Sikiru Adetona, Ijebu king who made Ojude Oba Yorubaland’s most glamorous cultural festival

Posterity will remember the late Awujale and Paramount Ruler of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, as the visionary monarch who transformed the Ojude Oba cultural festival into the famous event it has become today.

Oba Adetona oversaw Ojude Oba’s transformation from its obscure beginnings, reinventing it into Yorubaland’s most glamorous festival that showcases the rich culture of the people of Western Nigeria.

Every year on the third day after the annual Muslim Eid-al-Kabir celebrations, people gather at the king’s forecourt, Ojude Oba, to pay homage to the paramount ruler and celebrate with the king.

The century-old festival witnessed significant transformation over the six-decade visionary leadership of Oba Adetona. Today, Ojude Oba has become an international event, attracting thousands of participants from around the world.

Schooled at Baptist School Ijebu Ode, Adeola Odutola College and London, where he studied accountancy, the young Sikiru Kayode Adetona, who was initially reluctant to ascend the throne, later yielded to pressure and became a monarch at the age of 26.

Before mounting the throne, Adetona had worked with the Western Region’s Audit Department in Ibadan. He also served as a minister without portfolio and member of the executive council of the Western Regional Government between 1960 and 1962.

From June to December 1962, during the emergency rule of Chief Koyejo Majekodunmi as administrator, Adetona was a commissioner and member of the executive council of the Western State.

With authority and influence extending into the territories of 133 kings and village heads across Ijebuland, Awujale Adetona was one of the most respected and highly revered monarchs in Yorubaland who ruled with grace and dignity.

The late king’s enormous contributions to Yoruba cultural emancipation and positive influence on education, commerce and community advancement will remain indelible in the minds of the people of Ogun State and Yorubaland.

He would also be remembered for his efforts at ensuring the creation of Ijebu State.

As he transitions and joins his ancestors, Oba Adetona’s legacy will be entrenched in the minds of many as the one king who took Ojude Oba from the back streets of Ijebu Ode and showcased it to the world, transforming the yearly festival into the glamorous event every Ijebu son and daughter is proud to associate with today.