Longest Serving Monarch Sets To Celebrate 90th Birthday Anniversary On Earth

By Damilola Adeparusi

The longest serving monarch in Nigeria, His Royal Highness, the Onigede of Igede Ekiti Kingdom, Oba James Adelusi Aladesuru, JP, is set to celebrate his 90th birthday anniversary on the earth just as he lamented on the abandonment, neglect and the current deplorable state of Igede Ekiti township roads and used the opportunity to task Governor Biodun Oyebanji on the town’s development. 

Oba James Adelusi Aladesuru who was recently honored with the longest serving Monarch Award by the Nigerian Baptist Convention is preparing and planning to celebrate his 64th year on the throne on Saturday, the 2nd of September, 2023.  

Findings made by the Treasure Newspaper revealed that before the Onigede of Igede Ekiti Kingdom, Oba James Adelusi Aladesuru attained his current status as the longest serving monarch in the Country, the Traditional Ruler before him was the late Paramount Ruler of Obudu Local Government Area, His Royal Majesty, Joseph Davies – Agba, OON, the ‘Uti Item III of Utugwang’, Uti Ukani I of Obudu who doubled as the Chancellor of the University of Cross River State and who joined his ancestors on the 30th of April, 2023.

Speaking with the Treasure Newspaper, the Onigede of Igede Ekiti, Oba James Adelusi Aladesuru on Tuesday at his palace in Igede Ekiti said he was born in 1933 and crowned as the 27th Onigede of Igede Ekiti on the 26th June, 1959. 

The Kabiyesi however appealed to Governor Biodun Oyebanji and the government of Ekiti State to as a matter of necessity and importance give priority to the development of Igede Ekiti Kingdom and see to ways of improving and upgrading the infrastructural facilities in the community. 

Oba Aladesuru decries and described the ongoing moves to boycott his town and isolate it from the rest of the neighboring communities and towns around it as evil and therefore, condemned the plans in it’s entirety. 

According to him, he said, “our roads needs to be reconstructed. I am begging the Governor and the Ekiti State Government to do it for us so that we can access anywhere we want to”. 

He used the opportunity to remind Governor Biodun Oyebanji not to forget the promise he made to him that he will fix the roads that leads to Aramoko and Iworoko Ekiti. 

Also, in a separate interview with the Ajiroba of Igede Ekiti Kingdom, Chief Felix Ayodeji Adebolu, he queried the reason why the road project which started some years ago from Ado Ekiti and was bid to go through to Itawure but was stopped at Iyin Ekiti and abandoned by the last administration of Dr. Kayode Fayemi. 

Making his appeals, Ajiroba of Igede Ekiti Kingdom pleaded with the current Governor of Ekiti State, Mr. Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji to help mobilize the contractors back to the site to complete the road project to ease traffic on the road and help businesses to strive as well as help those outside the State come home without stress regularly. 

In his own message, the Adara of Igede Ekiti Kingdom, Chief Peter Adeyinka Olayinka Adeleye called for the establishment of a Technical College at Igede Ekiti community where there will be opportunity to train the indigenes of the State in carpentry, electrical work and other handy work to inject fresh blood to replace those already aged in the work.

High Chief Adebayo Fadairo, the Olota of Igede Ekiti Kingdom, a retired Assistant Inspector General of Police while adding, called on Governor Oyebanji to tap into the tourism potentials in Igede Ekiti Kingdom with a view to generate more Internally Generated Revenues, IGR, for the state and the Igede Ekiti Community. 

Chief Fadairo listed the major tourism potentials in Igede Ekiti Kingdom to include the Elemi River which source is from Osun River in Osogbo, Ogese as well as some mountains that are good and have hot waters coming from them.

Meanwhile, a brief history of the current Onigede of Igede Ekiti Kingdom, Oba James Adelusi Aladesuru shows he is a descendant of the Okiribiti Adeyibaka dynasty. He succeeded Oba Olubusi Apata from Onaowuro family who reigned between 1950 to 1957.

Records revealed that Oba Olubusi Apata’s ascension to the throne of his progenitors on the 26th of June 1959 has helped Igede Ekiti Kingdom to greatly developed and the development under the current monitoring gaze of his Royal Majesty, Oba James Adelusi Aladesuru has continued. 

Oba James Adelusi Aladesuru is a well educated Kabiyesi, and had served in several official capacities in Ekiti as the President of the Customary Court in Igede-Ekiti from 1960 to 1976. He served as a member, General Purpose Committee and at the same range served the Ado District Council in the year 1960 to 1962 as a member, Board of Governors EBHS in Igede for 9years. He also served in Ado Grammar School in Ado Ekiti as a member of the Boards of Governors.

Oba Aladesuru in his own time has no doubt initiated a lot of developments and lofty achievements to the various segments of the Igede community, including but not limited to development in Education sectors, Political sectors, Healthcare sector, Socio-cultural and socio political life, Environmental services, commercial lives and infrastructure developments among others.