The common eulogy of Ibadan people, omo a gbo ti ku yo (one who hears of death and rejoices), comes to life again as Saliu Adetunji, the 93-year-old Olubadan, goes to rest today.

A source familiar with events in Ibadan told FIJ on Sunday that the moment an Olubadan dies, palace drummers move to the house of the next in line, singing, dancing, drinking and eating, hence the eulogy.

Following the demise of Adetunji, whose remains some palace sources revealed has been deposited in the morgue of the University of Ibadan College Hospital from where it will be picked for burial in accordance with Islamic rites, the Ibadan palace and its fanfare moves to the house of Senator Lekan Balogun, the Otun Olubadan and next in line to wear the crown.

Kingship in Ibadan is between the two lines of the Otun Olubadan and the Balogun. Late Adetunji hailed from the Balogun line, and by the Olubadan succession order, the highest ranking chief from the next royal line, 79-year-old Lekan in this case, automatically becomes the king.

WHO IS LEKAN BALOGUN?

Following his primary school education, Lekan proceeded to the CAC Modern School, Anlugbua, where he wrote the Qualifying Examination that enabled him travel to the UK to study for his O and A level certificates. Subsequently, he was admitted to the Columbus International University for his first degree and then Brunel University, both in the UK, for his master’s degree in public and social administration.

He worked with Lamberth Local Government Social Services Department for one-and-a-half years, and then left to pursue a Ph.D at the Manchester University, UK. On his return to Nigeria, he worked with Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, and then the Shell British Petroleum Company, where he rose to the position of head of recruitment.

In 1999, he was elected a member of the Nigerian Senate, where he served as chairman, Senate Committee on National Planning. He was also a member of other committees, including appropriations and security.

Balogun was a director at Triumph Newspaper, Kano, and editor at The Nigerian Pathfinder, a monthly magazine. He was one of the 21 Ibadan leaders raised to the rank of king by a former governor of Oyo State, Abiola Ajimobi, in 2017.

As Olubadan, Lekan will no longer be addressed as ‘His Royal Highness’, but ‘His Imperial Majesty’.