed State Fiscal Transparency Accountability Sustainability (SFTAS), amongst other accolades.

 

● He shares in our achievements in education and the restoration of our pride of place as the intellectual hub in the country, with our free and compulsory education, building of new model colleges, improved teacher quality, regular grants-in-aid, massive investments in infrastructure and equipment, as well as the improvements in the learning environment in our schools. All these have resulted in Ekiti having the lowest rates of out-of-school children in the country, and significant improvements in percentage pass rates in common examinations.

 

● He has been a part of the thinking behind the long term vision to build a workforce of the future in tune with global trends and our comparative advantages in agriculture as well as science and technology which is centred around the Ekiti Knowledge Zone for which we recently received final confirmation of the AfDB Board approval. The vision has also resulted in the establishment of the Ekiti State Polytechnic, Isan-Ekiti, and the Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology, Ikere-Ekiti as well as the growth and development of our premier university – EKSU.

 

● He has been a part of the infrastructural revolution in the state which has seen the completion of a number of critical roads such as Ijero - Ipoti - Iloro-Ayetoro, Igede-Awo-Osi-Ido, Otun - Osun-Iloro, Odo Owa - Oke-Ila-Osun State Boundary, Ikogosi - Ipole Iloro-Efon Alaaye, Ilawe - Erijinyan, Oye-Iye-Otun road, Ikere - Ise-Emure, Isan - Ilemeso, Iludun - Obo-Ayegunle, Aramoko-Erinjiyan-Ikogosi, Agbado-Ode-Isinbode-Omuo, New Ado-Iyin, Ilawe-Igbaraoke, Irele - Ipao - Arinkin Bridge - Kogi State Boundary, Ajolagun Bridge linking Ikere to Ijare Road - Ondo State Boundary and Ilupeju-Ire-Igbemo-Ijan, as well as the commencement of work on Ifaki - Esure - Eyio - Awo road, Itapa - Ijelu - Omu road, the Ado-Ifaki dual carraige way, Ilawe - Ikere road, Ijero - Ara - Awo road, Ikole township roads, and rehabilitation of Ado-Ekiti metropolitan roads. Equally, he has been part of the Rural Access and Agricultural Markets Projects – RAAMP.

 

● He has been part of the team that delivered the Oja Oba Market at Erekesan, the magnificent Obafemi Awolowo Civic and Convention Center, and arguably the largest water corporation headquarters in Nigeria, as well as a total overhaul of three major water dams in Ero, Egbe, and Ureje with the installation of power sources, main pipes, and reticulation of hundreds of kilometers of pipes to towns and villages in about ten local government of the state.

 

● He has also been a part of the various efforts to upgrade broadband access through the comprehensive deployment of fibre optic infrastructure both within our education quadrangle and also state wide. He has equally been a part of the team that has bern responsible for the 5 megawatt Independent Power Project currently due for completion in August 2022.

 

● In the health sector, he has been part of the team that facilitated our free health care programme, the rehabilitation of all the primary health facilities across the state, and the rehabilitation and equipping of our specialist and general hospitals. The Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital has witnessed phenomenal growth and more importantly earned full accreditation by the relevant authorities and he has contributed to one of the most successful stare health insurance schemes in the country with 100,000 enrolees.

 

● In terms of the comprehensive vision to position Ekiti as an economically viable state, he was part of the implementation of a number of successful public-private partnerships such as the Ikun Dairy Farm now being run by Promasidor Limited, and the Ire Burnt Brick which has been revamped now and being run by a competent core investor operator.

 

● He has been a part of the vision for the agriculture sector, which has birthed the Cargo Airport project billed to become operational by September 2022. The cargo airport is designed to plug Ekiti strategically into the global value chain and expose our farmers and processors to a global market, and create vast opportunities for our young people.

 

● He has been part of the team that envisioned and designed the Ekiti Knowledge Zone (EKZ) project that would make Ekiti the hub for a knowledge economy, wealth creation and application to national and global challenges.

 

● He was at the centre of our pioneering effort to re-engineer regional integration in Western Nigeria with the establishment of the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria Commission when he served as Commissioner for Integration and Inter-Governmental Affairs which was to later birth Amotekun - the Western Nigeria Security Network.

 

● He has been a part of the team that has prioritized workers’ welfare and ensured the prompt payment of salaries and pensions.

 

● He has been a part of the Ekiti State Security Council that understands the issues and our approach to security sector governance in the state.

 

● He has been as much a part of our history as a state, as he is a symbol of our hope for the future. He has an enviable pedigree as one of the members of the Committee for the Creation of Ekiti State, in which he served as the secretary at the young age of 26. He was one of those who prepared the blueprint for the takeoff of the state, and has cumulatively contributed close to 12 years in the service of the state as a Special Assistant, Chief of Staff, Commissioner, and Secretary to the State Government.

 

● I have found in him a conscientious public servant who is trustworthy in all his dealings, and very dependable. I owe a debt of gratitude to him for being the engine room behind all our efforts, and for his faithfulness with all that has been committed to him through the years. At this time by the grace of God, BAO / Afuye lokan, to take Ekiti to the next level.

 

● I am most gratified that I have found in Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji a worthy successor because there is no true success and legacy without a successor that can continue with the vision. I have known him and enjoyed a personal relationship with him as a friend, brother, colleague, and one of my most trusted allies for close to two decades.

 

● As my administration transitions out, I am confident that with Mr. Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji and Chief Mrs. Monisade Afuye, Ekiti is in safe hands. I have no reservations in commending him to the good people of Ekiti as a worthy successor for the Office of Governor, who would carry on with our vision, and usher Ekiti into a new season of sustainable development, peace, and prosperity.

 

● I ask that Ekiti Kete gives the incoming administration the same degree of support and goodwill I have enjoyed.

 

5. Terms of Reference are:

a. to make comprehensive arrangement to manage, the transfer of political power seamlessly;

b. to ensure the provision of State of the State briefings for the Governor- Elect during the period before his assumption of office;

c. to undertake any other function as enshrined in the Transition Law to achieve the object of this Law.

6. Thank You Ekiti

 

● As I conclude, I would like to thank Ekiti Kete for the support you have granted my administration over the course of my tenure and the assurance of your continued support for us to finish well and strong.

 

● I am confident that with the 30-year Ekiti Development plan that has been put in place, and patriotic people at the helms of our affairs, Ekiti would take her rightful place where we achieve sustainable development, peace and progress in our homeland.

 

● It is my pleasure to formally inaugurate the transition committee comprising very accomplished Ekiti sons and daughters in keeping with the provisions of the law, and I am confident they would justify the confidence reposed in them.

 

● Your Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, once again I thank you all for coming to this historic event, and wish you a safe and pleasant journey back to your respective destinations.

 

Dr. Kayode Fayemi, CON

Governor

Ekiti Government Constitutes Transition Committee, Advisory Council.

Ekiti Government Constitutes Transition Committee, Advisory Council.

Ekiti State logo

In line with the Ekiti State Transition Law, 2019, the State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, has approved the composition of a Transition Committee and an Advisory Council, following the election of Mr Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji as Governor-elect.

The Transition Committee. would among other tasks, study the state of affairs of the present administration, review the programmes and projects of MDAs and map out strategies for a smooth transition from the incumbent to the incoming government. The Advisory Council would address unresolved issues.

The Transition Committee and Advisory Council comprise members nominated by the state government and the Governor-elect.

Members of the Transition Committee are:

• Mr Foluso Daramola (SSG/ Chairperson)

• Mr Tolu Ibitola (Chief of Staff)

• Mr Wale Fapohunda, SAN. (AG/ Comm for Justice)

• Mr Akin Oyebode (Comm for Finance)

• Mrs Peju Babafemi (Head of Service)

• Dr (Mrs) Olabimpe Aderiye, mni

• Dr Oyebanji Filani

• Mr O’seun Odewale

• Mrs Margaret Fagboyo

• Prof Bolaji Aluko

• Senator Olubunmi Adetunmbi (Co-Chairperson)

• Mr Oluwole Ariyo

• Mr Deji Ajayi

• Senator Tony Adeniyi

• Mr Niyi Adebayo

• Engr Dipo Bamisaye

• Dr Habibat Adubiaro

• Mr Sunday Fatoba

• Prof Bisi Aina

• Mr Adejumo Feyisope

The Advisory Council members are:

• Otunba Bisi Egbeyemi (Chairperson)

• Prof Modupe Adelabu (Co-Chairperson)

• Surv. Abiodun Aluko

• Chief Jide Awe

The Committees are to turn in their reports within six weeks from the date of their inauguration.

Yinka Oyebode

Chief Press Secretary to the Governor

24-06-2022

Ekiti Deputy Governor-elect, Chief Mrs Monisade Afuye shows appreciation to Ekiti people's.

Ekiti Deputy Governor-elect, Chief Mrs Monisade Afuye shows appreciation to Ekiti people's.       

Chief (Mrs.) Monisade Christinah Afuye 

Press Release:

APPRECIATION TO EKITI KETE

“ It is worthwhile to develop an attitude of gratitude and give thanks for everything that happens.”    

 

I am sincerely delighted at the support, practical demonstration of love and well wishes of all of us towards this God's own project for Ekiti called BAO and MCA.

The June 18th, 2022 Ekiti Gubernatorial Election which was adjudged  the freest and the most peaceful  in the history of Ekiti State wouldn't have been possible if not for your cooperation with the wish of Almighty God for the State.

I sincerely appreciate your resolution and determination to make Ekiti great. And in this same spirit and with your ultimate support and cooperation, Mr Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji, your son and brother and  I MCA will work together to make you proud.

I am indeed grateful to our leaders, H.E. Otunba Niyi Adebayo, CON, Honourable Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment; H.E. Dr. Kayode Fayemi, Governor Of Ekiti State; H E Bisi Egbeyemi, Deputy Governor of Ekiti State, the Master Strategist Erelu Bisi Fayemi, the wife of our amiable Governor, HE Ambassador Eniola Ajayi, Former Deputy Governor HE Surv. Biodun Aluko and his beautiful Wife, All the Distinguished Serving present and Past  Senators, All Serving National Assembly, All Serving House of Assembly for their kind gesture towards the success of Ekiti Election.

I appreciate the leadership of Barrister Paul omotosho,the State Chairman of APC in Ekiti State, (Mr Continuity)Party EXCOS, Members of Ekiti State working Committee and all our leaders and members across the Sixteen local Governments.

Mr workaholic Director-General of BAO and MCA Campaign Organisation, Mr. Cyril Fasuyi /Chief Mrs Oluremi Ajayi aka Babington, the DG Women Campaign team and all members of the campaign team, your labour of love is unquantifiable on this project.

The National Women Leaders, both past and present,the South West Zonal Women Leader and all the State Women leaders, I say thank you, I appreciate you.

I am also highly grateful to all the leaders in Ikere, especially the Chairman and Secretary of the Campaign team in Ikere Mr Bimbo Ogundipe and Hon. Victor Adeniyi, the two Council Chairmen, our Women Groups, from Ikere Ekiti to the ward level, Volunteers, Support Groups, Youth Organisations, Civil Servants, Civil Society Organisations, Students, Entrepreneurs and Non- Indigene Groups.

My gratitude also goes to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for living up to the expectations and the Security Agencies for maintaining peace before, during and after the elections.

My humble gratitude also goes to our understandable and respectable Traditional Rulers and Leaders of Faiths for their prayers, intercessions and spiritual guidance.

The iyaloja's and all the Iyalaje's across the State,I really appreciate you.

Thank you Media workers and Observers for maintaining the ethics of your professions and callings.

I also want to thank my family,  my loving husband, Mr Lawrence Ade Afuye, My Mother, Royal families, my siblings and my children for standing by me day and night for allowing me to offer myself for this golden opportunity.

Special appreciation to the family of the Governor Elect,  Mr. Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji and his beautiful darling wife, Dr. Olayemi Oyebanji for their love and acceptance and his Perm Sec Alhaji Tajudeen Adejumo.

At this juncture, permit me to say that a team is like a toolset, not one tool can do all the jobs, but together it can, so let us join our hands together to work with our team in the day-to-day running of our dear Ekiti State and for the well-being of our people.

Let us all take Ekiti State to the greatest heights of success and promise land.

Once again, thank you all, Ekiti People and Lovers of Ekiti.

Èkìtì á gbè wá ō!

God bless Ekiti State!

God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria!

Chief (Mrs) Monisade Christinah Afuye

Deputy Governor Elect

Ekiti State, Nigeria

Ekiti Governor-Elect, Oyebanji on 'Thank You Visit' to Ewi.

Ekiti Governor-Elect, Oyebanji on 'Thank You Visit' to Ewi.

...assures Ekiti people of good governance 

Ekiti State Governor-Elect, Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji, on Thursday, paid a 'thank you' visit to the Ewi of Ado Ekiti, HRM, Oba Adeyemo Adejugbe , following his victory at the polls in the just concluded governorship election. 

Oyebanji, who led some leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC), to the palace of the respected traditional ruler, said the purpose of the visit  was to express his appreciation to the monarch and other traditional rulers, for their support and the fatherly role they played prior to the election to avert crisis. 

Specifically,  Oyebanji described Oba Adejugbe as a father, who has always shown interest in his career trajectory since their first meeting in the 90s during the agitation for creation of Ekiti State.

The Governor-Elect described the traditional institution as an important stakeholder in Ekiti that should not be toyed with by anybody, adding that the institution would be strengthened under him. 

"My visit to the palace today is to appreciate our father for his support for me over the years. At a time when most elders would have dismissed a young man like me, Oba Adejugbe embraced me with both hands and gave me opportunity to fly. That singular opportunity equipped me very well and prepared me for the other roles I played in Ekiti.

" Beyond his position as traditional ruler, Oba Adejugbe  put all he had into the struggle for the creation of Ekiti State for us to get the expected result. Again, thank you Kabiyesi.

"Also, I want to use our father as a contact point to other traditional rulers for their stabilizing roles during the campaign to make sure the election was conducted without any crisis in our dear state. Even though there would still be other avenues to meet the traditional rulers to show appreciation, today's meeting is necessary as a mark of honour for the traditional institution,"

Speaking further, Oyebanji assured Oba Adejugbe, the Ewi-in-council and the market women present of good governance that would transform Ekiti State. 

"I appreciate all for trusting me with their votes on Saturday and I stand here today assuring Ekiti people that I will not disappoint them. I will sustain the legacy of my predecessors as well as building on it to bring further development to our dear state,"

Responding, Oba Adejugbe commended the Governor-elect for thoughtfulness and prayed that God would endow him with wisdom and knowledge needed to succeed in office.

Raheem Akingbolu

Media Assistant

Ekiti Governor-elect, Oyebanji Receives INEC's Certificate Of Return.

Ekiti Governor-elect, Oyebanji Receives INEC's Certificate Of Return.                              ...promises to implement all his six- point agenda's 

In action, Ekiti State Governor-elect, His Excellency Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji with his deputy Governor-elect, Chief Mrs Monisade Afuye 

Governor-Elect of Ekiti State, His Excellency Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji acknowledging cheers from the Ekiti people after given the certificate of Return by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at INEC office, New Iyin Road, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, South West Nigeria on Wednesday, June 22,2022.

The event was witnessed by the Ekiti State First Lady, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, Speaker Ekiti State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Funminiyi Afuye, wife of the Governor- elect, Dr Olayemi Oyebanji, husband of the Deputy Governor-elect, Mr Afuye; former deputy Governor Surveyor Abiodun Aluko, Ekiti APC Chairman, Barr Paul Omotosho, and party leaders.

Hon. Biodun Oyebanji Abayomi seen in action signed the INEC return certificate 

Mr Fatoba Oluwole who won the bye- election to fill the vacant Sliti East Constituency 1 seat in the State’s House of Assembly was also presented his Certificate of Return to the newly elected at the brief but colourful event.

The INEC National Commissioner in charge of Ekiti, Oyo and Lagos States, Mr Sam Olumekun presented the certificates to them at the commission’s office, Ado Ekiti in line with the provisions of section 72(1) of the new electoral act.

In his word, Mr Oyebanji said that he would put in his best to implement the six- point agenda entrenched in his manifesto which he earlier unveiled at the onset of his campaign.

He added that the victory given to him by Ekiti people at the poll was a testament to the sterling performance of the Governor Kayode Fayemi administration, adding that it was validated by the massive votes freely given to the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Saturday’s election.