In a revealing interview with Gbenro Adesina, Prince Gbade Lana, son of the late Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Samuel Odulana Odugade I, offers rare insight into the deeply rooted traditions of Ibadanland, particularly why celebration often follows the death of an Olubadan. Speaking from his wealth of experience and history, the former Oyo State commissioner and grassroots politician opens up about the unique Olubadan succession system, his personal reflections on palace life, and his political journey from mud-house childhood to serving in public office. The interview also captures his views on local government autonomy, governance under Governors Abiola Ajimobi and Seyi Makinde, and his hopes for the future of Ibadan and Nigeria’s democracy.
Oba Samuel Odulana Odugade 1 and his First Wife, Mama Deborah Lapegba Lana
Q: Why is it that rather than Ibadan people to mourn whenever Olubadan dies, they are happy?
A: One of the attributes of Ibadan is the systematic arrangement before you become Olubadan. You have to go through almost 32 steps from Mogaji to Olubadan. Two lines produce Olubadan: Otun – the administrative line, and Balogun – the military line. The Ibadan panegyric of “Arikuyo” arises from the death of Olubadan. Immediately the death of Olubadan is announced, people from the next line to produce Olubadan will start to rejoice publicly, affirming ‘Arikuyo”, that is happy at the death of Olubadan because it is the turn of that line to produce Olubadan. It is the people from the line that just lost Olubadan that will be unhappy and thrown into mourning. This explain the paradigm of arikuyo, which symbolizes that while some people are happy because it is their turn to produce the new Olubadan, the others are mourning.
Q: How did you feel seeing people rejoicing when you lost your father?
A: To be candid, I didn’t feel anything. When Ogundipe passed on, our father became Olubadan. It was expected that when one Olubadan dies, the next Olubadan will come from the highest-ranking chief from the other line. So, when my father passed away, because he was already old, there was no mourning whatsoever. He became Olubadan at the age of 92 and he passed away at the age of 101. So, we knew God would call him at the appointed time and when God did, we knew it was time for him to go. The baton went to Ogungunniso. I didn’t feel anything because we knew our father was going to pass away. It will not make sense to rejoice if Olubadan dies young like 80 years or less or spending few months on the throne. In any case, Olubadan can’t die young. Unfortunately, some of them didn’t stay long on the throne like Oba Olakulehin spending about a year. Senator Lekan Balogun spent just one and half years. We didn’t feel bad.
Q: Can you say that the tradition of Ibadan regarding emergence of Olubadan is in consonance with the tradition of Yorubaland whereby oracle picks monarchs?
A: Ibadan has the most unique ascension to the throne in Yorubaland because it doesn’t engender any conflict whatsoever. I told you earlier that we have about 32 steps to get to Olubadan. Now, we have Otun Olubadan becoming the new Olubadan. Baba Olakulehin that passed away was Balogun. When you get to a certain cadre of the Olubadanland, starting from Ekarun on both sides, you will become a member of Olubadan decision makers. At that level, you have hope of becoming Olubadan. Nevertheless, it is not everybody that gets to that stage of Olubadan-in-Council. Olubadan-in-Council is the main thing. Once you get to Ekarun, you will now start hoping that one day, it maybe my turn. That is the unique part of it. You don’t need to consult oracle. You don’t even go to court when it comes to ascension to the throne of Olubadan. What happened about two years ago was an aberration that people went to court. It is very unlike Ibadan but thank God, the wisdom of the elders in Ibadan prevailed and everything was settled and baba Olakulehin became Olubadan.
Q: Ladoja pitched a tent with your father regarding the elevation of the high chiefs to monarchs and when they were eventually elevated, he refused to be among them, describing their crowns as “Ade Onipali” (Cardboard crowns). However, he succumbed to pressure and accepted the Ade “Onipali”. What do you say to this?
A: Baba Ladoja, like my father is a very disciplined man. He believes in doing things the way they are supposed to be done. When my mentor, late Governor Abiola Ajimobi gave crowns to those people, Ladoja was not very keen about it because he believed that the ultimate and real crown is the Olubadan crown. Now, there is a need to respect Olubadan-in-Council. We have been to occasions where lesser chiefs from other towns were allowed into those occasions whereas chiefs in Olubadan-in-Council were not allowed. This was why Ajimobi decided to elevate the high chiefs. At the end of the day, Baba Ladoja accepts the crown because he realised that is what people want. He also understands that one day, the real crown, Olubadan crown will be on his head. Without accepting the lesser crown, he would not be able to become Olubadan. Elders of Ibadan went to him and made him realize that he was just two steps to Olubadan which may be truncated if he didn’t accept the lesser crown. So, people prevailed on him and he accepts the lesser crown. Let me add this as a response to what you said that my father was opposed to the crowning of the Olubadan-in-Council members. When he came back from Abuja where he witnessed an insult to his personality as a result of the security wanting to deny Baba Kuye and Senator Balogun from entering international conference centre, Abuja, he constituted a committee made up of Baba Akinyele, Baba Saanu, Baba Oyero and other prominent Ibadan people to study how such an incident could be stopped. The committee submitted its report and he forwarded it to Ajimobi for implementation. Before my father could implement its approval, he passed on. Baba Ogungunniso became Olubadan. He had a different opinion about it. He didn’t have a choice because the governor had the right to moderate. When Ajimobi saw my father’s idea, he saw it as the right thing. The governor at the end of the day had his way. Honestly, I had no regret about the elevation of the high chiefs to the position of obas. So, if my father had lived longer, he would have implemented the elevation of the high chief to obas.
Q: These lesser Obas will eventually become Olubadan. They are wearing a crown now and when any of them is elevated, he will be given the second crown which is Olubadan crown, making two crowns on one head. Is this the way in Yorubaland?
A: There are 11 local governments in Ibadan. Olubadan can’t oversee everything. Most of these local governments are ten times bigger than other towns that don’t measure up Ibadan in terms of economy and population. Our forefathers, the past governors and the Olubadan-in-Council, in their wisdom allocate a local government each to Olubadan-in-Council to oversee them on behalf of Olubadan. The fact that they are overseeing local governments that are far bigger than other towns, it was appropriate. Let me give an example. My father was accompanied to Abuja to receive his CFR nationalaward by two of his high chiefs – Baba Kuye and Baba Lekan Balogun. When they got to the entrance, because these high chiefs did not wear crowns, they didn’t want them to go inside. My father said except you allow them to go inside, I will not go inside. That was when he came to the realisation that Ibadan had to be respected. Those that are in charge of those local governments that are far bigger than many towns should also be obas. Talking of one crown before the other, can we say some of these crowns in Ife land are as good as Ooni of Ife? No, because they are lesser crowns. The main crown in Ibadan is Olubadan crown.
Q: What can you say regarding the position of Oba Ladoja staying away from Ibadan until after the mourning of late Oba Olakulehin?
A: The “Arikuyo” thing is responsible for Ladoja’s action. He had a lot of respect for baba Olakulehin. He wouldn’t be happy that people are rejoicing for the demise of a man he has a lot of respect for. However, he still has to go into seven days seclusion after he becomes Olubadan. I think this action is very commendable. This shows he is not too anxious to become Olubadan. I respect Baba Ladoja for this.
Q: Could you tell us about your background and growing up in the palace?
A: Let me quickly correct you. I didn’t grow up in the palace. I grew up as a normal human being. My father was not very rich. When I was born in 1949, 76 years ago, we were living in a mud house. He came back from the army and became a teacher. He had a bicycle that he was riding to work. He wasn’t an affluent person. We grew up as children grow up from the ashes. I went to the closest public school to our house, IDC primary school, Ladunni. We are from Ladunni compound under Ibadan North East Local Council Development Area (LCDA). It is around Aremo Oja’gbo. I started primary school in 1956 and finished in 1960. After that, I was given admission to St Gregory College, Lagos. By the time we were growing up, my father joined politics. I used to see many people coming to our house but I didn’t understand what they were coming to do. He later built a modern house not far from where we were living. The house was built with mud but it was well plastered. Before I came back from school for holiday, my parents and siblings have moved to that new house. That was how we started enjoying affluence. This happened around 1962 before my father became a minister. We had shoes. We didn’t have shoes when we were going to primary school but now, we had shoes, our uniforms were okay. By 1966 after I left St Gregory College, I came to Loyola College to do my higher certificate, HNC, in 1967. I finished in 1968. I taught as a teacher briefly at Gbogan-Ode Omu Anglican Grammar School before I got university admission. I started university education in 1969. I went for B.Sc in Sociology in University of Ibadan, the best of them all. (laughter). It is the best university in Nigeria now.
Q: (joke), Thank God the Alumni of OAU are not here. They say OAU is the Oba awon university (the king of other universities)?
A: OAU is an offshoot of UI. I remember when I was in UI, OAU satellite campus was in The Polytechnic, Ibadan. So, OAU is an offspring of UI. UI is still the father of them all.
Q: Are you saying that OAU is a satellite campus of UI?
A: I don’t know that one. You said it. (laughter). So, I finished from UI in 1972. By that time, my father had become the parliament secretary to Tafawa Balewa. Afterwards, he became the minister of state in the Ministry of Labour. But his political ambition was truncated with the1966 coup, which he didn’t allow to affect the children’s education. He gave all of us the best education. When I finished in UI, I worked as Labour 2 in the Federal Ministry of Labour. Later, I got admission for a master’s programme at Roosevelt University in Chicago, USA. I left Nigeria in 1972. During my studies, I worked for some time to get money to supplement what my parents were sending to me. After the completion my MBA programme, I continued working. I came back with my two children from USA in 1977 shortly after I lost my wife. There and then, I made up my mind that I would no longer work for government. I started hustling and doing business; getting contracts here and there. I later floated a construction company called R & G Construction company. R stand for my late close friend, Remi, and G stands for me, Gbade. We were patronised by the government. We did some outstanding construction in the old Oyo State. After that, I joined politics in 1990 and contested as councillor in 1991 under the SDP platform. I won in the primary but the power that be at that time wanted who wasn’t as educated as I as the councillor. They thought my higher degree was too much to be a councillor. I didn’t relent up till today. I am still a politician but I have some other businesses. Apart from the construction business, I am into piggery project which I have been doing for over 15 years in Lagelu Local Government.
Q: What influence did your father have on your upbringing?
A: Tremendous influence on all of us. One, because he was educated, he made sure we were all educated. He taught us to respect people. Our father was so disciplined that if you make a mistake, he would wallop you. He didn’t compromise discipline. He introduced me into politics. When I came back from USA, I used to accompany him on political campaigns. I was watching him climb a table to campaign to people. I started having interest in politics. Whatever I am today in politics, he laid the foundation.
Q: What is your political philosophy?
A: Helping people. I am a progressive to the core. In the progressive, you have to help people. While my father was in NPN, I was in UPN. In the days of NRC and SDP, he was in NRC and I was in SDP. He allowed me to contest under SDP while he was in NRC. He was so liberal. Do your thing the way it pleases you but there are certain lines you can’t cross, and you can’t disrespect people. Respect people for who they are. He taught us not to be arrogant. He had a lot of great respect on me and the other nine children. Baba had 10 children: five males and five females. My mother was the first wife, Deborah Lapegba Lana. I was the third child. My elder brother, Professor Femi Lana, my elder sister, Princess Yemisi Sowunmi, I am the third, I have a younger sister, who is Mrs Folasade Bankole, a younger brother, Prince Jide Lana. Those are from my mother side. The others are from Olori Moriyike Lana. She has three females and two males. I am number three among the 10.
Mama Deborah Lapegba Lana
Q: What was the last moment you had with your father?
A: Baba became Olubadan at the age of 92. He was very active until he was about 100 years. At 100 he started going down physically. That affected the way he was thinking. By the time he became 101, we started carrying him because he couldn’t walk anymore. Three weeks before he passed on, he barely talked. Saying what was my last encounter with him would have been about three months before he passed on, which was always how are you; how are you doing; how is your wife; he would ask about the welfare of my family. That was what he was before he became bedridden.
Q: Was he a polygamous man or he married his second wife after the first died?
A: He was a polygamous man. My mother didn’t die before he married the second wife. There are some things we Yorubas think are aberrations. My mum passed on in the year 2000. If my father had not had a second, how would he cope? The second olori is a nurse. That helped my father a lot. She took care of Kabiyesi. I praise her all the time for that. In Christianity, a man is not supposed to but, in our tradition, I don’t see anything wrong in it. I am only afraid of it because of my Christian background. There is something in polygamy you don’t want and they will discourage you from marrying a second wife. Those are some of the things that are prohibiting some of us from trying to have a second – mistrust between your step mother and yourself; distrust between the siblings of one mother and the other. My father managed it; he didn’t succeed 100 percent. Before he died, he tried very well to make all of us unite. It worked to a large extent but there are still skirmishes here and there.
Q: What was your first political appointment?
A: I started politics in 1999. I joined the progressive, SDP, later AD, ACN, ANPP and now APC. I was with Governor Abiola Ajimobi when he wanted to become a governor. We were not very close when he contested for Senate because he just came from nowhere, from the corporate world and was hoisted on us. We were backing another aspirant but at the end of the day, it was the power that be that imposed him on us.
Q: Maybe he had money?
A: Of course, he had money Ajimobi was not poor at all. By any standard, he was a very rich man. I am not saying he bought his way through but he maneuvered his way and became the senator, the only AD Senator in Oyo State at that time. In 2011, when he became governor, he invited me to be the chairman of the Oyo State Library Board. As the chairman of the board at that time, I was doing my work earnestly. There was no money to it. One day, we were having a board meeting when somebody just called one of my boys and said your oga’s name has been mentioned in the Oyo State House of Assembly as a commissioner-nominee. I didn’t believe. So, all of us at the board meeting waited for the BCOS news. There my name was mentioned. Later, I went to the State Assembly for screening. After the House went through my CV, I was asked to take a bow without being asked a question. That was why I can’t forget my father. He gave us the best of education. When somebody was reading my CV, all the members of House of Assembly were clapping. Senator Sunmonu Monsurat just said, please, take a bow and I took a bow without any question. I became a commissioner in 2011 and completed my assignment in 2013. My father had wanted my political service to start from the local government, but as God would have it, I started from the top. Thank God, he was still alive when I was given the post of a commissioner. When I was appointed the caretaker chairman Ibadan East LCDA by the same Ajimobi, I was there for a year before we contested election and won. My colleagues and I were booted out by Governor Seyi Makinde. I thank God that the Supreme Court reinstated us. We got all our rights. He paid everything that we were owed. After about four years, Supreme Court asked us to be reinstated. Because event had overtaken that, Makinde was told to pay us off. He did that.
Q: What can you point to as your achievements as a commissioner for information and Local government chairman?
A: I didn’t achieve much as a commissioner because all I have to do was to report government and governor’s activities. There is no way I could impact people than to give them up to date information about government. As a chairman, I did well. Ajimobi gave us a free hand. He was giving us all our allocations. We used to have FAC meeting where we’ll sit to determine how we want to spend our money. He didn’t teleguide us regarding to how we are spending our money.
Q: The impression people have is that governors have overbearing control on the LGs funds and they don’t release full allocations to them?
A: Ajimobi didn’t do that. The allocation came from the federal government to the state and Ajimobi would pass it to the local government without removing one kobo. Ask anybody during our tenure, we sat down together and would decide how we’re going to spend the money. The only thing we all agreed to is the payment of teachers’ salaries. He didn’t meddle with our finances. He would advise us saying I think you should do this and that. He would not force anything on us. Within the two years I stayed in the office, I constructed about five roads. I graded so many roads. I influenced the construction of a modern health facility. Recently, Senator Sarafadeen Ali made a donation to the health facility. Honestly, I impacted on people’s lives. That time, you would not hear of corpses on the roads. We clear gutters and did everything. I refurbished at least three primary schools and two secondary schools at Ayekale.
Q: You are changing the narrative that we are used to that governors are mismanaging the LGs funds and the main reason why Nigerians are asking for LG autonomy?
A: I am not changing the narrative. Abiola Ajimobi didn’t confiscate our money. He gave us our money and we did projects with it. Because of the largesse they are enjoying, they are fiddling with LGs allocations. LGs allocation is a lot but the governors refuse to let it go down to the LG. They want to stop it at Supreme Court. The Supreme Court nullified their case and said LG should have autonomy. The governors are still blocking it. It is not only Makinde; it is all the governors irrespective of the party they belong.
Q: Why do you think the governors are doing that?
A: They want to be free in using the money. They don’t want to entrust LG with such humongous money. It is not their right to tamper with LG funds. The people in the LGs will feel better if these governors release their money to them. Ajimobi didn’t influence our money within the two years I was in the office. Now, I don’t know why the governors are not allowing the LGs to function. It is an aberration to our constitution. I hope one day they will see reason.
Q: What are the reforms you think should be carried out at the local government level?
A: Since we have three tiers of government, each of them is supposed to be independent of one another. The chairman knows the peculiar nature of his local government. It is his business to solve that problem. The only reform I want is that governors should be releasing local government funds to them and let them function. EFCC is there for those who will mismanage the money. 80 out of 100 percent of LGs chairmen will not mismanage the money. They will use the money for the betterment of their local governments.
Q: Are you still in politics?
A: Yes.
Q: What is the chance of APC in 2027?
A: We are working assiduously to make sure that our party regains power in Oyo State in 2027.
Q: How about the hunger in the land because of the APC policies at the national level?
A: Ask the governors. The money governors are getting are four times more than what they got during Buhari’s regime. What are they doing with the money? The federal government cannot come and start doing farming, roads and other things for you in your state. When the governors are mismanaging money, why will people not be hungry? Stop blaming the federal government. Start asking governors questions. What are you doing with the money coming from the federal government? If you know the amount of money coming to Oyo State, N3 billion and yet, there is nothing to show for it. For example, our governor got a loan for agriculture and we didn’t see what he has done with it. He can use this loan to upgrade farm settlements spread across the state; Eruwa, Igbo Ora and Kishi. Even, the farm at Fashola, Makinde has privatised certain things there. So, where is the money meant for agriculture that would have been used to solve food problem in the State? It is so unfortunate that if you go from here to Igbo Ora to Kishi, you will see vast land. Instead of you saying you are going to bring maize from somewhere, let us cultivate our own maize here. Stop blaming the federal government for everything. Let us start asking our governors where our money is and what are you using this money for.
Q: What is your take regarding Governor Makinde taking over landing property including Agodi Garden for development?
A: I don’t want to be seen as an antagonist of this government but the truth is Makinde is just grabbing land and developing it for rich people, who buy the land from him. He is constructing market that are beyond the reach of ordinary Nigerians. Go to Iwo Road and Jonku, when they are asking for N4million for a shop. Where do they want poor people to get that kind of money? I think Governor Seyi Makinde should stop all these. He wants to build a name for himself, that when he was there, he modernised Oyo State by destroying our markets. He destroyed a market in my area a few weeks ago, at Akobo here. They have not started anything on it. He should be concerned about how he would phase out hunger in Oyo State. We shouldn’t be importing rice to Oyo State. When I went to Igboho, there is vast land. People were cultivating cassava. Why not use the loan he got to buy thousands of acres of land and construct cassava processing plant?
Q: Are you aspiring for a position in 2027?
A: No. I am not contesting any political post at all. I am too old to contest. We have to leave the roads for the younger ones. But we are grooming them.
Q: What is your advice for the people towards 2027 election?
A: As a politician, if anybody is not seeing what Bola Tinubu is doing, the person is blind. We were in serious debt before he came in, we were using 97 percent of our income to service debt and Tinubu has reduced what we use to service debt to 50 percent. Our children now have loans to finance their education, so that your children and mine will not say because I don’t have money, I can’t go to tertiary institution. Look at the roads he is constructing across the nation. I want to say that APC should continue at the federal level in 2027. By the grace of God, in 2027, APC will come back to power in Oyo State.
