Ojude Oba and My Ijebu Awakening, by Bamidele Johnson
Until last year, Ojude Oba ranked somewhere below lukewarm pap on my interest scale. Sub-zero, if we’re being scientific. I didn’t know it was such a ritzy affair. But the scenes from the current edition have been nothing short of spectacular. Velvet, gold, horses and gele that can pick up 5G signal.
The spectacle has completely recalibrated my view of Ijebu people. I grew up in Oke Ado, Ibadan, where the Ijebu population density was roughly 50 per square metre. You couldn’t swing a cat without hitting someone named Alhaji Okunowo, Solesi, Sonoiki, Sonaike or Okunuga.
Back then, I knew them as goldsmiths, thrift collectors, Olympic-standard penny pinchers (AKA ndi aka gum), who took garri soaked in water with dry garri, and more sinisterly, money rituals maestros.
That last bit was gospel among us impressionable kids, mostly whispered with wide eyes and the dramatic tension of a movie soundtrack. Of course, I eventually shook off the myths. Age, education, and fewer horror stories helped. But even with all that enlightenment, I still didn’t know they had this level of drip. I had them pegged as Agemo people. I’ve never been a fan of masqueraders. No offense intended.
Now I’m convinced Ijebu people (with two highly specific exceptions) have style in spades. The kind of style that walks into a room and immediately makes your own native attire feel like pyjamas. They’ve managed to weave culture and commerce into something that looks like tradition. Pure genius.
Ndi Omo Alare, no vex o! Before you start sharpening your clapbacks, let me confess: this whole thing was just a roundabout way to rage-bait two Ijebu clowns, who spend time talking smack about Ekiti people. These are Wale Adedayo and Wale Adenaya .
I salute the rest of their kinsmen. I’m now a full convert. I might even attend once the rampant human body parts harvest slows down considerably. Don’t want to be targeted while riding a horse in colourful agbada kim ma lo r’ogo noin. A ni gbo weri weri aja Ijebu sonu o. Ewesooo.
