Chief Adegoke Adelabu whose birthday we are celebrating today Thursday, 9th July 2015 years after his death in a ghastly motor accident, at the age of only 43 years, at old Lagos-Ibadan expressway, Ibadan, would have been a grand old man of 100 years. He was, without any doubt whatever, a legend in his time and his iconic status still endures. Many of us still have vivid memories of the shock and grief that his death triggered off. There were riots in Ibadan and its environs and potential for further escalation was sufficiently evident to compel the government of the day to embark on a vigorous campaign on radio and television. Even back then the Western Region, with Ibadan as its capital had a thriving television station – WNBS (Western Nigeria Broadcasting Service). These combined with newspapers were the lynchpin of the damage control aimed at firmly denying the culpability of the government of Western Nigeria in the demise of the government’s fiercest opponent and unrelenting critic.
Before we get carried away, perhaps we need to remind ourselves of not only what late Chief Adelabu Adegoke said or did but much more importantly what he stood for. It is no exaggeration to assert the he was the embodiment of the heart and soul of Ibadan. Indeed, he was a fascinating advertisement of the enduring virtues and characteristics of those who proudly brand themselves as “Omo Ibadan” (the sons of the soil of Ibadan) – fearless defiant and uncompromising. If Chief Adelabu Adegoke were still with us, the government would have neither peace nor slumber !! He was an unrepentant activist and brilliant orator rolled into one and when he famously declared publicly that the government of Western Nigeria was in “a peculiar mess” over the management of its affairs, the audience, who were not all endowed with fluency of the English language, went wild with their own version of what they had heard. They translated it as “penkelemess”. That is how “peculiar mess” was supplanted by “penkelemess” which has since become synonymous with not only the name of Adelabu but also a short hand, abbreviation or acronym for any government that is considered grossly incompetent or outrageously corrupt.
I have opted to resist the temptation to venture into singing: “Penkele O, Penkele, Adegoke mi o penkele” which the inimitable King Sunny Ade waxed in memory of Chief Adegoke Adelabu.
Instead, we should get back on track and recognize that the Chief whose life we are celebrating was in every sense a “Man Of The People”. When he became the Minister of Labour he immediately drove his official car, an American limousine (I think it was an Oldsmobile or Chevrolet) all the way to Ibadan and challenged all his teeming supporters to share the car with him. He boldly announced to them that the car belonged to them and not him !!
Similarly, when he was provided with a government house as his official residence in Ikoyi, the most exclusive part of Lagos, he turned up with drummers from Ibadan much to the discomfiture of the largely expatriate (mostly English and French) residents of Ikoyi. They protested vigorously about the noise but Adelabu would not relent. He called a press conference and stoutly declared:
“If they do not like noise and drumming, they are free to go back to their own country.”
That silenced the protest !!
It is beyond question that Chief Adelabu was a genius in addition to being a gifted orator. Time and space will not permit me to dwell on his outstanding academic record while he was a student at Government College, Ibadan or his subsequent achievement at the Higher College, Yaba Lagos. We have just enough time to pause and reflect on the disclosure is the first page of Chief Adelabu’s autobiography:
“I Adegoke Adelabu entered Government College, Ibadan at the tender age of 19.”
He lived at a time when Ibadan was the magnet of the political dynamics of Nigeria in addition to being a major commercial centre. Chief Adelabu and Ibadan were indivisible. While the city was the magnet, Adelabu was not only magnetic; he was without doubt incomparable when it came to reading the direction of the compass.
He was robustly confrontationally and fiercely ebullient and that was what made him a powerful force to be reckoned with. Even his worst enemies could not ever accuse him of guile or timidity.
He was truly the darling of the masses and his own battle cry was:
“I belong to you and you belong to me”.
He did not resort to mixed metaphors. His enduring legacy is his EXCEPTIONALISM.
He thrived in Ibadan because Ibadan was then and still remains the largest small town in the world. Regardless of all the tribulations and travails, Ibadan and its people have somehow managed to preserve their social cohesion. Everybody knows everybody. Christians and Moslems cohabitate without any fear, suspicion or resentment. Among themselves, every sentence is preceded by “E dakun” (please forgive me) !! It is only the detractors who refer to Ibadan as a garrison town.
I must say that indigenes of Ibadan are naturally endowed with a unique sense of humour. It may be inappropriate for me to share with you the famous encounter between the late Olubadan, Oba Ashanke and the then Military Governor of Oyo State (with Ibadan as the capital), Colonel Oladayo Popoola who had brought the then Chief of Army Staff, Major-General Sani Abacha to the palace of Olubadan on a courtesy visit.
Apparently, the Olubadan took umbrage at being kept waiting until the Chief of Army Staff turned up two hours late. The Olubadan refused to be intimidated by the boss of the army
particularly on account of his rather small stature which seemed to be at variance with his awesome reputation (as he had participated in several coup d’états). On the arrival of Major-General Abacha, a northerner who could not speak or understand Yoruba, the Olubadan took one look at him and promptly delivered judgement in Yoruba:
“A se ko ga ju igo lo” !!
The translation is that the man who has created so much fear is no taller than a bottle (pint size).
That was not the end of the tragedy/comedy as the Olubadan proceeded to offer his guest the traditional Kola nut as a gesture of welcome. Colonel Popoola promptly intervened and proceeded to explain that security and protocol forbade the Chief of Army Staff from eating Kola nut in public. His Royal Highness the Olubadan was not in the least convinced or impressed. He remonstrated.
“Is he not a Mallam (from the North where Kola nuts are part of the staple diet)”?
It would be too risky for me to mention the allegation regarding Kabiyesi Ashanke who ascended the throne of Ibadan when he was well over eighty years old and apparently could not speak English. This was put to the test when the phone in the palace rang and the voice at other end of the phone kept repeating “Hello; Hello; Hello ….. but Kabiyesi could not make sense of it all and in desperation protested:
“There is nobody called Hello in this palace.
My name is His Royal Highness Oba Morakinyo Isiaka Ashanke of Ibadan.”
It is however on record that subsequent Olubadans especially the current Olubadan Oba (Dr.) Samuel Odulana Odugade I are versed in knowledge and fluent in English.
Alhaji Adelabu Adegoke was a product of the politics of Ibadan Native Authority from where he rose to command a more formidable stature in Western Nigeria and eventually the national stage. Although he was rather small in stature, he had won his spurs as “the stormy petrel of the Western Region”. He was the ultimate grassroots man and his footprints as well as his feet were firmly planted in Ibadan. He breathed the same air and ate the same food as his ardent followers. Even when he became a Minister, there was no change in his lifestyle as he continued to live in the same house in Ibadan. As for his clothes, there was no way he would demand the hefty “Wardrobe Allowance” that has become a scandal amongst the current crop of Ministers and Members of the National Assembly (Senate and House of Representatives).
It must have been 1952 or 1953 when as a little boy I managed to catch a look at Adelabu when he turned up to campaign at Campos Square in Lagos on the platform of his party – the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroon (NCNC).
The entire square was jam packed and my father, Chief JK Randle had to carry me on his shoulder.
Several speakers delivered their address and they were applauded politely. Even the great Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe the leader of the party did not fare much better. The person everyone wanted to listen to was none other than “Adegoke Adelabu Penkelemesi” !!
When it was eventually his turn to speak, the applause that preceded even his first sentence reverberated all over Lagos. Every subsequent sentence was drowned in even louder applause. At the end of the speech, neither by father nor I could recall what Adelabu had actually said. When we checked with others in the audience, they were no wiser. In any case it did not matter at all.
The crowd went home jubilant that Adelabu Adegoke had made their day and provided them with all they needed to demolish their opponents. As far as they were concerned, Adelabu could do no wrong.
Apparently, that is still very much the case so many years after his death. It is not uncommon to hear his surviving loyalists lament, when they see the poverty, ignorance, oppression, greed and impunity which have conspired to rubbish our nation:
“Ti o ba si iku Adelabu …………”
which translates as:“But for the death of Adelabu, we would not be in this mess.”
I must not forget to add that people of Ibadan have their own unique way of coming to terms with adversity or disappointment. I remember that a few years ago, I was invited to the Coronation of the Olubadan.
Unfortunately, the Lagos/Ibadan expressway turned out to be a nightmare and I was stuck in the traffic for several hours. To make matters worse, the traffic in Ibadan was even more chaotic. Eventually, we reached the venue of the Coronation but it was quite some distance away. There were many cars ahead of mine but the drummers made merriment out of our distress and anxiety. As they weaved their way between the cars, they gleefully declared that the Coronation was over, but not to worry:
“Ta ba je Olubadan a tun je aboba ku”
which translates as:
“The Coronation of the Olubadan is over, the next item on the agenda is the Coronation of the person who will accompany him to heaven to minister to his needs whenever he dies.”
Perhaps we need to remind ourselves of the theme of today’s lecture:
which will be delivered by an outstanding scholar and mathematician and former Governor of Oyo State, Dr. V.O Olunloyo.
I would not dare to pre-empt the missiles and thunderbolts which we are entitled to expect from our very distinguished and highly respected Guest Speaker. However, it may not be out of place for me to postulate that the past is the past and it is gone.
Fukiyama has already declared “The End of History”. Hence, we cannot afford to be handcuffed by history. However, the past can assist us to better understand the present and how we got here (or more bluntly, how we got into this mess and quagmire). Thankfully, Dr Olunloyo as a mathematical genius is best placed to explain to lesser folks what precisely constitutes a majority; and can a minority in number overwhelm a majority and then proceed to declare victory? The least, we in the audience, can do is to leave our ears open and remain willing to learn.
We have been summoned to ponder not only on the enduring relevance of Chief Adegoke Adelabu but also on:
“Whither Ibadan Politics ?”
This is a profoundly challenging subject and it is not a matter that can be resolved in one day or even one week. Fortunately, the Governor of Oyo State, His Excellency, Abiola Ajimobi is here with us and since he is a son of the soil we should be able to count on him to make adequate resources available and accord this project the priority it deserves.
Perhaps I should warn that when AI Capone the Chicago gangster was asked a similar question:“Whither Chicago Politics ?”
his response was:
“If I knew, I would have to shoot you dead first before telling you.”
Clearly, the project with which we have been saddled curries with it considerable hazards.
Nevertheless, in crafting a road map for direction as regards: “Whither Ibadan Politics ?” we must be mindful that what has not worked in the past has to change. Indeed, we have to change the conversation from agonizing over problems and lamenting the plight of the sons and daughters of Ibadan, to delivering enduring solutions.
Indeed, it may be tempting to recompose the challenge of “Whither Ibadan Politics” and substitute it with: “If Adelabu were still alive, “Whither Ibadan Politics ?” However, even that may not subscribe to easy answers as the problems we now face probably did not exist or we were simply not aware of them when Adelabu was alive. Virtually, every day we are assaulted and shocked by kidnappings, brutal killings, suicide bombings, IED’s [Improvised Explosive Devices] and various other atrocities perpetrated in the Northern Region of Nigeria by Boko Haram insurgents/terrorists. We can only hope and pray that the rage and horrors which they have unleashed do not become a permanent feature in our lives. Boko Haram is arguably the product of the politics and consequences of neglect and revenge.
At this juncture, we are compelled to pause in order to reflect on how to structure a reconciliation with our nation’s dark past and the role of Ibadan in the crisis that commenced in 1962 (Chief Obafemi Awolowo versus Chief SLA Akintola) and the ensuing fiasco of the inconclusive 1963 census under the Chairmanship of the Chief Justice, Sir Adetokunbo Ademola. Then came the mother of all crises in 1964 over the disputed election results with Ibadan as the War Zone (not garrison town !!). The main contenders were Chief Obafemi Awolowo; Chief SL Akintola; Chief Remi Fani-Kayode; Chief Ayo Rosiji; etc.
The rage and carnage that engulfed the Western Region as well as the total breakdown of law and order cannot be consigned to mere drama, fanciful fiction or exaggerated systemic failure.
“Operation wet e” when the aggrieved took the law into their own hands was the precursor of much more deadly “fire on the mountain and corpses in the valley”. Any prospects of divine intervention were brutally ambushed on Saturday 15th January 1966 when the first military coup d’état hit the airwaves. It was the beginning of the slaughter of politicians and soldiers by soldiers.
The reason we must admit that even now the fate of our nation still hangs in the balance is anchored on the revenge which was enacted in the forecourt of Government House Ibadan in July 1967. The Military Governor of Western Region, Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi was captured, handcuffed and bundled into a jeep.
That was the last we saw of him until his corpse was discovered along Iwo Road. In the tradition of the army, he was a gallant soldier who had lost his life while defending his guest and Commander-In-Chief General Johnson Aguyi Ironsi. He too was mowed down in a gory ironic inversion of espirit de corps – soldiers shooting soldiers, especially their bosses. Since then, we have known neither peace nor joy under the jackboots. We have continued to muddle our way through – from one crisis to another. If the late Gbadamosi Sanusi Adelabu Adegoke were to be invited to read the auditors’ report on our beloved nation, he may well be tempted to declare:
“Nigerian is in a peculiar mess (penkelemesi). Ibadan like the rest of the country is a victim of crisis fatigue.”
Bashorun JK Randle is a former President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and former Chairman of KPMG Nigeria and Africa Region. He is currently the Chairman, JK Randle Professional Services.
Email:jkrandleintuk@gmail.com
