It is no longer news that Ipokia kingdom has a new king. It does. And he is an accomplished businessman who has global connections to drive growth and development to the area.
He is HRM Alayeluwa Oba Yisa Olusola Adeniyi
Olaniyan, Ariwigbade Oshihin II, Onipokia of Ipokia Kingdom.
He recently spoke to Citypeople in what is his first
media chat since he ascended the throne of his forebears.
Below are excerpts.
How
do you feel now that you have become the Onipokia of Ipokia kingdom?
It feels great especially after all the hurdles we
had to scale through. It’s been very rough for the past 15 months waiting for
government approval, but we thank God Almighty who has given us victory at the
end.
How
do you see the battle you went through?
I see it as part of challenges of life, and also that good things don’t come easy, one must be ready to make sacrifices for good
and justifiable course in life.
What
are the lessons learnt?
Going through what I have been through has
strengthened my understanding of life. It has strengthened my belief that
winners never quit and quitters never win, and also that God doesn’t like ugly
and that no matter the situation and circumstances, the truth shall always
prevail. Meaning, with God, all things are possible for those who believe.
Tell
us about the new Onipokia. Where were you born? Where did you grow up? Where
did you school? What were you doing when you became Oba?
I was born and bred in Ipokia. I did my primary and
secondary school in Ipokia but I was always going to Lagos for vacation because
my late father was in Lagos. I left Ipokia after my secondary school to live
with my uncle in Lagos because my father has returned home before I finished my
secondary school. After working at the airport for about 6 yrs, I relocated to
the US where I did my tertiary education. I was working with an oil & gas
company called Emerson Process Management as a Quality Inspector, and at the
same time, a music and movie promoter and artist manager for over 15yrs. That
promotion business was what gave birth to Afro-Heritage Broadcasting &
Entertainment Awards (AHBEA), our annual award event in 2015.
Unfortunately, the event won’t hold this year
because of Covid-19 and has been postponed till the next year 2021.
Tell
us about your kingdom. What is the significance of Ikpokia?
Ipokia is an ancient and historic town that has 147
towns and villages under us with some Baales and kings, and it’s the
headquarters of Ipokia local government. This town has been in existence since the early 1600s and had been through lots of intertribal war with the Egba’s and Cotonou
invaders in the days of colonial masters.
We have very rich cultures and traditions that make
us unique especially as people who migrated to Ipokia from Opo Bini in the
Kwara state via Oyo Ile with the blessing of the then Alaafin. Ipokia is close
to the Benin Republic border and has an opportunity for people who want to do one business
or the other especially in the area of farming & manufacturing.
0 Comments