- By Demola Atobaba, Ado-Ekiti
The Chairman, Ekiti State Council of Traditional Rulers, HRM Oba Gabriel Ayodele Adejuwon, will bow out of office as chairman of the council on Monday, July 31 after two years of achievement-oriented tenure.
Oba Adejuwon, the Onisan of Isan Ekiti in the Oye Local Government area of the state, is, from all indications, a fulfilled traditional ruler.
He is fulfilled at home in Isan Ekiti in view of the laudable achievements and honour he has attracted to his domain as the Onisan.
The Pelupelu Oba is also accomplished going by what his two-year tenure as chairman of the obas’ council has attracted to the traditional institution in the state.
He beamed with smiles on Tuesday as he presided over the meeting of the council in the new ultra-modern chamber of the traditional rulers which he inaugurated on Friday, four days earlier.
The Tuesday meeting, where he delivered his valedictory speech to his colleague obas, was, however, the inaugural meeting of the traditional council in the new palatial chamber.
Oba Adejuwon, who recalled that he held his inaugural meeting as chairman on September 28, 2021 at the old council chamber, said, “But today, we are celebrating in the new council chamber. We glorify the name of God for this feat.
“With immense gratitude to the Almighty God, for His mercy, I congratulate all of us who have been divinely privileged to witness the beginning and the end of this journey (tenure) that we started on 28th September, 2021”.
The Onisan said that the traditional council, under his watch in the last two years, had effectively and efficiently discharged its advisory responsibilities to the state government with astounding results.
Oba Adejuwon, who said that the monarchs’ council had been more vibrant and united, lauded the governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji and his immediate predecessor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, for their interest in the welfare need of traditional rulers in the last two years.
He said, “I wish to express my profound appreciation to His Excellency, Dr Fayemi, former governor of Ekiti State, who deemed it fit to appoint me to serve as your chairman for a period of two years that will end on 31st July, 2023.
“My sincere gratitude to his successor, His Excellency, Biodun Oyebanji, governor of Ekiti State, who has been so supportive to ensure my success as chairman and attended to our demand on the payment of one month outstanding salary owed since February 2016 and settled all our outstanding sitting allowances”.
He lauded Fayemi and Oyebanji for the N384million ultra-modern traditional council chamber capable of sitting 145 royal fathers at a time in the building which has two floors of office accommodation with the ground floor housing the council chairman’s office, conference hall while the second floor houses the office of the Executive Secretary, Director and staff of the Bureau of Chieftaincy Affairs.
Oba Adejuwon said, “July 21st marked my greatest achievement as we commissioned this our modern, gigantic and magnificent edifice, the Council of Traditional Rulers’ Chamber, in which we are seated holding our first meeting as a body and the last meeting I will preside over as chairman of the council”.
The Onisan said that his administration lived to its promise “to operate a transparent, all- inclusive leadership that will optimize love, unity and cooperation in the council and to offer quality and constructive advisory role to government in partnership with other stakeholders.
“To the glory of God, all council members and non-members including the regents benefitted in one way or the other during my leadership as the chairman of this noble council. Everyone was involved.
“This council was able to mediate and reconcile many issues referred to us from the state government which we attended to and gave our advice and recommendations to the government,” he said.
Oba Adejuwon listed the issues to include proliferation of palaces at Iyin Ekiti, Aramoko regency matter, llamo chieftaincy matter, Ipoti, Ejiyan and Owatedo matter still pending in court and Ogoga and his chiefs’ matter yet to be concluded due to some unplanned activities that affected the committee’s conclusion of the matter.
He thanked council members for the confidence reposed in him to serve as chairman, saying, “I thank you deeply for the cooperation I enjoyed from you throughout this period. This wonderful cooperation, no doubt, enabled us to record remarkable achievements within this period of two years.
“By God’s grace the enduring peace, unity and understanding enjoyed by traditional council in Ekiti State will be sustained and built upon by the incoming chairman of the council.
“I want to thank my family members most especially my Olori, children, driver, personal assistant, Isan Progressives Union, Onisan-in-Council, Oye Local Government Council of Traditional Rulers, my media assistants and others who have been supportive throughout the period.
“Let me also use this medium to apologise to those who might have, one way or the other, been offended in the course of my leadership. We are all human, we live to disagree and agree on our differences,” the outgoing monarchs’ chairman said.
