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[OPINION] Alaafin and Ifa: Nothing Is Left

Published

7 months ago

January 14, 2025

By Suyi Ayodele

Does Ifa, the spiritual divination system in Yoruba religion, know everything? Is there anything hidden from Baba Àgbonnìrègún? Why, for instance, is one of Ifa’s cognomens is: He who sees the outer and the inner man, who deciphers a man’s inner thoughts (Arínú róde, olùmòràn okàn)? Can the short man of Igbeti hill (Okùnrin kúkúrú Òkè Ìgbètì) forget to tell his clients all that is to know? Before I state why I raised the above posers, let me quickly attempt an answer from a personal experience.

This story is a true-life account from a narrator-as-a-participant point of view. My late father unravelled the riddle for me in the presence of his half brother and childhood friend. In my place, when a child says this is what I heard from my father, nobody doubts him! Here is the story.

I have a childhood friend from the neighbouring town. We used to go to his place to play occasionally. His mother was a beautiful old woman. At least, one could say that in her younger days, the mama must have been a damsel. The old woman had a practice. Each time we came around her house, she would single me out, chant my family praise names, and at our departure, wrap some dry fish and ask me to give it to my mother to cook for my father.

On each occasion I delivered the message to my mother, I would ask if the mama was one of our relations. The usual answer from my mother was: “I am not a member of your father’s family; how would I know all your relations?” I allowed it to pass until one day, when we visited our friend, and his mother acted differently.

On seeing me, she asked me to sit on her lap and she began to chant my family praise names. She became emotional and mentioned some cognomens that are esoteric and reserved for only inner members of the family. My head swelled. Then she praised my father to the high heavens and told me how good he was as a man. While leaving her house, she gave me virtually all the ingredients that would make a good pot of soup and added six big dry fish to be delivered to my mother.

Getting home, I delivered the message and asked my mother the usual question about our relationship with the old woman. I refused to accept the usual answer from her and I told her the praise names the mama mentioned while chanting our family praises. Then I told my mother: “Maami, you cannot tell me that you don’t know who this mama is.” My mother noticed that I was serious and that I would not be swayed by her default response of not being my father’s family member. Then she said: “It is ok. When a child wants to know who his relatives are, he asks his father”, pointing towards my father’s room to go and ask him.

I went to Baba and told him what happened. All the time the mama used to give me fish for my mother, I used to tell my father too and his response would be if i thanked the mama enough. So, when I relayed that last encounter, and asked who the mama was to her to know those esoteric praise names, and her good account of my father’s personality, my father said that he would tell me what I wanted to know. but first, he asked me to go and call his half brother and his childhood friend.

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When the two old men arrived, my father told me the story behind the old woman. For 17 years, my father said that the mama was married to him. But for those almost two decades, there was no child between them. They did all they could, nothing happened. Then, one day, the husband and wife decided to go and consult the oracle again. My father said that he had two Babalawos in mind: his elder brother, Baba Falade, and the second, his father-in-law, Baba Fagbewesa, the then Alamoeku (chief diviner) of Ikoyi Ekiti. The two were the best of their era.

First, they headed to Baba Fagbewesa’s house. My father said that on getting to the old diviner, he was busy on the divination mat. As soon as the husband and wife stepped in, Baba Fagbewesa was said to have stopped the Odu Ifa narration for the consulting client, looked at the couple, thanked Ifa and said: “Ifá ni Ifá hí tò” (a divination follows another). Without casting his Òpèlè, Baba Fagbewesa said that the Odu he was narrating was also applicable to my father and his wife. Ifá, the diviner announced, said that the woman was gifted only one male child in her lifetime. Not only that, but Ifá also said that the only male child would be fathered by someone who knows how to add two to three (eni tó mo bí ase lè mú eéjì kún eéta). In essence, only a diviner, or someone knowledgeable would be able to put the woman in the family way. Baba Fagbewesa dismissed them and continued with his divination.

Leaving Baba Fagbewesa’s house, my father said that he and his wife rode on his bicycle and headed for his elder brother, Baba Falade’s house, to ask for confirmation. The same scenario occurred in Baba Falade’s place, who was also on a divination course for a client. My father said that as soon as he entered with his then wife, Baba Falade stopped in his tracks, praised his Ifa to high heavens and told them this: “Òrò riín gbe’bo, é gbo’gìgùn (Your case requires no sacrifice, needs no charm). Omo kan soso gíro l’Èdùmàrè jogún hun oyà re (It is only one child that the Creator bequeathed to your wife). Honi káa s’uba omo hun, á mo dídá, á mo kíkó (And he who will father that child must know how to cast and how to pack that which he cast).”

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The couple left for home and at home, my father said that he called the two people whom he asked me to call to witness the narration, which transpired. They took counsel and agreed that the mama would be released to fulfil motherhood somewhere else. Initially, the woman resisted. But one day, an itinerant diviner spotted her and asked her for a date. She responded that she was married. The lover-man said that Ifá told him that she would be his wife. Mama came back home to tell my father what happened. My father said that he reminded her of what Ifá said previously and asked if she wanted to die childless.

To remove any shame of promiscuity, the two agreed to divorce. Months later, mama moved in with the itinerant diviner. She did not miss that month when the foetus of joy kicked in her womb.
That produced my friend, the only child the mama had all her life! So, each time the mama saw me, she used to remember the kindness of my father in releasing her to find fulfilment in life. My father said that he could not have done otherwise because Ifa confirmed that only an esoteric could make the mama a real woman. Now I ask again: Is there anything hidden from Baba Àgbonnìrègún, Ifá?

Why this poser and the ones at the introductory paragraph? Last Friday, January 10, 2025, Oyo State Government announced Prince Akeem Owoade as the new Aláàfin of Oyo-elect. The state government said that its announcement was final. Hours after the announcement, an audio went viral. In the audio, the Àwíse Àgbáyé (Chief diviner worldwide), Professor Wande Abimbola, spoke about the circumstances surrounding the selection of Prince Owoade as Aláàfin-designate.

The former Vice-Chancellor, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, said that following the near impasse that characterised the selection of another Ikú Bàbá Yèyé for Oyo, he was contacted by Governor Seyi Makinde to use Ifá divination to select a new Aláàfin. He added that he travelled down from his US base to Oyo, and spent 10 days on the divination mat, asking Ifá about all the eligible princes. Ifá, he added, picked Owoade and the report, 21 pages, was put together by the Òyìbó wife of the Àwíse and sent to the governor.

My curiosity arose when Baba Abimbola said that almost a year after submitting the report, Governor Makinde called again to ask for another Ifá divination to select two alternatives to the first choice by Ifá. The renowned Babalawo said that that could probably be to avoid a situation where, after investigation on the character of the initial choice, there were found some blemishes on his personality! I was alarmed that Àwíse Àgbáyé could express that line of argument after Ifá had made a choice among many princes presented for divination!

Like Baba Abimbola said, nobody has ever questioned his integrity in all the positions he has held in academics and politics. The hallmark of a Babalawo is truthfulness. Asking the Àwíse Àgbáyé to consult Ifá on the all-important matter of Aláàfin is the right choice. But I am worried that when Governor Makinde asked for a second divination, he did not lecture the governor that Ifá kìí paró (Ifá does not lie), Òpèlè kìí s’èké (Òpèlè does not play tricks), and insisted that there would be no second divination.

I am shocked that Baba did not insist that Ifá is Elérìí Ìpín (the one who witnesses destiny), and as such, knows the destiny of Owoade right from his conception, and that Ifá would not in any way make the mistake of choosing a picaro as the Aláàfin! I am not a Babalawo, but I know that Baba Abimbola knows that no matter what anyone might have done in the secret, Ifá has the capacity to reveal it as contained in the common refrain by Babalawos that “ìtànsán oòrùn yí ó fi ó hán (the breaking of the sun will reveal you)!

My second problem with the selection process is the fact that it was the governor, and not the Òyómèsì (Oyo kingmakers), who consulted the Àwíse Àgbáyé for divination. In that audio, the Àwíse asked all Yoruba to stick to the culture of the race. One of the cultures of the race pertaining to the selection of an oba is that the kingmakers are the ones who do the selection through the guidance of Ifá.

Oluwasegun Oladosu and Ajayi Adetokunbo Olaiya, in the paper: “Kingship and Integrity in Yoruba Traditional Society” (Nigerian Journal of Christian Studies / Vol. 4 No. 2 (2021), page 173), affirm this position when they posit that: “While the choice of the king could rotate among the ruling houses, some towns or cities do not have that privilege. Rather than praying and fasting over who becomes the next Oba, these communities go spiritual by invoking the Ifá to tell them the candidates for the Kingship. Those communities still believe it is better to keep it real by consulting Orunmila to protect the tradition of the land. In the ancient town of Oyo, choosing the Aláàfin requires its unique process of enquiring from Òrúnmìlà likewise in Ile-Ife. This enables the Òyómèsì, the kingmakers, to make ‘the right choice’….”

The question begging for answer here is: who were the Òyómèsì present when Àwíse Àgbáyé made the divination for Governor Makinde? Did they include the five living Òyómèsì, or were those accused of taking bribes from one of the candidates excluded and the number made up by the government-appointed Òyómèsì? Would Ifá tolerate this abnormality?

Since the passing of Aláàfin Lamidi Adeyemi III on April 22, 2022, this would be my third piece on the ancient throne of Oyo. In the two previous articles: “Aláàfin: Message to Òyómèsì, Makinde”, published on April 26, 2022, and “Aláàfin Stool: Putting culture to the sword?”, published on September 26, 2023, I expressed the fear that once the Yoruba race got the selection of Aláàfin wrong, there would be nothing left for the race.

The happening in Oyo is disturbing. Nobody doubts the power of the state governors to appoint, suspend and depose obas in the race. Our Yoruba governors are now Ifá priests who select Oba for the race. That position I canvassed in the piece: “Yoruba Governors are Ifá Priests”, published on June 20, 2023. The danger of the new civilisation is that very soon, an average Yoruba child may not know what is sacrilegious and what is the normal thing. The Timi of Ede, Oba Munirudeen Adesola Lawal, demonstrated that sacrilege when he was spotted in a recent viral video on his knees in homage to the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Sulu Gambari!

The Oyo State Government has confirmed the choice of Prince Akeem Owoade as Aláàfin-by giving him his staff of office by Governor Makinde and Oba Owoade entered Oyo town on Monday in grand style! All Oyo sons and daughter, nay, the entire Yorubaland, have no option than to accept the situation as it is now and hope that whatever might have happened, at the fullness of time, Ifá himself will allow the breaking of the sun to reveal all. We wish the Aláafin, Oba Owoade, a prosperous reign on the throne of his forebears. KABIYESI O!

News

Group Rejects Bill Seeking To Install Ooni, Sultan As Permanent Co-chairmen, Council Of Traditional Rulers

Published

3 hours ago

August 1, 2025

Editor

Group known as Ogbakha-Edo Indigenous Peoples Welfare Foundation has rejected a bill seeking to “constitutionally enshrine the Ooni of Ife and the Sultan of Sokoto as permanent co-chairmen of the Nigerian Council of Traditional Rulers at the National Assembly.

According to the group, the “ill-conceived and historically unjustifiable proposal is not only logically flawed but also provocative, divisive, and culturally offensive.”

Addressing journalists in Benin on Friday, Chairman of the group, Professor Sam Guobadia, flanked by General Secretary, Dr. Andrew Izekor and other executives and members of the group, said the bill in question at the National Assembly “represents a blatant attempt to institutionalize supremacy where none exists, and to exploit past protocols of convenience—wherein these rulers merely led delegations for the sake of political expediency—as a basis for permanent constitutional recognition.”

The group added: “The Benin people, anchored in centuries of cultural pride and historical sovereignty, vehemently reject any move that seeks to subordinate the imperial and highly revered throne of the Oba of Benin to any other traditional or religious authority under the guise of national unity or representational balance.”

Ogbakha-Edo, while describing the Oba of Benin among the highest-ranking traditional rulers in Nigeria, said “it is absolutely unacceptable—indeed, an affront to justice and history—to diminish his stature through such unwarranted and biased constitutional manipulation.”

The group, while describing the bill as “politically motivated assault on the delicate balance and mutual respect that currently define inter-traditional relations in Nigeria,” stressed that “it threatens to upend centuries of coexistence, fuel regional discontent, and reignite historical grievances.”

The group emphasized: “We reject in totality, any attempt to undermine or diminish the authority of the Oba of Benin.

“We find it highly inappropriate to perpetually subjugate the Oba of Benin by way of an illogical constitutional enactment.”

The group, therefore, demanded the “immediate withdrawal of the proposed bill in its entirety or make the position non-permanent and rotational amongst the first class traditional rulers.”

Ogbakha-Edo, also urged the “National Assembly to tread cautiously and not allow political maneuvering to destroy the dignity, balance, and integrity of Nigeria’s traditional institutions.”

News

OPINION: Oluwo Holier Than The Godless Ilorin Imam (1)

Published

8 hours ago

August 1, 2025

Editor

Tunde Odesola

Clad in a silver-colour spacesuit like Neil Armstrong, the first man to set foot on the moon, I boarded my shuttle of prose – on a mission through myth and reality – to the ancient town of Ikoro-Ekiti, a lush land that existed long before western capitalist-cartographers carved territories out of ancient empires they later christened Africa; long before the white man arrived with his brutal scissors and treacherous thread to cut and suture lands, lineages and languages.

I am not terminating this journey at Ikoro-Ekiti; it is only my first port of call. Here’s the flight schedule, if you care. From Igbajo, the Land of the Brave, in Osun, I shall power my pencraft towards Ikoro-Ekiti, on a nonstop flight, before heading to Islam-dominated Ilorin, the city of Àfònjá, located in modern-day Kwara State, and then head to Iwo, the illustrious town in present-day Osun State, where the parrot sings truthful tunes on the banks of Obà River.

Are you ready to embark on this exploration with me? Okay, if the egungun is ready, the cane is ready, too. O ya, hop on board, and let’s travel through the marrow of myth.

Once upon a time, writes Prof Wande Abimbola in his book, “Ifa Divination Poetry,” published in March 1973, a king ascended the throne of Ikoro-Ekiti. His name was Oba Onikoro Mèbí. The powerful king had many queens, among whom was a promiscuous belle, whose name was not dignified with a mention in the Ifa corpus that bears her story.

The warmth and succulence of Onikoro Mèbí’s bed notwithstanding, this beautiful queen was stoking the heat of another man’s loins. “Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is delicious,” says King Solomon in the Book of Proverbs, chapter 7, verse 17. Onikoro’s queen and her lover got carried away by the juice of their dalliance; they ate and drank until the king caught them red-handed.

Unlike these days, there’s a punishment for anyone caught in the trap of sacrilege, in those days. Such a culprit would be stripped, bathed in ash, bound hand and foot, and dumped by the roadside on the way to the market, for passersby to see their shame.

In ages past, palaces in Yorubaland consisted of 16 separate quarters, with the king living in the biggest and most dignified of the quarters. The king’s wife was to be given the ash treatment, but Onikoro Mèbí felt that it would belittle his esteem in the eyes of the world. So, he had his male servants strip his wife, drench her in ash, and tie her up in front of one of the apartments, figuring out which day of the week was best to behead the culprits.

In a moment of sober reflection, however, Onikoro Mèbí sent for his herbalist, Àgbìgbònìwònràn, expressing his wish to seek Ifa’s counsel on the matter at hand. Before Àgbìgbònìwònràn left home for the king’s palace, he went and consulted a group of herbalists whose tradename was Kese-Kese Baba Kàsà-Kàsà. The herbalists told him to offer a sacrifice to the gods urgently. But, Àgbìgbònìwònràn did not offer the sacrifice as charged, valuing royal summons above spiritual sacrifice. So, off to the palace, he went.

Onikoro Mèbí unburdened his heart to Àgbìgbònìwònràn, who stared at the floor while the king talked. When the king was through, Àgbìgbònìwònràn consulted Ifa, and Ifa warned that the king should be careful with the way he handles the case of his wife, saying the king had only seen Kese-Kese, adding that Kàsà-Kàsà, the father of Kese-Kese, was coming behind. Thus, Àgbìgbònìwònràn used the wisdom in the name, Kese-Kese Baba Kàsà-Kàsà, to counsel the king.

Through the story of Onikoro Mèbí and Àgbìgbònìwònràn as enshrined in Ifa teachings, the myth of Kese-Kese baba Kàsà-Kàsà was entrenched in Yoruba worldview and subsequently became a popular proverb.

As Ifa called for caution, Onikoro Mèbí felt ashamed to free his wife by himself, so he told Àgbìgbònìwònràn to go and untie the queen. When Àgbìgbònìwònràn got to the naked queen, their eyes locked, and he untied her hands, legs, and thighs.

While Àgbìgbònìwònràn was digging the queen’s soil to sow his wild oats, the queen burst into a shriek: “Fife ni n fe mi o, fife ni n fe mi, Àgbìgbònìwònràn ko kuku tu mi sile, fife ni n fe mi,” meaning: “He is not untying me, he is not untying me; Àgbìgbònìwònràn is making love to me, he is not untying me!”

The king heard the scream of his queen. He rushed down to the apartment and found a stripped Àgbìgbònìwònràn, his Ifa pouch, clothes and cap flung in different directions, sweating and panting. Instantly, the king unsheathed his sword, swung it, and Àgbìgbònìwònràn’s head thudded hard on the ground, blood squirting.

The news of Àgbìgbònìwònràn’s beheading travelled like wildfire, reaching the paramount palace of the Alaafin of Oyo, whose panegyrics – Obaléyò Ajòrí, Oba Ajodo emi gbára, Oba Ajeèsé-Yokùn-Tòòtò-Léyò – resounded at home and abroad. So, the Alaafin summoned his vassal, Onikoro Mèbí, to Oyo.

Obaléyò Ajòrí asked Onikoro Mèbí why he beheaded his babalawo. The embattled king told his side of the story, bereft of caution, patience and due process. The Alaafin gave his verdict: Onikoro Mèbí, too, must die. His head bounced on the ground like that of Àgbìgbònìwònràn.

Now, Ilorin comes into view as I nose my spacecraft in a descent. Ilorin is a beautiful city. The touchdown will be in a few minutes. Fasten your seat belts, please. After disembarking, we shall go to Oke-Kudu, an area of Ilorin.

Factually, the Onikoro Mèbí analogy exemplifies the latest katakata between the Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdulrasheed Akanbi, and his longtime alfa, whose name was simply given in a viral video as the Magaji of Oke-Kudu in Ilorin.

In the ungodly video, the magaji portrays himself as the creature who controls the creator. The video provides a classic tool to atheists, who see God as a creation of Man to explain the unknown. Also, the video has the potential to drive agnostics farther away from the realm of belief. Indeed, if a little child watches the video, he is likely to come off with the notion of Allah as being a king kong, who is controlled on a keypad by the reckless.

To start with, Magaji Oke Kudu claims he knew Akanbi when he was hustling in Canada, and that he was the one who told him to marry his first wife, when Akanbi wouldn’t stop getting into trouble. He explains that the marriage to a northern Nigerian lady produced two sons.

In a bid to show how close he was to Oluwo, the Magaji produced an alleged photocopy of the information page of Akanbi’s passport, saying the Iwo monarch had invited him to Canada long before he became king.

Sitting regally in Arabian apparel, with a ceiling-high turban, the angry magaji said that when Akanbi had a run-in with the law in Toronto, he was the one who begged Allah to make the principal witness in the case against Akanbi go mad. He said, “Akanbi was arrested for money laundering. They (police) came to his house and saw money in his house. He was set up by his girlfriend, Loranie, and was arrested. The case came up in a lower court; we begged God on his behalf, and he won. They rearrested him and took him to the central court. They retrieved the huge sum of money from him.

“The judge asked that Loranie be produced in court to come and testify; if the lady testifies against Akanbi, he would go to jail. A lot of Nigerians abroad bag 50-year jail terms and more. He became jittery and confided in me. And I told Allah, ‘God, you’re the one who forgives; forgive me and forgive Abdulrasheed, too’.

“So, the lady was produced in court, with both of them in separate witness boxes. The judge asked the lady if she knew Akanbi. Of course, she knows him. (Magaji waves his right hand to God in supplication.) If Akanbi appreciates what we did, he shouldn’t forget us; he shouldn’t forget Ilorin forever.

“When the judge called on the lady to talk, she became mad instantly. May God forgive me and forgive Akanbi. She became mad! They asked her questions, but she was just tearing at her hair. The judge dismissed the case immediately.”

Magaji recounts how the Oluwo was caught and jailed in the US for criminal impersonation while on a visit, saying he (Magaji) again begged God for him (Akanbi) to regain freedom. “I saw that he had no one; that’s why I stood by him fully. I didn’t help him because of money; he had no money,” magaji said.

Though it is on record that two British tabloids, The Sun and The Mail, in 2024, revealed how Oluwo was jailed twice in the US and deported to Nigeria in 1999 for engaging in money fraud, among other crimes, I shall not dwell on his past transgressions.

While digging in on this story, I discovered that the magaji was annoyed with the Oluwo because of the shoddy treatment the king allegedly meted out to him some time ago. Specifically, the man, who calls himself an imam, said he was chased out of Iwo palace by 12:30 a.m., when he was on a visit to the palace, stressing that he had to go and sleep in a mosque till daybreak. Magaji called on Akanbi to return the Toyota Camry, aka Muscle, which he claimed he had given to him.

By coming to the public with the news of the false and ungodly help he rendered to the Akanbi, the magaji was going to kill two birds with one stone. He aims to display the authenticity of his brutal powers so that ignoramuses could flock to him, seeking protection, ritual money, etc. He also wants to get even with Akanbi for turning his back on him.

The magaji, whose video I watched, appears to be over 50; a fool at 40 is a fool forever, goes a popular Nigerian saying. It is baffling that an imam, who has a congregation and who teaches people, doesn’t know that anyone who holds the tiger by the tail ends up in its belly.

To be continued

Email: tundeodes2003@yahoo.com

Facebook: @Tunde Odesola

X: @Tunde_Odesola

News

Gunmen Stab Ogun Bizman To Death

Published

22 hours ago

July 31, 2025

Editor

An Ogun State-based businessman, Ademola Alade, has been stabbed to death in the Magede, Ibafo area of the state by yet-to-be-identified assailants.

The PUNCH gathered on from a source privy to the incident, who pleaded anonymity due to the nature of the case, that Alade was killed by unknown men at the entrance of his house last Wednesday, but his corpse was discovered the following day.

Speaking in an interview with our correspondent, the source revealed that Alade was stabbed in his house when he returned from a family event around 10 p.m. on Wednesday.

He narrated that the unidentified assailants had laid siege to Alade in his house as he returned from the outing.

The source said, “He was killed on Wednesday, and I was called on Thursday. I learnt that as he came in, some people were already in his house. We don’t know if they were hired assassins.

“As he came in, they just descended on him and took him outside. They stabbed him in the neck with a very sharp object. It pierced through his vein, and the blood was all over the compound entrance.”

The source also explained that nobody was around at the time the incident occurred in the night, as the deceased was only discovered by neighbours on Thursday afternoon.

He added that Alade’s car, which was always parked in the compound, was missing—raising suspicions that the assailants may have either stolen the vehicle or used it as a means of escape.

“In the morning, nobody heard from him. In the afternoon, the people around went to his house and found that the whole gate and door were left open. They came in and saw his lifeless body in a pool of his blood.

“Strangely, they took his car. Because he always parked his car inside, maybe they used it to escape, or they stole it —nobody knows.

“At the same time, they took all his phones and some other things,” the source said.

He also noted that the incident was reported to the police division in the area, adding that the deceased’s corpse was taken to a morgue before his family came to retrieve it for burial in Ogbomoso, Oyo State.

However, when contacted, the Ibafo Divisional Police Officer, Atteh Samuel, said he could not give details of the incident as he was not authorised to speak to the press.

When contacted on Tuesday, the Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Omolola Odutola, said she had yet to be briefed on the matter.

“I am sorry, I don’t have any brief on that yet,” she said.