As the people of Ife await the choice of a new Ooni of Ife, following the demise Oba Okunade Sijuwade, a contender to the throne, Omooba Adetunji Babatunde Aderin II, has said he should become the next Ooni. In a telephone interview with Saturday Telegraph yesterday, Aderin said he had applied to the kingmakers officially as part of the process towards claiming the exalted traditional position which rightly belongs to his family.
He said he was eminently qualified for the throne due to the fact he was the great grandson of a warrior king and it would be a disservice to the legacy of Aderin Ologbenla if as his great grandson he refuses to step up and fight like a true warrior king. “What is mine is mine and it would be wrong not to fight for my right or allow the hard work of my forefathers to be wasted,” Aderin said.
He described the role of the king as a great sacrifice and service to the people of Ife and the Yoruba people at large, insisting that “I am willing to take up that sacrifice.” Aderin is from the Giesi ruling house. His great grandfather, Oba Aderin Ologbenla reigned from 1880 to 1893 as the last Ooni of Ife from the Giesi ruling house.
His grandfather Adetunji Aderin I whom he is named after was the eldest son of Aderin Ologbenla and his eldest son Adeniran Aderin is father to Omooba Adetunji Aderin. Born on August 27, 1975, Aderin is a graduate of Economics from the University of Ado-Ekiti and an associate member of the Association of Business Executives, United Kingdom. He is a leading financial guru and businessman, based in London and he sits on the board of many companies in the UK and in Nigeria.
By Olushola Ricketts, NEW TELEGRAPH
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I wich u good luck