-Enters ‘Ipebi’ in Orangun’s palace
November 12, 2024
By Samuel Ogunsona
The newly installed Onipopo of Grand Popo in Benin Republic, Oba Adeshina Fagbemi Alahoussan Hélékétché, has entered Ìpèbí within the Orangun’s palace in Ila, reasserting his roots and bloodline.
This significant ceremony reverses the disruption caused by European colonization, which fragmented Africa and erased cultural identities.
According to Yoruba history, Oduduwa’s seven grandchildren founded various kingdoms.
The Olowu kingdom now has several offshoots, while the Alaketu is in Benin Republic, and the Oba of Benin identifies as Edo.
The Orangun, as the eldest sibling, hosts the new Onisabe.
The new Ipebi, where the Onipopo communes with ancestors and transitions to king, exudes artistic elegance and sobriety.
The new Onipopo by this act has wrestled back the direction of history, re-emphasised and re-asserted his root and blood, earlier disrupted by the Europeans who haphazardly deliniated and parcelled out Africa, an act that emptied out a significant space in a people’s history and robbed people of their true identity and self consciousness.
The Olowu kingdom no longer exists in its original single, organic monarchical evolution but now has several metastatic kingdoms of which the Owu in Egba, Orile Owu and Owu Kuta in Osun are offspring.
The Alaketu is now in Benin Republic and the Oba of Benin now identifies as Edo, leaving the Orangun as the eldest sibling to be the most appropriate host for the new Onisabe.
However, Oba Wahab Kayode Oyedotun, the Orangun of Ila, facilitated this historic event.
After completing the Ipebi rites, the Onipopo will visit the Ooni at the Yoruba cradle and other Obas before returning to Benin Republic.
