The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, Ojaja
II, has described Nigeria’s cultural heritage as a huge export potential
capable of igniting economic transformation.
Ooni
Ogunwusi said this at the joint celebration of Alafere, Oya and Ijugbe
festivals, on Sunday, in Ile-Ife.
Naijaroyaltyculture.blogspot.com
reports that the festival attracted a huge crowd of participants from within
and outside Ile-Ife, especially, the Bariba and Nupe people in Niger and Kwara
states of Nigeria.
Ogunwusi
said that people had stopped celebrating cultural festivals and heritage,
adding that these had been affecting the growth of local festivals and culture
in the country.
The
monarch also said that foreigners were beginning to appreciate the African
culture and festivals than indigenes of the continent.
“Our heritage
is so strong; all the things that we are celebrating may be strange to many
people living in Nigeria and Yoruba land.
“I just
returned from the UK where I met with the British Royal Family and visited the
British museum, they (Western World) don’t joke with our culture.
“All these
things are so important to them. They displayed African cultural heritage in
their libraries and museums.’’
He said
that they believed in the potency and power of all these festivals saying, “ It
is about time for us (Africans) to nurture and promote what we have.
“We should
celebrate what nature has given to us. Our culture is a very huge export
potential and tourism is one of the biggest trades in the world.
“It is
bigger than a lot of investments that you can think of because it involves a
lot of movements by people from diverse backgrounds and cultural orientations.
“With
tourism, people are able to establish a common heritage and ancestral
background,’’ he said.
The Ooni,
however, called on government at all levels to improve the level of
infrastructure, noting that government needed to support any project that would
drive the Yoruba culture to the world.
“It is
about time for us to focus on tourism by improving our infrastructure and
package our entire heritage. Most of the heritage and festivals are very timely
and yield benefits.
“Government
should pay serious attention to our heritage because our tourist centres and
attractions are natural and that is why we need to display them.
“We don’t
need to create any form of artificial tourism. We hope that our government will
appreciate us.’’
Also, the
Obalejugbe of Ife, High Chief Abiodun Akinrefon, said that worshipping
Ijugbe (god of rain) in Ile-Ife would boost the economy of the community.
He
commended the Ooni for resuscitating the abandoned deities in Ile-Ife, saying
that Ijugbe was the custodian of rainfall for mankind.
Similarly,
High Chief Oyarekun Oyaro, the Balogun of Famia, who doubled as Oya priest,
attributed the rainfall pattern in the land to the spiritual efficacy of Oya
festival in Ile-Ife.
Oyaro said
that the town invoked the god of rain to mark the beginning of planting and a
plenteous harvest.
He,
however, admonished the citizenry to value their tradition and culture, adding that
they all had important roles to play in the life of mankind.
Naijaroyaltyculture.blogspot.com also
reports that the Oya- Igunnuko/Alafere/Ijugbe festival is a transition festival
to herald the raining season as well as the natural phenomena associated with
the season – rain, wind, and thunderstorm.
The
festival is to show the workings of “Olodumare’’, the creator of the world in
Yoruba mythology, and how to make the season be of high benefit to mankind.
It is a
season to bless the soil for fertility and for the season not to become a
calamity for the people.
Niajaroyaltyculture.blogspot.com
reports that the festival witnessed a downpour accompanied with wind and
thunderstorms.
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