An elder statesman and former governor of old Oyo State, Dr Omololu Olunloyo, speaks with LAOLU AFOLABI AND KUNLE SULAIMON on the present administration led by President Bola Tinubu, the challenges of governing the country, issues with Alaafin and Olubadan chieftaincies and his death rumor
You were head of various agencies of government in the past. What is your comment on the plan by the Federal Government to adopt the Steve Oronsaye Report?
I would not like to answer that question. You’re talking about the federal civil service. Who is Oronsaye to be talking about the problems of Nigeria? You’re not talking about Betta Edu. Oronsaye doesn’t know as much about Nigeria’s problems. Well, he could know about civil service, but not much about Nigeria. Civil servants are not the only problem in Nigeria.
The Federal Government presently led by President Bola Tinubu will be one year in office by May. What’s your assessment of the administration so far?
I know Asiwaju as a friend. I’ve always followed his progress. I have a photo of him here with me. I solved a very big problem for him once, but as Wole Soyinka told him, he’s taking over a very big problem that he may not be able to solve absolutely. The problems are not of his making. Every problem that Nigeria faces, we faced it before. You look at the skyrocketing cost of food, petrol, diesel, kerosene, and transportation, among others.
I remember my political adviser in the press, this young man here, told me that Tinubu would win. I hold in my hand now a magazine, ‘The Source’, published in 1999, with a lead story of ‘Tinubu, the Beginning of his End’ and a book compiled by 33 Tinubu’s admirers. The number 33 on the list of those who compiled the book is Yemi Cardoso, his then commissioner for economic planning and now Central Bank of Nigeria Governor.
Tinubu probably knows what he’s doing. From Woke Soyinka’s analysis, Asiwaju won a basket full of troubles when he emerged as president, for which partly can anyone blame him. Soyinka said he advised him not to run. Ibrahim Babangida also asked him not to run. Many of the problems he inherited, as a man who has only one brand of cap, it is easy to identify him by the logo. Like every human being, he can make mistakes. He removed the subsidy before he formed the cabinet, thus making petrol costlier and the follow-on effect is what we have now. If you increase the price of fuel, you increase the price of transportation of food produced from the village. Anyway, there are a lot of conveyors of corruption in the country. You cannot entirely blame Dangote for the price of cement or petroleum.
We have experienced this shortage and high cost of food before during the Murtala Muhammed regime. There was something called ‘essential commodity’ then, but we have never had this so bad and it’s not something that can be solved overnight. We have to make some redress. It even goes as far as our census, security, and so on. Now, farmers are being killed, schoolgirls and boys are being kidnapped, we have a lot to look at in our security, fiscal, and monetary policies, and, regrettably, corruption is still lurking around.
Talking of corruption, sir, what is the way out?
I remember Tafawa Balewa. I was sent on an errand to the Prime Minister as Commissioner for Economic Planning in the Western Region. He welcomed me heartily into his office and said, ‘Dr. Olunloyo, you may be, at one stage of your life, the occupant of this room, but I must tell you some things. Let’s go to the other side. This is the map of Nigeria. I can tell you one thing. Nigeria is difficult to govern’ I asked him why because he has all the powers. He said, ‘I have no power. For example, last week, a man was caught. I’m not part of the police, but a man was said to have been caught for fraud. He happened to be an Ibo man. Following that, I’ve had a powerful delegation of Odumegwu Ojukwu, Sir Francis Ibiam, Ogochukwu, and others to plead for the man. They warned me also that I must not do anything to their kinsman unless they catch three thieves, one Yoruba thief, one Igbo thief, and one Hausa thief. Now, Dr Olunloyo, I can only catch one thief at a time. When I’m sleeping on my sofa, they are busy stealing. When I’m awake, they are stealing. What can I do?’ There has not been any occupant of that seat without a problem.
One thing I think the president must do, or he has to do is to have quality advice from people who have been in government. In some of these cases, the government is acting as if the advice is never necessary. They should avoid what MKO Abiola termed Eaglet Governors. There are many problems of fiscal and monetary policies, problems of security, problems of local government, and chieftaincies. The Federal Government should seek the advice of those who have been trained to have a quick solution to the problems.
There had been controversies over traditional institutions in Oyo State in the time past, especially on the Alaafin and Olubadan chieftaincies. What are your thoughts on these?
How many years ago did I install an Alaafin in Oyo? That was December 28, 1970. They have a problem in Oyo now. They also have a problem with the Ibadan Declaration. I am an authority trained in my time. I hate to see silly mistakes being made on these things, but if I’m not called into it, I won’t involve myself in it.
As a Commissioner for Local Government from 1970 to 1971, I can tell you that in respect of the Alaafin of Oyo, we had four commissioners appointed into that ministry in quick succession. Three before me, I was the fourth. B. A. Ajayi of Ikere, Kola Balogun of Otan Ayegbaju, Lamure of Iwo, and myself. General Yakubu Gowon instructed General Adebayo to put me in that ministry. The first problem was about the commission of inquiry. On the 28th of December 1970, I signed the papers appointing Alaafin. There is a template to solve this problem. There is the nomination, the selection, and approval. The government has no business with the nomination. The nomination is not done by the kingmakers as well. It is done by the ruling house or a group that is supposed to nominate. After the nomination, the kingmakers will make the selection. The final stage is the approval by the government. The government is guided by Section 21, ‘Notwithstanding that an appointment has been made according to the approved Declaration, anyone who has any complaint is free to send in the complaint in 21 days and the government may, nevertheless, approve or set aside the said appointment in the interest of peace, order and good governance.’
The government is to approve, not select or nominate. In Ibadan, which is a non-ruling house chieftaincy, there is a body saddled with the nomination. Now, they are confusing it. The body to nominate in Ibadan is the line whose turn it is to produce a candidate. In this case, it is the turn of the Balogun line to produce an Olubadan, and Olakulehin is the Balogun of Ibadanland and the most senior on that line to become an Olubadan. The meeting for selection will be headed by the most senior on the other line, which instance is the Otun Olubadan, High Chief Rashidi Ladoja. The Otun line is not to nominate, it is the Balogun line that will do that, as now done accordingly.
The Ibadan Kingmakers are not the set to nominate. The line, whose turn it is to produce the candidate, will do the nomination. The kingmakers in the June 20, 1957 Declaration being followed, drafted by Obafemi Awolowo and Rotimi Williams, are in odd numbers. Ladoja knows better and has the advantage, being a former governor himself and now the Otun Olubadan and head of the kingmakers. Of course, there are two Declarations, the one drafted by the Awolowo government and the other drafted by the Ajimobi government, which has been thrashed out. Now, Awolowo and Rotimi Williams are clever enough to make the kingmakers 11. Four groups make the kingmakers – the Otun line, the Balogun line, the Iyalode line as well as the Seriki line. The Seriki line sued the Olubadan and went as far as the Supreme Court and won. In the face of the law, the Seriki line exists. But even if the line is successfully edged out now, there is also the Iyalode line. No government has the power to abolish the Iyalode line. We must not allow them to be disenfranchised. We have had powerful women in Ibadanland like Wuraola Esan, Efunsetan Aniwura, the late Iyalode, Amina Abiodun, who was put on the line by my mother, Priscilla Kuye, Ayorinde’s daughter, among others
In Oyo, we have the Oyo Mesi. They used to be eight in number, but now, seven. The key man is the Basorun of Oyo and then the Baba Iyaji. The ruling houses must submit the names to Baba Iyaji who will, without reservation (emphasis by Awolowo and Williams) submit the names to the Oyo Mesi.
Go to Oyo and find out who the Lannike are. They faded in the 1968 to 1970 struggle. Atiba had about 11 children and Lannike was one of them. Some people want all the Atiba children to be eligible but that is if the Declaration is made about it. Neither the governor nor the commissioner can make a declaration. It’s only a sitting Oba who can do that. They put off some drafts in regards to that development to the late Alaafin of Oyo, but he did not sign it. The Declaration by Awolowo recognised only Alowolodu and Agunloye out of the 11 children of Atiba. Take a cursory look at the last page of Johnson’s ‘ History of Yoruba’. Alimi, the Emir of Ilorin, had four children and he made it by fiat that out of the four, only two can become the Emir of Ilorin. So, it’s the same situation for the Atiba children.
How has been life with you, sir?
I’ve lived long enough in the first instance. I’ve long passed the lifespan of an average living person. I’ve lived 89 years plus, like the Olubadan candidate. I’ve had a full life and, like Nnamdi Azikiwe said, my life has been a joy to me. I think I got my longevity gene from my mother. She lived for 102 years. My father who built this house lived only for 42 years. He was the head of the Ibadan Native Administration at Mapo. So, I have 42 years on one side and 102 years on the other. My mother called herself during the last one or two years of her life, ‘Kokumo.’ I have the genes of both sides. I went to primary school, and moved to GCI, Ibadan, from Primary 5. I was admitted into the university at 18, graduated at 22, PhD at 25, and commissioner at 27. So I have a lot to thank God for. I have been in charge of 27 federal parastatals. I was head of the Nigeria National Science and Technology Council. I was, at another time, in charge of 23 parastatals in the West, now called Oodua Company. My office was in Cocoa House, on the 17th floor, that’s the most beautiful office in Ibadan then, constructed by Alfred Rewane. I have enjoyed life and I have everything to thank God for. Nothing but praises to God.
Recently, there was a death rumor. Has it affected you in any way?
No, not at all. This is not the first time. I’m still here, not yet gone. But the truth is: who will live forever? Those breaking death news and the person presumed dead will all die one day. As I said earlier, I have crossed the expected life age
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