In thy face I see the map of honor, truth and loyalty Shakespeare
It was around 7p.m. on appointment I went to meet His Imperial Majesty the Olowo of Owo (Dr.) Oba DVF Olateru-Olagbegi III (CFR) at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport , Ikeja, Lagos for an important discussion before boarding the flight to the United Kingdom. That was about four years ago .
I met His Imperial Majesty and a man on his knees answering questions from him and exchanging notes. In the hall all eyes were fixed on the duo. I overheard an Ibo man who cried ''Chei, Yoruba get Culture o''. Another woman watching from afar was smiling as she was carried away with joy and surprise , she asked me later who the two men were and I told her ''that Baba is a King , a first Class Monarch in Nigeria and Head and leader of my community, Owo . That is Olowo of Owo , Oba David Folagbade Olateru -Olagbegi III and the other man is his Personal Assistant''. When the man finished with the royal father I went to Kabiyesi to discuss with him.
Immediately the royal father was sighted , officials of the airport and dignitaries ran to him , greeted him with honour and dignity . I felt proud that I have such a high caliber of Monarch who is honored , respected and given royal treatment as our King.
The P/A's attitude moved me , as the Yoruba Culture is rich , it reminded me the words of Confucius (551-479 BC) '' A youth , when at home , should be filial, and abroad , respectful to his elders'' . The man is great.
Today , that man , the P/A is now the High Chief Osuporu , the Agheru Osuporu of Owo. He assumed the position of his forefathers two years ago. The High chief is well read, articulate, well cultured , civilized, humble and unassuming .
Few years ago when Owo was invaded by some notorious armed robbers and all banks were closed later , Niran called me severally to write about it ( When I was still in The Nation newspaper). He was more concerned about the welfare of his people as he cried out that the natives traveled to Akure to withdraw money which was risky. I came down from Lagos, and he took me round .The story was published and a week later the Banks were re opened!.The man , Niran has been the brain box behind it.
A man (who begged for anonymity ) narrated how he needed canopies, chairs and tables for a ceremony but had no money , Niran (who operates Rentals) gave him all these free of charge. Another one said he cried to Niran when his daughter was chased away from school for not paying fees, '' it was this Chief that gave me money to pay the fees , he even added to it '', said the man who also begged for anonymity.
Chief Osuporu has Master's degree in Sociology from the University of Ado- Ekiti. He crowned it by adding to his knowledge and wisdom under the tutelage of Olowo of Owo where he worked as the Personal Assistant and groomed himself .
From the onset , the Chief who is of blue blood background had 'armed' himself with the knowledge of Sociology and Anthropology , thus , he has groomed himself academically, traditionally and culturally and had been with the first Class royal father for many years where he had been nurtured and tutored in Culture, Tradition and Leadership.
Describing the Chief, Olunaun of Unaun , Prince Olanrewaju Abegunde said '' the High Chief is a man of noble character, he is from a royal family and holds a Master's degree in Sociology. He was under the tutelage of the royal father, the Olowo of Owo, Oba David Folagbade Olateru-Olagbegi III which makes him possess native intelligence, acquire more knowledge and become a wiseacre . Whoever is close to Olowo of Owo has gone to another Institution of higher learning , he will be humble, loyal, truthful and trust worthy and have the fear of God . Osuporu has all these characters, his wisdom is like a 90-year -old man. I have interacted with him many times and you will never hear him saying any bad word about anybody and he does not talk much for he is reserved .He is a trustworthy man one can confide in,he is never arrogant ''.
The high Chief's humility and patience is high, he has self discipline and uses maturity in many things. I have known the man for many years and with my interaction with him I have never seen him angry, instead he would just smile and say 'its okay' . I believe he must have been following the words of Lady Mary Montagu that says Civility costs nothing and buys everything. The young and the old are his friends.
Mrs. Morenike Ogunseitan, a retired headmistress, an actress and politician has this to say '' I must confess to you that the Chief is a very quiet and simple man . Those who are not up to his status and arrogant should learn from him. We were at his place last week during a campaign , the way he addressed us was great. He is very humble .I believe Kabiyesi saw all these sterling qualities in him during the period he worked with him. Chief Osuporu is a very good man. And I pray may he live longer than his forefathers''.
Chief Osuporu believes and loves Culture and Tradition , and he carries it so high yet he affirms his belief in the Almighty God. I could recall in one of his interviews when asked how he would combine the Culture and Tradition with his Christian faith, he answered that his faith in God is as solid and strong like the rock of Gibraltar , and that there is a difference between Culture and religion.
Mr. Jide Tububo describes him thus : He is an enigmatic personality and I will continually continue to respect his maturity, sagacity and objectivity, he continued :I love him for his ideological, progressive and authentic line of thought, he is an hero and I am happy that he is the Osuporu of Owo Kingdom.
A friend of mine who had cause to meet the High Chief on a land matter last year said the Chief is gifted . We were already in his Courtyard before his arrival , he called us many times apologizing for coming late . During our discussion he exercised patience to listen to my friend's complaint and asked questions. In fact one would think he is a lawyer. Though , my friend's case was not resolved but the Chief brilliantly ,logically and philosophically delivered his judgement thus reminds me of King Solomon in the Bible who delivered a judgement involving two prostitutes as each claimed that the living baby was hers, none wanted to accept the dead baby. But when King Solomon pronounced his judgement and made a suggestion, the rest , they say is history.
I went to town asking about Chief Niran Osuporu , there was no single negative word or statement made about him. Chief Osuporu has sense of generosity and benevolence in his thought .
Mr. Julius Akinwale has this to say about him '' This is the man that fits the exalted chieftaincy position for this time , for he has demonstrated a high degree of meekness, cooperation, respect and modesty among his people and contemporary regardless this powerful post.My wish for him is that ''A yan pe , a bo Ogwa je pe''.
For this man who has worked with the royal father for many years with unstained record and had acquired knowledge, experience and skill, he has the sterling qualities to be there. He has represented Owo and the Olowo of Owo in many occasions within and outside the state.
In the prophesy of Ezekiel where we read ''O son of Man , I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel '' , Niran is appointed as a Watchman for the good and the best for Osuporu family and Owo Kingdom at large.The concept of being a leader represents a forward, progressive, and love for the family.
A lesson I personally learnt from this High Chief is his humility .The words of Toni Payne readily comes to mind "Arrogance closes more doors than it opens. Stay humble" . Niran is not arrogant, he is just too humble , and hardly can you fault him as he would just look and smile instead of exchanging hot words with anybody , no wonder he is loved by everybody .Wishing you happy Second coronation anniversary.
By Taiwo Abiodun, Bobo T, T Bobo, Babalawo of the Nation (BoN)
Good job baba
ReplyDeleteThanks sir
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