Below is obviously NOT BAOSA latest NEC report but a place holder for the real McCoy which will be displayed when available. Objective here is !!!! TESTING !!!!
By Naiwu Osahon
The first most telling revelation about Oduduwa's ancestry is from Oduduwa himself. He, in his lifetime, reserved a special seat in his Ife palace for his ancestors. The seat remains reserved until this day for the Bini monarch only. No one else, not even the reigning Ooni, or Oronmiyan (Alaafin) in Oyo, or any of the Obalades of Yorubaland can sit on the seat. So, if Bini is not the wellspring of Ife, why is it that no member of the Alaafin, or Ife Ooni dynasties (or siblings), can use the seat?
A lot of dust was raised in the press in 2004 over the Oduduwa issue. The controversies on Oduduwa are finally put to rest in this write-up. All students of history must carefully preserve this historical record as a reference point. Oduduwa is Prince Ekaladerhan of Bini and he entered Yoruba life about 900 years ago and that is categorical and final. The Yoruba/Edo collaborative evidence follow. The first most telling revelation about Oduduwa's ancestry is from Oduduwa himself. He, in his lifetime, reserved a special seat in his Ife palace for his ancestors. The seat remains reserved until this day for the Bini monarch only. No one else, not even the reigning Ooni, or Oronmiyan (Alaafin) in Oyo, or any of the Obalades of Yorubaland can sit on the seat. So, if Bini is not the wellspring of Ife, why is it that no member of the Alaafin, or Ife Ooni dynasties (or siblings), can use the seat?
Besides, the most sacred name for Ife is "Uhe" a (non-Yoruba), deep and strong Bini word, meaning virgin or vagina depending on how it is pronounced, and is interpreted in myth as "innocence", the birth canal, or the source of life. Also, no major Ifa ritual or ceremony in Ife even now is considered authentic, blessed by or acceptable to the gods and ancestors, without the presence and involvement of relevant Bini traditional faith custodians. The dress culture of Ife chiefs and priests is from Bini court.
Professor Ade Ajayi's comment that the Bini are trying to re-write history and that the motivation for this is political is ridiculous to say the least, unless professor's are not supposed to have some responsibility for truth and scholarship. Ajayi's comment influenced less-informed commentators who accused the Oba of Bini of possible political bias at the age of 80, in an interview published in The News of 28 June 2004. The age of the Bini monarch bellies the silly accusation. No Bini historian, including Omo N'oba Erediauwa has said that a rebel king migrated from Benin to father Oduduwa in Ile-Ife. The Yoruba historians peddling this falsehood should take time off to read this specially packaged report on Oduduwa because it puts the Oduduwa controversy to rest once and for all.
Perhaps the most childish comment on the Oduduwa issue so far was the one in an article published in the Sunday Sun of June 27, 2004. The writer is upset over the antics of Bini prostitutes in Italy but ignores the Yoruba credit card schemers, painting the USA and Europe red with their notoriety? He says and I quote: "The Bini position on Oduduwa is motivated by imperial politics, a dose of envy and irrepressible ego. It is part of an agenda to hijack the enviable fame of Yoruba dynasty and superimpose it on the subdued ego of the Bini people who have lost the glory of their once powerful Bini Empire to the greater might of the British colonial masters."
I was expecting the writer to say "Yoruba masters" instead of "British masters" in his erroneous statement. As far as I know, there is no record of the Yoruba ever once conquering or colonizing even an inch of Biniland. Rather, the Bini colonized, dominated and enslaved large tracks of Yorubaland and people until British colonialism liberated the Yoruba, so who should be envying who? Besides, the Yoruba were colonized along side the Bini and we all gained our "flag" independence from the British on the same day, which was the 1st of October 1960. Black collective plight as the most wretched people in the world has not changed since "flag" independence, so what is there in the Yoruba to make the Bini or anyone jealous? The writer is proud that there are Yoruba enclaves in Brazil and so on. But they got there as slaves and they are still slaves, (second-class citizens), in the Diaspora right now. The Bini were never enslaved, (the Bini kept hordes of Yoruba and other slaves from their conquests and shielded them from the slave trade), so you would not find slave colonies of the native Bini extraction anywhere in the Diaspora. What greater honour could anyone have than that?
No Yoruba commentator or expert so far has provided concrete evidence or credible story on Oduduwa. Some that have attempted to do so, have quoted spurious speculations from racist, paternalistic and condescending British historians like Basil Davidson, because that was what they passed their exams on. Prof. Siyan Oyeweso of the LASU History Department, goes further to swear by some 1950s - 60s researchers, such as Philip Igbafe, R. E. Bradbury, Alan Ryder and G.A. Akinola, who quoted profusely from each other, and largely relied on the "white god" Davidson's story for authenticity. What right do we have to expect these "experts" to transcend the infantile bias of their day that Oduduwa was God incarnate, who as the Yoruba progenitor, descended with a rope from the sky? Could the historians have said Oduduwa was not God at a time of Yoruba political dominance in the region? Could they have set off on a limb and expect their books to be recommended reading by the West African Examination Council (WAEC)?
The overwhelming counter argument by the Yoruba so far, weighs heavily on why the Bini have only just come out now with their Oduduwa story? It is wrong for anyone to claim that the Edo origin of Oduduwa story is a recent creation. Prof Siyan Oyeweso even tried to put a 1971 date on when Edo people invented the Oduduwa story. He provides no evidence of his assertion other than that we should take his words for it because he is a professor. And if he were allowed to get away with his blatant distortion of history, it would become the history that students pass their exams on. That is how the Davidsons and Bradburys became the authorities on African history.
I have discovered serious laxity on the part of some of our supposed African professor's. They accept any rubbish put out by the dishonest, ill-informed Basil Davidsons of the white world as the gospel truth requiring no further investigation. No black intellectual outside Africa today relies on racist whites as sources of knowledge about themselves because such whites lie about the African contributions. They claim that we were nothing until slavery. That we were worse than wild animals before they intervened in our lives and that we are still less than animals now.
Racists whites do not want us challenging their lies and upsetting the applecart. But the greatest thing about truth is that until it triumphs, it allows lie no peace. It does not matter when the truth comes out? If a researcher comes out with the true identity of God today (as I have now done in this book), billions of years into the creation story, does that make the truth less true? The world continues to stumble on new "truths" everyday because original researchers did not have the accumulated knowledge and tools now available to modern research work.
Ovbia Oba Edun Agharese Akenzua, in his book: Ekaladerhan, tells us that while the Oba of Benin was visiting Ife on November 11, 1982, the Ooni said in part, as we have mentioned briefly during our historic visit to your domain not too long ago, we said that we were there to pat you on the back for a job well done. Your present visit we regard as a short homecoming, where you will have an opportunity to commune with those deities you left behind. Now my son and brother, long may you reign. The address suggested that the people of Benin, or at least, the Royal Family, owe their origin to Ile-Ife. In the prelude of his response to the Ooni'swelcome address, the Oba of Benin tacitly rebutted the submission. The Oba said: If the Ooni of Ife calls the Oba of Benin his son and the Oba of Benin calls the Ooni of Ife his son, they are both right. The Oba did not elaborate, but in the womb of that innocuous assertion is the fetus of a story, which had never been told in full. In both Benin and Uhe, the story is told with varying details.
Six years ago, I sent the Edo story on Oduduwa to Adeniji, the Arts Editor of ThisDay newspaper at the time. I phoned and he said I should send it but he never used the story. I understand that the Daily Independent of Friday May 14, 2004, published a version of the article in my name with my original title. I have not read it but I suspect it is the same article I sent to ThisDay two years earlier that the Daily Independent newspaper published when the controversy was raging. Whatever it is, am I to blame for the story not being used earlier? I don't own a newspaper or magazine. I can only try and reach out through facilitators, hoping that they and everyone else would be interested in the unraveling of truth.
Edo historians have written volumes on the Oduduwa story. My parents told me the story in my early teens. They too were told the story in their teens as are every Edo child regardless of what they are taught at school for WAEC exams. I wrote about it in the Sunday Guardian and the Post Express some twelve to fifteen years ago. Five years back, I put the story all over the Internet, and a few years earlier I produced a book on Oduduwa in my Obobo book series for children. Four years ago, I did a four-part series on Edo history in my Daily Sun's weekly column, which was lost on the public until the Oba of Bini's book reviews woke up our pseudo authorities on Oduduwa. The Yoruba professor's who put a workshop together on Oduduwa history at the EKO FM Multi-purpose Hall in Lagos on Thursday October 7, 2004, were not aware that my write-up preceded the Edo monarch's book reviews, and yet they pretend to be knowledgeable on what is written and when about Oduduwa. So, there is a time, place and opportunity for everything.
Prof Isola Olomola of the OAU's History Dept. claims that Oduduwa could not have been a Benin man. Olomola would not accept such history anyway and his reason is very simple indeed, Olomola is a professor and a Yoruba. He puts no argument forward to buttress his position; instead, he allows his tribal pride to becloud his better judgment. That is not scholarship but an attempt to write history by "ugboju" or terror tactics. Prof. Siyan Oyeweso beats his chest that Oduduwa is not Ekaladerhan and that Oduduwa dropped from the sky. The works of such professor's litter library shelves around our country, distorting our history and keeping us ill informed. To move forward on the Oduduwa issue, Yoruba historians must let go on their two fallacious preoccupations: (a) that Oduduwa dropped from the sky at the beginning of time, and (b) that Oduduwa was the Yoruba progenitor. The Bini do not claim to be the Yoruba progenitors and as Prof. Isola Olomola suggested at the October 7, 2004, workshop on Oduduwa, skeletal remains of a stone-age man has been found at Iwo Eleru, near Isarun in Ondo state, with similar sites also discovered in Ife, Owo, and Asejire. Dating of the sites may need more vigorous investigation and coupled with the facilities of an open mind, we could begin to move forward on the Oduduwa issue. This is what this article on Oduduwa tries to do by asking questions and providing available knowledge in a systematic, comprehensive, and simplified way, to solve the controversy and carry even non-scholars along. My most potent weapon in this regard, is the unraveling of the date of the Oduduwa experience.
When did Oduduwa reign in Ife?
If we can establish the date and time of Oduduwa's interregnum in Ife, most of the mysteries about who he was would be laid to rest. I have solved the problem of date in this article to finally put the Oduduwa controversy to rest. The Yoruba do not know the time of his reign in Ife beyond the speculation that his name was synonymous with Ifa, and that the Ifa divinity was there from the beginning of time. In other words that Oduduwa is as old as time itself. The idea that he was here at the beginning of time is too vague for serious minded people to consider.
The Universe is some 10 to 20 billion years old and the Earth 4.6 billion years. Humans are the late comers on Earth and have evolved over a period of 13 million years albeit as members of the chimpanzee family. We only started looking as we do now (i.e. Homo sapiens) 50,000 to 100,000 years ago. 15,000 years ago to be specific, the human race was still very primitive. The stirring of civilization started in earnest from Black Egypt less than 10,000 years ago. All races of the world originated from the African (Black), and moved to occupy the rest of the earth from Africa. Even when original African settlers all over the world had begun to change in skin colour due to climatic differences and had forgotten their African origins, new waves of Africans continued to invade their old colonies to assert their authority and teach new knowledge. From the Osirian reign in Egypt in 4100 BCE, Africans began to teach the rest of mankind farming, industrialization, commerce, and how to organize cities and nation states, while the African religion, the Mystery System, (which is the mother of all the religions of the world), began its uninterrupted supremacy until about 2000 years ago.
Africans from Egypt colonized Mesopotamia and Elam in 4000 BCE to teach the rudiments of civilization and introduce African religion (spirituality), which with emphasis on Nimrod, carved from the image of Ausar (Osiris), went through several phases to become Zoroastrianism. The African religion also gave birth to the Islamic religion in Persia, 1000 years before the birth of Muhammad. The Dravidians from Ethiopia took Hinduism to India in 3200 BCE. In 1640 BCE, 70 Hebrews entered Egypt but some 3,154,000 African-Hebrews left Egypt in 1230 BCE, under the leadership of the African prince called Moses. Moses trained in the Mystery System as a prince for 40 years and adapted its laws for his followers. Arabs are a hybrid of Africans and Caucasians. Muhammad was born in 570 CE and he adopted the Babylonian (African) religion that was already 1000 years old from Persia during his time.
The reverse dispassion of blacks from the Nile Valley began seriously as a result of the over population of the Valley, then as a consequence of social upheavals, and finally due to Persian 525 BCE, Greek 332 BCE, and Roman 55 BCE invasions of the black race Egypt. The civilizations that emerged from the Egyptian disturbances in the West African sub-region, not in any special order, where Ghana, Chad, Mali, Benin and Songhai, with some dating back to 1500 BCE, at least.
The Bini so far trace their history to perhaps hundreds or thousands of years before 40 BCE when they where called Idu and to 40 BCE specifically, when the Ogiso dynasty began. Thirty-one Ogisos ruled Idu (called Igodomigodo), between 40 BCE and about 1200 CE. The first Ogiso (king) was called Ogiso Igodo and his capital was at Ugbekun. Ogiso Igodo's successor, Ogiso Ere, transferred the capital from Ugbekun to Uhudumwunirin. The last of the Ogiso kings was called Owodo. He reigned in the early 11th century CE and had only one child, a son, despite having many wives. That child, Ekaladerhan, is Oduduwa. All Oduduwa's telltale links with Edo are still there open to investigation. The non-mortal aura of Edo God-son kings since 40 BCE. The sacrosanct first son succeeding father traditional law. The, around 1200 CE, Ogiso succession problems because heir apparent, Ekhaladerha, escaped to Yorubaland. The emergence of Ogieamie chiefdom to sell Edo land at every coronation to Edo Oba elect since 1200 CE. By the above account, Bini historians are saying that Oduduwa's reign in Ife ended around 1200 CE. Yoruba historians confirm that Oduduwa's first child and son was Oronmiyan and that Oronmiyan was the first Alaafin of Oyo. Yoruba historians deliberately avoid discussing the date Oronmiyan ascended the Alaafin throne obviously because that would destroy their myth about when Oduduwa intervened in their lives.
The Bini say the Alaafin's dynasty in Oyo began around 1200 CE. Oronmiyan was in Igodomigodo in 1170 CE, and it was after his sojourn in Igodomigodo that he set up his Oyo dynasty. This date is not difficult for Yoruba historians to verify and if it is true, Oduduwa was alive during his son's sojourn in Igodomigodo and also when the Oyo dynasty came into being. Therefore, the Ife stool could not have become vacant until about 1200 CE. This is not really debatable because Yoruba historians confirm that 37 Oonis reigned in Ife before Akinmoyero in (1770-1800), and that 13 more have reigned since. This enables us to prove the 1200 CE date mathematically. If from 1800 CE to 2004 CE (i.e. a period of 204 years), produced 13 Oonis on the average, how many Oonis could have reigned from 1200 CE to 1800 CE (i.e. a period of 600 years)? The answer is 38 Oonis.
The Ife history of the Ooni dynasty confirms 38 Oonis, including Akinmoyero (1770 - 1800). Here are their names in the ascending order of the period of their reign: Ogun, Osangangan, Obamakin, Ogbogbodirin, Obalufon, Oronmiyan, Ayetise, Lajamisan, Lajodogun, Lafogido, Odidimode Regbesin, Aworokolokun, Ekun, Ajimuda, Gboo-Nijio, Okinlajosin, Adegbalu, Osinkola, Ogbooru, Giesi, Luwoo (female), Lumobi, Agbedegbede, Ojee-Lokunbirin, Lagunja, Larunka, Ademilu, Omogbogbo, Ajila-Oorun, Adejinle, Olojo, Okiti, Lugbade, Aribiwoso, Osinlade, Adagba, Ojigidiri (Lumbua), Akinmoyero (1770 - 1800), Gbanlare (1800 - 1823), Gbegbaaja (1823 - 1835), Wunmonije (1835 - 1839), Adegunle Abewelo (1839 - 1849), Degbinsokun (1849 - 1878), Oranyigba (1878 - 1880), Derin Ologbenla (1880 - 1894), Adelekan Olubuse I (1894 - 1910), Adekola (1910), Ademiluyi Ajagun (1910 - 1930), Adesoji Aderemi (1930 - 1970), and the current Ooni Okunade Sijuwade Olubuse II, whose reign dates from 1980. Obviously, Oronmiyan, the first child and son of Oduduwa, did not inherit his father's throne, which is the genesis of the quarrel between the true Oduduwa's heirs and the Ooni's dynasty.
Oduduwa's eight children (as claimed by Yoruba historians), are known as the Obalades or crowned chiefs of Yorubaland. The argument is that not all Yoruba Obas have genuine crowns; only the Obalades are the exception and consist of the Alaafin of Oyo, the Oregun of Ile Ila, the Alake of Egbaland, the Owaoboku of Ijeshaland, the Alaketu of Ketu, the Owa of Ilesa and two Obas in the Republic of Benin as follows: the Onipopo of Popo and the Onisabe of Sabe. What this means in effect is that Yoruba civilization did not start in earnest until the reign of Oduduwa and his sons. All leading Yoruba historians agree on this.
In fact, we know that it was from early twelfth century that Ife grew into a large city surrounded by walls, inhabited mostly by farmers and some skilled craftsmen who created great works of arts respected around the world today. The famous Ife bronze, terracotta works, statues in baked clay, some representing the Ooni dressed in full regalia, are among the world's greatest works of art. Some of the terracotta were so large and complex, it is impossible to bake them today even with modern technology. All these date back to the eleventh century CE.
Because Ogun, the first Ooni after the demise of Oduduwa, was not Oduduwa's child, he was not considered an Obalade by Yoruba tradition and elite. Ogun was a chief with spiritual responsibilities. He usurped the Ife throne because the true heirs to the throne were busy else where at the time of their father's death. Ogun out maneuvered the children of Oduduwa over the Ife throne with his superior knowledge of the inner working of the Ooni'spalace, and his spiritual prowess as the head of the Ogun shrine. Oduduwa's true heirs have been smarting over this ever since.
Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the Premier of the Western Region of Nigeria in the early sixties, strengthened the hands of the Oonis, and facilitated their prominence in Yorubaland by appointing Oba Adesoji Aderemi, the Ooni of Ife at the time, as the first Governor of the now defunct Western Region of Nigeria. Oba Adesoji Aderemi's ascendance was consolidated with his Chairmanship of the Western Region's Council of Obas that at the time entrapped the Edo Oba. With such immense political power of his own, and the political influence and authority of Awolowo as the leader of the Yoruba, no one could raise a finger against the supposed illegitimacy of the Ooni'sdynasty in Yorubaland. The Bini, of course, were worst hit as a voiceless minority in Awolowo's Western Region's politics of tribal exclusion and domination.
The Oduduwa lineage tried to fight back by identifying with the NPN in opposition to the UPN. Awolowo accentuated the schism by promoting the emergence of Bode Thomas, a young and dynamic lawyer from Oyo. Bode, with Awolowo's clout, wielded considerable political power in Oyo to the point of being rude to the Alaafin, who was alleged to have put a curse on him. Bode became mad to the chagrin of Awolowo, who promptly banished the Alaafin from his Oyo throne. Just as the Oduduwa's legitimate heirs and the Yoruba elite generally, have always known and concealed the quarrel over the Ife throne, the Bini have always known their history and borne the pains of not being able to act on it because Chief Awolowo was unassailable and had turned the Ooni dynasty into a colossus to cow all opposition.
Another way of confirming Oduduwa's 1200 CE demise date in Ife, is to look into the famous account of valour during Oduduwa's reign when an external invasion by the Igbos from the East took place. The record can easily be traced and Moremi's courage came to the fore at the time for sacrificing her life for the safety of her people. From 1200 CE to 2004 CE is only 804 years, so the Yoruba should stop deceiving themselves that Oduduwa dropped from the skies at the beginning of time or that Ife is the "source" of the universe. Ife is "Uhe", meaning Oduduwa's re-birth, or successful re-location from Bini land of his ancestors.
Where did Oduduwa come from in Yoruba myth?
The Yoruba story about Oduduwa is extremely thin on substance. What we have is wrapped largely in myths, parables, and folktales. In fact, the most generous way to describe the story is that the Yoruba do not know anything about their highly revered progenitor. Oduduwa himself left a tell tale evidence of his ancestry in his lifetime. He reserved a special seat in his palace for his ancestors, which only the Bini monarch can sit on even now. No other human, whether Arab, Eskimo, Alaafin, Ooni, or Yoruba, (bleached or not), can sit on the seat. Despite this vivid evidence that has survived through the centuries, some Yoruba historians still claim that he was from somewhere in Arabia.
Any place from Egypt to Lebanon to Iraq to Saudi Arabia has been mentioned, and the Yoruba professor's strongest proof of Oduduwa's Arabian ancestry so far is that he was light in complexion. This may have influenced some heirs of Oduduwa, who have been accused of serious attempt at bleaching. The "light" in complexion argument could place Oduduwa's origin any where in the world from Edo, to China, to Britain, to Mexico, but who dares fault our professors who passed their exams on European history? The Saudi Arabian origin theory is not popular with the Ijebus who erroneously claim Wadai as their roots. Those linking Oduduwa with Iraq claim that he descended from Lamurudu (the Nimrod of Babylon's myth). Nimrod was not an historical figure but a myth constructed from the life image of Ausar, the god of the Chaldeans, who invaded and colonized Persia from 4000 BCE. In any case, is it not dishonest to try to link 6000-year-old ancestry with 900-year-old personalities, without authentic and verifiable historical documents or DNA test? You can deceive the illiterate with myths but Nigerians are becoming more and more educated now.
There is another school of thought among some Yoruba historians claiming that Oduduwa came from the East. Some Yoruba historians are more specific and claim that Oduduwa first settled on a hill East of the valley over-looking the native Yoruba settlements. If he settled first in the Eastern side of the hamlet, isn't there a good chance that he may have come from that side too? Bini would appear to be more East of Yorubaland than any Arabian country. The argument that the native Yoruba people probably did not know their East from their North is not tenable because the same people told us that the Igbos attacked them from the East in Moremi's story, and both the Bini and the Igbos are East of Yorubaland.
Who was Oduduwa in Yoruba myth?
There is a measure of agreement between the Yoruba and Bini historians about who Oduduwa was. The Bini say he was their prince. All Yoruba historians agree that Oduduwa was a noble and some say he is a god. Many settle for a prince with impeccable royal blood and immense spiritual powers. The Yoruba historians tell us that Oduduwa was the first ruler of the Yoruba people.
There is no mention in any Arabian historical records of a prince of such illustrious ancestry who abandoned his privileged ranks at home and moved several hundreds of miles through bush paths to live in the West African jungle. Such incidents do not happen casually or without clear excuse such as a jihad or war of conquest, and when it did, all tribes along their routes felt their impact one way or the other. In the case of Oduduwa, mum is the word from the Northern flanks of Yorubaland all the way through the jungle to the other side of the Mediterranean Sea.
The God-son origin claim by Oduduwa
Oduduwa's claim to uniqueness loses its enigma when traced to its Bini source because Bini history precedes Oduduwa's intervention in Ife by some 1240 years. Arabs do not make such a claim, not even for Muhammad.
The Bini version is that Osanobua decided to populate the Earth, so, Osanobua sent four sons, each with a choice of peculiar gift. The oldest three of the sons were spirits. The first chose to have wealth, the next chose wisdom and the third chose magical skills. As the fourth and youngest was about to make his choice known, Owonwon cried out to him to settle for a snail shell. This he did. When the canoe the four children were travelling in reached the middle of the waters, the youngest son turned his snail shell upside down to release endless stream of sand resulting in the emergence of land from the waters. The four sons at first were afraid to step on the land from the canoe. To test the firmness of the land, they sent the Chameleon, which is why Chameleons walk with hesitation. On stepping on the land, only the youngest son turned human, the others remained spirits.
Osanobua came down with a chain from the sky, to allocate responsibilities. Osanobua gave the oldest son control of the waters. The Bini call this son, Olokun (meaning the god of the river). The other two children had spirit freedom to balance out the negative and positive forces of nature. Osanobua appointed the youngest son as ruler of the earth. The son called the earth (agbon), and promptly set up his headquarters at Idu which later became Igodomigodo. Osanobua then settled in the realm of the spirit world across the waters, where the sky and the earth meet.
The Ifa myth of creation draws significantly from the Bini and Egyptian corpus. It claims that Olodumare sent his son, Orunmila, (another name for Oduduwa), from heaven on a chain, carrying a five-legged cockerel, a palm-nut and a handful of earth. Before then, the entire earth surface was covered with water. Oduduwa scattered the earth on water; the cockerel scattered it with its claws so that it became dry land. The palm-nut grew into a tree representing the eight crowned rulers of Yoruba land. Oduduwa had eight children who later dispersed to found and rule other Yoruba communities. The Yoruba myth of creation is community based, confirming lineal relationship with it's (earth based Bini, and universe based Egyptian), mother sources.
Religion as a tool for unraveling Oduduwa's origin
No Yoruba historian has been able to prove yet, Oduduwa's Arab names. As an illustrious Arabian prince, Oduduwa must have been a staunch Moslem, but Yoruba historians have failed to enlighten us so far about how he adjusted so easily to the Ifa mysteries. Oduduwa did not invent Ifa but appears to have been a strong adherent and custodian of it so effortlessly. For a Moslem with possible jihadist credentials, Oduduwa's easy conversion to Ifa must have been a great feat considering Muhammad's open rage against what he called, serving more than one God.
To try to overcome this observation, some Yoruba historians claim that Oduduwa was an idol worshipper who escaped from persecution during Arabian antiquity. Well, Muhammad's era does not equate with the beginning of time. It was less than 1500 years ago, 700 years before the demise of Oduduwa, and encompassing a period of rather modern documentation of history. There is no record so far from the Yoruba tribe or outside it, at least, about an illustrious Arabian prince, who escaped persecution at home to surface in Yoruba West Africa in the last 800 years because he was an idol worshipper. That would have been headline news anywhere in the world, wouldn't it?
No Ifa major ritual or ceremony is considered genuine or acceptable to the gods or ancestors without being wrapped in Edo traditions and involving a typical Bini traditional faith custodian, from Oduduwa's time until now. This is because both Ifa and Bini traditional faiths have a strong common source, which explains Oduduwa's easy assimilation into the Ifa traditions. Oduduwa was the spiritual leader of Ifa divinity. The Yoruba (who call Tu-SoS, Olodumare), saw Oduduwa as a direct descendant. His banishment link with the God-son (Ogisos) was kept a secret from the Yoruba. In fact, the Yoruba believed he was a deity from the sky and accorded him great reverence as their leading ancestor and spiritual icon.
The Bini say there are two aspects of man. One half is ehi, which is the spirit essence and the other half is the omwa, which is the physical person. The two interchange existences seven times each, to produce in totality the fourteen phases of human existence. Before birth, the ehi (the spirit essence) of the individual humbly goes before Osanobua (Tu-SoS), to ask for the kind of life he wishes to live on earth (agbon). The requests obviously are made with a baby's innocence of rights and wrongs and the weight of the karmic debit and credit baggage of the individual from previous life styles. However, the choice of the new life style is patently and entirely the individual's, and could be any or a combination of scenarios. He may want to be a powerful magician, a rich businessman or farmer, a great warrior, a happy or unhappy family man, a wimp or beggar, a revered medicine man, a famous chief or popular king and even a notorious thief.
The request process is called hi and leads to Osanobua stamping his sacred staff on the floor to seal the wishes. The secret wishes are only known to ehi who is entrusted with the responsibility of ensuring that his second half (omwa) keeps to the promises made before Osanobua. The Bini, however, believe that their ancestors can intercede on their behalf, when faced with failure in life. This apparently is in contradiction of the popular notion of destiny being immutable but then, what is a man's life worth without hope?
In Yoruba mythology, Olodumare is the Almighty Tu-SoS whose sixteen ministers serve as intermediaries between Tu-SoS and mortals because (Tu-SoS) Olodumare is too great and remote. The ministers include Orunmila, the God of wisdom, Obatala, the God of creativity, Ogun, the God of Iron and Shango (Jakuta), the God of lightening, just like the attributes of the Sefiroth of the Jews. Obatala has the responsibility of creating human forms, while Orunmila endows the forms with sense. Obatala was revered as a great artist and yet deformities continued to smear his record in creating perfect human images. He rushed back to Olodumare to request for the power to mould only perfect human forms. Ajalorun, the gatekeeper to heaven, laughed and put Obatala through a learning process to demonstrate that humans choose what they would look like or become, before birth, and not even Obatala could change that. In other words, failure or success in life depends on ones chosen destiny, says the Yoruba. Destiny is chosen by ori or ori-inu (the inside of ones head or inner essence. Therefore, ori-inu alone, and no one else, knows the content of the chosen destiny. Ori is the spiritual essence of man and precedes him to life, sheds part to animate and monitor the physical self on earth while the other part stays behind with the Creator. The part that animates life returns to the other half on the death of the animated physical body on earth.
This, of course, means that there are two sides to man. The ori-inu, which is identified by the Yoruba with the head, and the eniyan (which is identified with the heart) and includes aspirations, desires, feelings and thoughts. When aspirations fail to tally with immutable destiny, the head and the heart are said to be in conflict and to minimize or prevent this tendency the Yoruba have developed prayerful songs to extol the ori-inu to harmonize with eniyan while on earth. This peculiar song is translated by Prof. E.D. Babatunde to English (published in ?Bini and Yoruba Notions of Human Personality: the Substance of African Philosophy, edited by C.S. Momoh, African Philosophy Projects Publications, Auchi, Nigeria, 2000).
My inner self, steer me to a good course,
My director, allocate a good place for me,
I look up to you.
My inner self, do not spoil my endeavours,
Come and make my life successful,
Hearken to my call,
Because if I want to have money, I ask it from you.
If I want many children,
I will plead for them through you.
My inner self, please do not frustrate my
efforts to look up to you.
The central figure in Ifa divinity is Orunmila, the God of wisdom who, in Yoruba myth, was witness to earth?s creation. You can't go further in human history than that. Oduduwa's link with immortality comes from his sometimes being equated with Orunmila in Yoruba myth. Orunmila uses his special insight as a witness to creation, to guide, help, and teach the 401 spirits sent to earth to organize the world. The spirits include gods of fire, iron, vegetation, thunder, eshu, and goddesses such as, Yemoja the goddess of fertility. These are specialized pockets of karmic or electromagnetic vibrancies, incorporating the spirits of ancestors, who performed incredible feats when alive. They are neither good nor bad, just spiritual energies to tap into for selfish and other ends.
"Ifa" sounds like the Bini "Iha". Both divinations are oral, secretive in dimension and thrive on words of wisdom from the obvious to the proverbial, the mystical to the esoteric. They are gigantic memory banks of words on all sorts of events on earth and under the heavens. No issue is too trivial to preserve and the information bank'ssubjects range from births to deaths of the lowly and the kings, wars, evolution of great and small empires and nations, journeys, marriages, quarrels, etc. Every incidence imaginable is carefully catalogued, itemized and stored away ready to be accessed by the trained mind at will. The knowledge banks are constantly being replenished and updated to make them ever fresh, relevant, and comprehensive.
Both Ifa and Iha religious traditions use myths, parables, proverbs, symbols, magic and numbers to conceal truth from the non-initiates. Initiates go through long and tedious periods of training where teachings are memorized rather than written down. Ifa and Iha students start between the ages 7-10. Progress between training grades is slow and laborious, subjecting students to memory and bodily ordeals and tests. Only the very fit, tough, and determined can survive and complete the training and graduate. Many drop by the wayside. Students graduate 12 years later as philosopher-priests, known as Babalawos (or Awos) in Ifa and Obos in Bini. The Ifa library of wisdom is called Odu ifa and consists of 256 verses divided into 16 chapters of 250 minor categories. An Awo, apart from memorizing all these, must be able to recognize and interpret the 16 major signs and the 240 minor ones as they appear or fall in divination.
Language in aid of history
Language is a legitimate tool for constructing history and all the names associated with Oduduwa have deeper roots in Bini language than in the Yoruba. The Arabs or the Yoruba, do not have words like "Uhe" (the sacred name for Bini and Ile-Ife, or words ending with "duwa", "noyan" or "miyan", which are typical Bini vowels. "Uhe" is perhaps the most powerful and revealing of all the Bini names associated with Ile-Ife because depending on how it is pronounced, it could refer to something sacred or taboo (such as Virgin or Virginity or Vagina), interpreted as innocence, source, birth canal.
Oduduwa is not the ancestor of the Yoruba
Many Yoruba historians have canvassed the view that Oduduwa was not the Yoruba ancestor and we have now proved it that Oduduwa entered Yoruba history about 900 years ago. There were Yoruba people living in the hamlets Oduduwa stumbled upon. But Oduduwa and his children, the Obalades organized the Yoruba into a nation state and civilized them. Oduduwa was the first ruler in all of Yoruba land and was seen as the Yoruba spiritual progenitor. He introduced them to the idea of rulership. Bini history precedes Oduduwa's by at least 1,240 years because 31 Ogisos ruled Igodomigodo between 40 BCE - 1200 CE.
Those 1,240 years of early Bini history could not have been deliberately constructed to coincide with Oduduwa's intervention in Ife so that the Bini could claim to have been the progenitors of the Yoruba? It is the Yoruba that are looking to be someone's progenitors anyway. Edo simply states the fact that between 1100 and 1200 CE, her Prince Ekhaladerha took 1,240 years of illustrious Edo civilization to some remote non-Edo hamlets he named Uhe (re-birth) and his domicile he named Ilefe (successful escape), and woke up the Yoruba race.
According to Ovbia Oba Edu Akenzua in his book, Ekaladerhan, the issue is not about whether or not the relationship between Benin and Ife existed, its existence has been proven beyond doubt by anthropological and folkloric evidence. Songs and rituals are performed in both Benin and Ife today which eulogize the link with nostalgia, relish and pride.
The Yoruba hamlets, Ekhaladarha eventually settled in were obviously no where as sophisticated as Igodomigodo. Yoruba historians attest to the contrast in sophistication between the kingdom Oduduwa was coming from and the Yoruba villages he joined. The question now is, why a people as sophisticated in political and social administration, tablening a period of 1,240 years, would be looking to some unknown alien villages for a king at a time of crisis? Unless through military conquest, such adventure is not normal and the Oduduwa's hamlets in Yoruba land at the time were not known to have conquered even their neighbours let alone to have ventured as far away from home as Igodomigodo.
Ovbia Oba Edu Akenzua again, at the time when the event took place, Uhe had no record of a ruler, let alone a famous one, from whom neighbouring countries could make such a request. Why did the people of Igodomigodo choose Uhe, instead of another place, which is perhaps nearer, to go and request for a king?The argument that a patently powerful kingdom like Igodomigodo, reached out to her son Ekhaladerhan, to plead with him to return home to his father's throne, is not so outlandish after all. Especially considering that the people of Igodomigodo put a great deal of premium on the first son of their king inheriting the father's throne. Ogiso by the way means rulers from the sky or God-son kings, which explains why the people of Igodomigodo were averse to mere mortals ruling them. It had to be the Ogiso's first son and no body else, and that is still the case today. The Oba of Bini's first son is the heir apparent to the Bini throne.
Bini Obaship is one of the most revered institutions in the world because of the way it has sustained its awesome prestige with strict and meticulous attention to ancient traditions of valour, discipline and integrity. Bini chieftaincy titles cannot be bought or conferred on non-indigenes or frivolously. Every Bini chief performs a peculiarly sacred duty and responsibility to the people of Bini. It does not make sense, therefore, to think that a people who would not and have never conferred their chieftaincy titles on non-indigenes, would voluntarily invite, accept, or surrender to non-indigenes as their kings. Due to celestial origins, the Edo monarch cannot eat out and cannot be diverted from full time palace duties to hustle for contracts. In fact, he cannot function outside the palace confines without divine sanction.
NAIWU OSAHON Hon. Khu Mkuu (Leader, Pan-African Movement world-wide); Ameer Spiritual (Spiritual Prince) of the African race; MSc. (Salford); Dip.M.S; G.I.P.M; Dip. I.A (Liv.); D. Inst. M; G. Inst. M; G.I.W.M; A.M.N.I.M.
Awarded: Key to the City of Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Honourary Councilmanship, Memphis City Council; Honourary Citizenship, County of Shelby; Honourary Commissionership, County of Shelby, Tennessee and a silver trophy from Morehouse College, Atlanta, USA for his contributions to the unity and uplift of his race.
Article source http://www.raceandhistory.com/
Below is obviously NOT BAOSA latest NEC report but a place holder for the real McCoy which will be displayed when available. Objective here is !!!! TESTING !!!!
By Odia Ofeimun 06-04-2016
The truth of the matter is that even if anyone rejects the fact “that Ife Monarchy is derived from Igodo monarchy”, it changes nothing about the reality that the Monarchy in Benin City is still Number One among Oduduwa’s children. I mean: let it be assumed that Oduduwa came from Egypt, Mecca, Sudan, Ethiopia (where the Oromo Region has a nationality fraction called Oromiyas) or from Orun, as heaven or a place we do not know, with a chain made of iron if not some other metal, it does not change the fact that the dumb one who learnt to talk by naming himself Owomika, ‘my hand has stuck it’, the first Benin monarch after the Ogisos, was the first child of Oramiyan whose children built the empires that our part of the world remembers.
I am a Republican, not a Royalist. But, in a country in which we have all conceded the coexistence of Republican and Royalist values, it should be considered quite unseemly to watch one set of the interacting values being rough-handled, muddied or treated with improper decorum without feeling a need to intervene on behalf of rectitude. I have been so challenged since the eruption of the controversy ignited by the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, who allowed himself to do a ranking of Yoruba Obas that placed the Oba of Benin as third in the hierarchy. In one sense, as Chief David Edebiri, the Esogban of Benin, immediately retorted, it is wrong to rank the Oba of Benin among Yoruba Obas because the Oba of Benin is not a Yoruba and therefore cannot be placed on a list of Yoruba Obas. I call it ‘in a sense’ because the Esogban’s position may be disputed on the grounds, as will soon be clear, that there is too much siblinghood between Yoruba and Benin traditional rulers for the ethnic difference between them to be rendered in cast-iron terms.
The special relationship between Yoruba and Benin obas, not unlike the relationship between Benin and Onitsha kings, or between Lagos and Edo kings, makes it all the more impolitic to do a ranking of the Benin monarchy in Yoruba royal affairs without abiding by certain inter-subjective and shared norms. And let me note, very quickly, that it is the presence of such norms that makes it quite normal for Chief Edebiri to put the Oba of Benin as Number One without appearing to contradict himself. In his response to the Alake, Chief Edebiri has argued, quite simply, that the term oba was not used to describe Yoruba kings until the Oba of Benin got there. This may well be disputed. Except that it has the merit of being close to verisimilitude when he argues that the king of Ibadan was called Olu, the king of Abeokuta was called Alake, the king of Oyo was called Alaafin; only the Benin monarch was Oba. With the backing of glotto-cultural studies, however, we should be able to impute that the term, Oba, is a root word shared by both the Yoruba and the Edo languages and that among the sixteen kings that reigned in Ile-Ife before the arrival of Oduduwa’s party, many had Oba as prefix to their names. To say this amounts to jumping ahead of the argument a little. But let me add, for those who are not familiar with this piece of anthropology, that Oduduwa, the acknowledged founder-ancestor, the progenitor of the Yoruba nationality, was a stranger who met a historical line of obas in Ile Ife, the last of whom was Obatala, the leader of the Igbo, the autochthons, later deified as god of creativity or creation, sometimes synced with Orunmila, for wisdom. Make your pick.
Let me also add that from the studies of the Ifa divination system made by several scholars, as imbibed from traditional Ifa devotees, it is those sixteen elders whom Oduduwa met in Ife that provided the sub-structure of Ifa as a formal system of wisdom into which people could be initiated in the way that we all go to tertiary institutions to learn philosophy, jurisprudence and mathematics. Or mathemagics, if you like. It is of very grave significance in this narrative that we should acknowledge that the Ifa Divination system, before the intervention of Islam, Christianity, and Lord Frederick Lugard’s balkanisation and regionalisation of traditional gnosis, was based on the existential patterns or prowess of the sixteen elders, or kings, who formed the planks upon which the wisdom of the people, by ritual accretions, was organised. Every good student of Ifa should know that in the Edo Divination system of Igwega, two of the sixteen elders have been displaced by Edo personages who are not to be found in the Ife version as designed by Agbonmiregun, the Master, who went from Ekiti to Ile Ife and established the rounded system of Ifa Divination as passed by other masters between the Edo, Nupe, Igala and Yoruba devotees. It can be imagined that, as a matter of ritual, they gathered at Ife, which was quite the centre of their world, for a divination that transcended ethnicities but was based on a common worship of the earth mother, Efa. All the forest peoples, from Dahomey to the Cameroon mountains, across the Nri of Igboland and past Ogoja, were devotees of one form or other of Ifa Divination. The historian, Ade Obayemi, has imputed that so many concepts in Yoruba Ifa, which some devotees may regard as mumbo jumbo, are actually Nupe terms that proper glotto-cultural analysis and translation could redeem. This partly explains why Benin Kings could induct or abduct and adopt Igbo medicine men who became part of the common national culture, as Egharevba, the Benin historian vouchsafes. What a linguistic, glotto-cultural analysis tells us is that in Ile-ife, before the dispersal occasioned by Oduduwa’s emergence, the Yoruba language, as one among many in the Kwa language complex, was once the same language with others including the Igbo and that they still share common root words beyond the simple ones like Omi and miri.
So if Chief Edebiri’s resort to linguistic analysis wont help a resolution of the ranking of the Yoruba obas, what will? I suppose it is the discomfort of trying to answer such a question, and the fear of being wrong-footed in a bid to dabble into what appears to be quite esoteric, that has warded off many of the dignitaries who have been asked by journalists to respond to the controversy. Some of them think it a needless controversy that could detract from more worthwhile issues of the moment. True, there are crying problems that our society needs to face and resolve. Some political entrepreneurs who require a united front in order not to disperse collective energies have been quick to advise against worsening of the already existing inter-ethnic divisions in our midst. Somehow, they do not consider that to ignore the controversy or down play its driven logic, could harden the ranking that has been attempted and, to that extent, make it quite affirmable with the accretion of time. Of course, those who are already convinced of its veracity and have lived in the shadow of its ritualised affirmation, all their lives, would want the ranking to remain as they know it. Hence, they act bored by the controversy and would therefore wish that we move on quickly to other matters. Unfortunately, (or fortunately, depending on how you see it) the controversy won’t go away.
It happens to be the case that the ranking of the Obas takes on a life of its own within every effort to build a sense of common nationality among Yoruba people. Every bid by the Yoruba to unite under a common leader or in conformity with a presumption of common ancestry, has always yielded one form of such ranking or the other. It has become part of a modernist or modernising project which nation-builders escape only when they are able to put the knowledge industry at the centre of their quest.
At any rate, this is not the first time it has visited or reared its head. The ranking, as it happens, is so deeply rooted in the ethnic unconscious of some people that there is good reason for the palace in Benin City to wish, with each eruption of the controversy, to put the records, or lack of records, straight. It happens to be the case that the ranking of the Obas takes on a life of its own within every effort to build a sense of common nationality among Yoruba people. Every bid by the Yoruba to unite under a common leader or in conformity with a presumption of common ancestry, has always yielded one form of such ranking or the other. It has become part of a modernist or modernising project which nation-builders escape only when they are able to put the knowledge industry at the centre of their quest. Especially, with the establishment of the Egbe Omo Oduduwa on home ground in 1948, the business of building up such a knowledge industry, creating a formal historiography to get it right, has been part of every bid at nation-building. With bounding successes in research and publications, everything seemed to be going fine before the regression that came with political crisis in the sixties and the virtual abandonment of the enlightenment project that Obafemi Awolowo is still rightly praised for.
It is a surprise to many Nigerians that despite the huge amount of money which runs into billions of naira given yearly to the senators and rep members as constituency allowances, they also get mouth-watering monies as wardrobes, communication, security, travelling and other protocol allowances. All these monies put together are enough even for an oil tycoon to grow green with envy.
Frankly, it has since boiled down to the old saw about putting things in books if you want to hide them from Africans. Otherwise, too many scholars, Yoruba and non-Yoruba, in our midst, unrecognised by a thoroughly philistine, anti-enlightenment elite, have sweated their lives out researching and correcting the whimsical, myth-suffused folklore and the ultra-parochial rendering of the past that many of our leaders regard as history, with a capital H. The result is that, with so much cultural illiteracy abounding, we all go mucking around with woolly and crooked thoughts about ourselves and our neighbours to the detriment of social and political projects that could save our part of the world from backwardness and decay. Specific to the ranking of the Yoruba Obas: So deeply ingrained is the ranking among not only the Obas, but many Yoruba big wigs! The palace in Benin City has had to be effusively vigilant, on perpetual watch, as it were, rebutting every indication of a resurgence of the claim. It happens to be a claim that many, including Professors of History, lacking the requisite cultural literacy have humoured with shrugs and incipient concordance in order not to be wrong-footed by popular opinionating. Surely, being only too willing to wish the sleeping dog of history back to sleep whenever it is roused by controversy, they wittingly or unwittingly, contribute to allowing the already stated position to remain the unspoken but reigning truth of the matter. The implication, even if unintended, is that they withdraw enthusiasm from the need to clear the mushy debris of insupportable folklore that masquerades as history. They contribute to the death of historical consciousness in our part of the world.
What must be borne in mind in the case of the Alake’s recent pronouncement on the ranking of Yoruba Obas is that it happened during a visit by the newly crowned Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, who has been making commendable representations on behalf of Yoruba unity since his elevation to the throne. His definitive un-jinxing of the hiatus between the Ife and Oyo monarchies, by a visit that dammed several decades of distancing, has raised enormous and quite salutary vibes across the country. Much beyond Yorubaland. One wishes that it was actually always the case that we had Obas, like him, who would stop distracting their people with arguments about the past that divide rather than bring people together. As such, it was to be expected that visits between kings of different communities swearing descent from a common ancestor would yield some brag, and even some luxuriating in sheer grandiloquence, for the sake of ethnic pride and national self-glorification. Quite understandable. In such situations, all traditional cultures in the world, seeking to have their day in the sun, have tended always to confer even other-worldly features on their monarchs as a form of self promotion for the tribe, nation or race. In particular, new Obas have tended to attract a hyper-inflation of oriki and other panegyrics in order to match the character sketch of an igbakejiorisa, a virtual divinity. Such moments in history inspire what, in his essay on “The Monarchical Tendency in African Political Culture”, Ali Mazrui describes in the context of the quest for aristocratic effect, the personalisation of authority, the sacralisation of authority and the quest for a royal historical identity. In the case of the Ooni Ogunwusi, until the Alake’s ‘goof’ which the Benin Palace has rebutted, something ethereally all-accommodating, sanguine, and salutary seemed to be attending to his forthright bid for unity wherever he went. Now, clearly, what has been pulled out of the bag by the Alake, even if returned to the bag, can no longer spell in a way that will make all comfortable.
It calls to be taken in hand and dealt with in a manner that will not continue to put the Nigerian Project at the mercy of poorly designed ethnic projects. Indeed, now that the Alake, through his media spokesman, has insisted that his ranking of the obas is bam on the mark, and not retractable, it calls for a serious engagement of the issues beyond reliance on work-a-day folklore. To be sure, his insistence may be quite benign in the context of intra-ethnic muscle-flexing which may cause only mild grating, such as when the Alafin of Oyo haggles with the Ooni over decades, as to who is superior. But when the matter goes inter-cultural, applied in a multi-ethnic situation, it can get truly pernicious, with grave repercussions; enough to unsettle the balance of respect between neighbours. This is especially so when all the verifiable propositions to the contrary are dismissed without a second thought; such that the cooping of ethnic self-assurance, on the one hand, is turned into a means of thumbing noses at or down-grading neighbours who, on the other hand, have been no less illustrious from antiquity to the present.
Let’s face it: between the Edo and the Yoruba, those who wish that all of us should live by myths can be seen as strategically roughening up the insuperable distinctiveness of the Edo people within a notion of the siblinghood of their palaces. What they may not realise, and therefore need to be told, is that it gets truly atavistic, when others claim you as sibling only in order to degrade or down-grade what you are. It has the same kind of feel as the myth which makes a distinction between Hausa Bakwai and Hausa Banza with a peculiar cunning of history built into it.
The core issue is that, whether intended or not, the ranking of the obas across ethnic boundaries implies an attempt at a form of suzerainty of one ethnic group or nationality over another. By imputing a vertical ordering of sorts, it puts a dubious historical stamp on sheer fictions that could be truly disorienting. In an age when, as we know, aspiring internal colonialists begin the quest for assimilation or overcoming of others by, first, having to invent whimsy as a verity of times and tides, it can get quite far reaching. Who needs to be told that such tides must be stemmed before they harden into inscrutable canon! Or, let me put it this way: that as someone with an instinctive intellectual empathy with all ethnic groups craving for self governance, seeking unity in their ranks or working to disperse the succubus of a unitarised federalism that rampages across and assaults our God-given and highly creative diversity, I would seriously invite all Nigerians to abhor the over-parochial presumption that seeks to put others down in the process of crafting a new sense of self for any ethnic nationality. Who can tell what could be made of a cunningly designed myth of ethnic super-ordinance as a means of turning the freeborn into a non-citizen in his father’s house? This is not just a matter of rhetoric. It raises questions, not to be taken lightly, in the face of a new Ooni, preaching unity of the Yoruba people, at a time when dithering Yoruba elites, annoyingly self-deprecatory in normal times, have been finally goaded by hard times, to reach the point of agreeing to join in forging a united economic front around the Odua Investments; with Lagos joining the fold. It begins to serve as a warning or a threat, however, when a paramount Oba, such as the Alake, claiming fourth position in the hierarchy of Yoruba Obas, chooses to flaunt one myth that has been permanently disputed by a neighbour for as long as it has surfaced. Even for people who do not normally care about such things, it begins to grate, when it is realised that such ranking is based on myths that cannot even bear forensic scrutiny.
Let’s face it: between the Edo and the Yoruba, those who wish that all of us should live by myths can be seen as strategically roughening up the insuperable distinctiveness of the Edo people within a notion of the siblinghood of their palaces. What they may not realise, and therefore need to be told, is that it gets truly atavistic, when others claim you as sibling only in order to degrade or down-grade what you are. It has the same kind of feel as the myth which makes a distinction between Hausa Bakwai and Hausa Banza with a peculiar cunning of history built into it. It could be worse when it comes from a very unnecessary wish to assimilate others while negating their interests through a cold indifference to facts, thus turning whimsical mythology into history.
The good part is that in an age when History is being displaced by so much cant, ignored and muddied by those who prefer to re-invent the past as a means of achieving modern ambitions at other people’s expense, there are criteria of ascertainment of knowledge which can be deployed to test the veracity of narratives. No matter how cleverly or high-mindedly such narratives try to overcome what is already known or knowable, the point is that they can be defeated by invoking the awesome wealth of information at the behest of contemporary knowledge industries. I dare say that on this matter of the ranking of the Obas, the saving grace is that all the information needed to decide one way or the other can be found in debates that have been going on, for decades, among historians and anthropologists, disquisitions between cultural philosophers and the search for balance between literary critics.
In my book, In Search of Ogun: Soyinka In Spite of Nietzsche (2014), I have pooled together a number of the strands in order to indicate the necessity for movement away from metaphysical dead ends and the parochial dredge of many of the arguments which over-privilege inward-looking ethnic issues rather than their universalistic implications. The point is that ethnic solidarity may be quite a good workshop for developing values that are relevant for wider activism in the promotion of shared human values, but the latter must always be properly minded to obviate the tendency for self-apprehension to be turned into the case of a snake eating its own tail unto death. I see it as a case for unveiling supposedly esoteric or secret knowledge, making public property of arcane issues of cults and conclaves, such that, for instance, we can appreciate the reality of Yoruba people who may worship a deified Edo personage; Edo people who are devotees of a Yoruba god; and the treason of history which can confront people of different ethnic groups, even enemy nationalities, with the reality of a common ancestor. In Soyinka In Spite of Nietzsche, I contend with principles and values that promise astute approaches to management science and management of society by looking through and beyond positions that are derivable from the gods our ancestors worshipped. I am concerned that it is because we do not always keep the right perspectives on such matters that, adding the ranking of Obas, we run into major altercations. For the purpose of this write-up, my intention is to dwell less on metaphysics and issues of cultural philosophies. I wish to engage current issues by recalling and engaging one of the many altercations that came to a head in 2004, yielding a big blow-out between Ooni Olubuse and Oba Erediauwa, after the latter’s publication of his autobiography, I Remain, Sir, Your Obedient Servant in which he devoted a chapter to ‘The Benin-Ife Connection’.
As Edo traditions have it, Ogiso Owodo was advised by the oracle to have his son Ekaladeran executed for being the source of the unhappiness in the land during his reign. Unaware that he was being deceived, he sent the public executioner, Oka Odionmwan, to do the job. But the executioner decided to have pity on Ekaladeran and “on reaching the outskirts of the city” let him off. From there the prince wandered into the world, settling alone, first in Ughoton, where the elders gave him hospitality, before he moved to a village on the outskirts of Ile-Ife.
In that particular chapter of the book, Oba Erediauwa questions the veracity of the two versions of the origins of the Benin monarchy that came from Egharevba’s authoritative and highly regarded A Short History of Benin. In the first edition, Egharevba wrote: “Many many years ago, Odua (Oduduwa) of Uhe (Ile-Ife), the father and progenitor of the Yoruba kings sent his eldest son Obagodo – who took the title of Ogiso – with a large retinue all the way from Uhe to found a Kingdom in this part of the world”.
…”And in the fourth (and now current) edition of the book, the late author wrote: “Many, many years ago, the Binis came all the way from Egypt to found a more secure shelter in this part of the world after a short stay in the Sudan and at Ile-Ife, which the Benin people called Uhe…The rulers or kings were commonly known as “Ogiso” before the arrival of Oduduwa and his party at Ife in Yorubaland, about the 12th century of the Christian era”.
Anyone reading the two versions in the first and fourth editions will be tempted to agree with Erediauwa that there were interpolations that amounted to a bias in the narrative. One may not agree with Erediauwa’s claim that Egharevba’s “Edo ne’kue (Edo-Akure – partly Benin partly Yoruba…) blood in the man manifested itself” or that the editors, “the experts in the Ibadan University contributed to the contradictions”. But it is too obvious that something happened to the narrative that is quite out of sync with the authority on display. Erediauwa simply avers that “the earliest rulers or kings in what is today Edo or Benin were known as “Ogiso”. The first was known as Ogiso Igodo and the last (of the thirty one or so of them) was Ogiso Owodo, the father of Ekaladeran who became known as Oduduwa in Ife. In essence, Oduduwa came after the Ogisos. Not before. According to Erediauwa, the idea of a Benin Prince choosing a title in order to be king did not even begin in Benin History until after Oduduwa’s youngest son, Oramiyan, fathered a child, the dumb one, in Benin, who literally gave himself a name when on winning a game of akhue he gave a shout of victory, Owomika,”my hand has struck it”, his first intelligible speech. The Benin people corrupted the name and it became Eweka. Also, it became tradition, thereafter, for every king-to-be to go to Use, the site of the game of akhue, to choose a name before climbing the throne. So to say, Egharevba, whom we all owe so much, got it all mixed up.
As Edo traditions have it, Ogiso Owodo was advised by the oracle to have his son Ekaladeran executed for being the source of the unhappiness in the land during his reign. Unaware that he was being deceived, he sent the public executioner, Oka Odionmwan, to do the job. But the executioner decided to have pity on Ekaladeran and “on reaching the outskirts of the city” let him off. From there the prince wandered into the world, settling alone, first in Ughoton, where the elders gave him hospitality, before he moved to a village on the outskirts of Ile-Ife. When his Igodo people first learnt of his being alive and went searching for him, they found him living as leader in one of the stranger settlements outside the main bowl of Ife. ‘Oke Ora (Ora Hill) between Ile Ife and Ilesha’, insists Ade Obayemi. Although Adebanji Akintoye in his A History of the Yoruba People, does not attend to the claim that Oduduwa came from Benin, he posits that it was from the settlement outside the Bowl of Ife that Oduduwa moved down into the city with his party to occupy one of the key stranger quarters, pooling them together until he became leader of all the stranger elements. He moved against the autochthons, and seized power. The seizure of power is acknowledged by all the authorities on Ife history. It led to the exile of Obatala and his party of autochthons; it led to famine as can be imagined if the earth tillers go on awwol. Even after the crisis appeared resolved and Obatala returned, he had to function under Oduduwa’s authority. Many of his followers, like Obameri, moved to Oduduwa’s side. Diehard supporters of Obatala like Obawinrin who could not take it and continued to fight, were beaten out of the Ife Bowl into Igbo Igbo of the rain forest. As Erediauwa puts it: “It is a historical fact, known I believe to present-day Ife people, that the original settlers whom Ekaladeran (Oduduwa) met moved away from Ife to a place called Ugbo, a very ancient Ilaje town in Okitipupa area. Ife elders, especially the traditional title holders, must know the rest of the Ugbo episode as it affects Ife and Oduduwa because Ife people today perform a ritual festival that re-enacts the events that caused the original settlers including their village head to flee from Ife and Ekaladeran (or Oduduwa) to become the head of the community”.
The question no one has answered is how it was possible for Oduduwa to have been born in Yorubaland and still be described as a stranger by all Ife traditions, by Ifa, and those who like Olubushe II, accept the romance that Oduduwa came from Mecca, Egypt, Sudan or from the sky, with a chain. What cannot be escaped is that not knowing where Oduduwa came from is at the heart of the matter. Rejecting, instead of researching, what must now be called the Erediauwa thesis which argues that Oduduwa was a Prince of Igodomigodo, does not help matters. Once the ranking of the Obas in Yorubaland comes into the picture, the issue gets over-loaded.
For that matter, it is claimed by some contemporary Nigerian historians that many of the areas which answer Igbo in their names across Yoruba land were redoubts of resistant groups belonging to the Igbo, led by Obatala. Adiele Afigbo, not by any chance a frivolous historian, has argued that the expulsion of the Igbo from Ife was not just myth but history as the movement of Igbo people from the western side of the Niger to the eastern side of the river was a consequence of that fracturing, terrorism, a virtual mfecane, that took place with Oduduwa’s overcoming of the indigenes. In the end, both Obatala and Oduduwa were deified and some kind of patching up of the narratives have been attempted by successive generations to hide the fact that there was a grand fissure. But that is where myth comes into its own. Such that on page 57 of his book, Adebanji Akintoye, without dwelling on how it was possible, comes to the conclusion that “It is on the soil of Yorubaland that Oduduwa was born and raised; it is only in that soil that his roots can be found”. We may well shrug. Such an understanding obviously led Ade Ajayi in a Vanguard inteview on May 16, 2004, to insist that although more researches still need to be done, “people cant just wake up one day and say that Oduduwa must have been a Benin Prince that they wanted to execute, ran and ran to a village and you call Ife a village?” Ade Ajayi adds: “Who is the Oba of Benin to come and tell the Yorubas what they should believe about themselves? I think it is very very wrong and impertinent to assume that you know more about the Yoruba people than the Yoruba know about themselves. On what basis? What information could he have? When he says from his studies, what did he study? What books? Is it in the colonial days or before then or its the books written by educated Yoruba people of the 19th century?”
What cannot bear scrutiny, because it must crumble, is Egharevba’s Obagodo hypothesis which attempts to impose a theory of Yoruba origins on the kings of Igodomigodo in a period that shares parallel sorties with the era of the first sixteen kings of Ife before the arrival of Oduduwa. That era, of which Obatala was the last of sixteen kings in Ife and Owodo, the father of Oduduwa, was the last of thirty one kings in Igodomigodo, ought to be properly matched, not confused, if only because it puts in proper perspective the arrival of Oduduwa’s son, Oramiyan, and his three lunar months as ruler, that changed the name of the city from Igodomigodo to Benin, before the city was renamed as Edo by the great great grand child, Ogun Ewuare, in the 15th century. At any rate, talking serious history, rather than mythologies, no self-respecting historian, in our century, buys the hoary stuff about the Yoruba progenitor coming from Egypt, Mecca, the Sudan or which ever zone is supposed to provide aristocractic effect or ancient, sacralised, historical identity that affirms greatness of a people. Whether in Johnson’s History of the Yoruba, Biobaku’s valiant efforts or J. F. Ade Ajayi’s embarrassingly un-researched put-down of Erediauwa’s narrative as uninformed, they amount to the purveyance of a Hamitic thesis, a local variant of which I have called the Obagodo hypothesis, which have been smashed by dedicated Yoruba historians since I. A. Akinjogbin and his co-revolutionary historians.(See Cradle of a Race). They have long moved beyond all the romantic historicism of the earlier foragers in oral traditions. Ade Obayemi, in particular, was among the first radical dissenters from the received myths who realised that Oduduwa could not have come from outside the world of the Niger Benue confluence. Keen dredgers of the history of Ile-Ife like Ishola Olomola, reached the same conclusion: Ife was a centre that attracted people from far and wide before Oduduwa came amongst them and literally scattered the system of cooperative governance under the chairmanship of Obatala who would later be deified as god of creation or creativity, a lover of wine whose devotees are advised against alcohol.
The question no one has answered is how it was possible for Oduduwa to have been born in Yorubaland and still be described as a stranger by all Ife traditions, by Ifa, and those who like Olubushe II, accept the romance that Oduduwa came from Mecca, Egypt, Sudan or from the sky, with a chain. What cannot be escaped is that not knowing where Oduduwa came from is at the heart of the matter. Rejecting, instead of researching, what must now be called the Erediauwa thesis which argues that Oduduwa was a Prince of Igodomigodo, does not help matters. Once the ranking of the Obas in Yorubaland comes into the picture, the issue gets over-loaded. The Erediauwa/Benin story just happens to be the only one available that tells Oduduwa’s story with some certitude. Reject it or not, it still does not affect the critical aspect of the narrative which indicates that Oduduwa actually sent his youngest son, Oramiyan, to Igodo whether in response to a distress call or because he saw a vacuum and decided to fill it. Oramiyan’s three months in Benin was too full of troubles that he could not resolve. He left in annoyance, damning the people as a people of intrigues and quarrels, Ile-ibinu, which only a child born amongst them could tackle or accommodate. But he left a pregnant woman behind whom Oduduwa had to send procurers and minders for until she delivered. The child turned out dumb and could not speak until that famous game of akhue when he gave a shout of victory that earned him the name, Eweka, which started a dynasty.
What all the traditions, and therefore History, vouchsafes is that Oramiyan, on his return journey made stop overs at various stations but pooled his forces together at Kaltunga/Oyo where he begat the Alafin, and started another dynasty. He eventually returned to Ife and and became the king after the death of Oduduwa. Shall we say, he rounded the circle. From Ife back to Ife. What is not denied by any authority is that all the Kings of Benin, Oyo and Ife, thereafter had the same ancestor. Unless, ethnic pride, sheer narrative mischief and ugly cult disorders enter the picture, how is it possible in the narration of the folklore, myth, or history, to rank the three dynasties and not follow the order in which they were established and acknowledged at Ile Ife! Which odu of Ifa tells us a different story other than the one that accepts the chronology just adumbrated! So, there is no denying it: whether you believe the Ekaladeran story or not, you have to accept that Oduduwa sent his youngest son who thereafter displaced all the older sons, overtook them, and made them invisible to the claims of history. Those who are not Oramiyan’s children may well kick and seek another ranking that puts them in the picture. But they have no locus because it is actually Oramiyan’s children who built the empires that survived the ravages of history. Among those children, as has always been accepted by ALL AUTHORITIES, the Benin Monarch came first. To do a somersault about it and seek to make Eweka appear like the third in the hierarchy is simply jiggery pokery, rigging, and sheer distortion of History. When Ade Ajayi says that Oba Erediauwa’s “own father used to attend and meet at the conference of Yoruba Obas regularly during colonial rule”, he is quite right. Ajayi adds, truculently however that Oba Akenzua, Erediauwa’s “own father did not object to this but he (Erediauwa) from his own point of view of politics thinks it is a departure from his own status…” and “that Ife monarchy is derived from Benin monarchy”.
The reality is that whenever the Oba of Benin sat among Yoruba Obas, he knew he was the eldest. He did not have to say it for it to be true. Those who deny him his place may stand on ethnic arrogance, which is hollow. The rest of the world knows that if there are other forms of prowess that can grant suzerainty, superiority or primacy to a king, the Edo king had and has it.
The truth of the matter is that even if anyone rejects the fact “that Ife Monarchy is derived from Igodo monarchy”, it changes nothing about the reality that the Monarchy in Benin City is still Number One among Oduduwa’s children. I mean: let it be assumed that Oduduwa came from Egypt, Mecca, Sudan, Ethiopia (where the Oromo Region has a nationality fraction called Oromiyas) or from Orun, as heaven or a place we do not know, with a chain made of iron if not some other metal, it does not change the fact that the dumb one who learnt to talk by naming himself Owomika, ‘my hand has stuck it’, the first Benin monarch after the Ogisos, was the first child of Oramiyan whose children built the empires that our part of the world remembers.
No question about it: there is the other significant issue that whoever becomes the Ooni of Ife is closest to the Opa Oranyan, and therefore must be deemed the preserver of the family grain, the shrine of nativity. A special place may therefore be reserved for him in the celebration of the family business which monarchy always is, in every culture where it exists. It does not however remove from the eldest child the imprimatur that age provides. At any rate, Edo culture has been, for centuries, a strict upholder of the principle of primogeniture and therefore some remove from parleying with those who have no respect for the firstborn adult male in the matter of monarchical rule. The reality is that whenever the Oba of Benin sat among Yoruba Obas, he knew he was the eldest. He did not have to say it for it to be true. Those who deny him his place may stand on ethnic arrogance, which is hollow. The rest of the world knows that if there are other forms of prowess that can grant suzerainty, superiority or primacy to a king, the Edo king had and has it. In a century when governance is based on democracy by numbers, it may well be argued that the Edo people do not have as much population as the Yoruba to decide the matter. But matters pertaining to monarchies are not resolved by a democracy of numbers. A king is a king because he is the child of who he is. Or if he can impose his will, by rod and staff. If the latter is the tack of those who continue to engage in the ranking of Yoruba obas, the average Edo can then invoke the Edebiri principle which advises that the Oba of Benin is not a Yoruba and therefore cannot be placed on a list of Yoruba Obas.
Odia Ofeimun, a poet, Essayist, political and cultural historian, writes from Lagos. He is author of the acclaimed The Poet Lied, several other collections of poetry, dance dramas, and the book of essays Taking Nigeria Seriously, among others.
Culled from edoworldDotNet
| Baptist Academy Old Boys Student Association (BAOSA) Executives | |||
| Position | Name | Telephone Number | Email Address |
| President | Akin FATUNKE (72) | ||
| Deputy President | Idonrenyen ENANG | ||
| General Secretary | Tunji AKINGBADE | ||
| Assistant General Secretary | Fora JOWATA-PAUL | ||
| Treasurer | Olaitan KOMOLAFE | ||
| Financial Secretary | Wale ADEFOPE | ||
| Communication Officer | Olubanji HOLMES | ||
| Assistant Communication Officer | Sade DEMUREN | ||
| Baptist Academy Old Boys Student Association (BAOSA) Trustees | |
|---|---|
| Serial # | Name |
| 1 | Sir Kessington Adebutu Chairman BoT |
| 2 | Prof. Alfred B. Kasunmu, SAN |
| 3 | Dr. Charles Oladeinde Williams |
| 4 | Prof. Idowu Sobowale |
| 5 | Mr. Laolu Akinkugbe |
| 6 | Chief Olatunde Onakoya |
| 7 | Alhaji Raheem Oshodi |
| 8 | Sir Jide Oki |
| Meetings Info | |
|---|---|
| Today is | Next Meeting is on |
| Meeting Coordinates | |
| Meeting Location |
BAOSA Secretariat Lagos Baptist Academy Obanikoro, Lagos, Lagos State, Nigeria Home of men of timber and caliber. |
| Start Time | * |
| End Time | * |
| Miscellaneous | * |
| Legend* TBD(To Be Determined) | |
Revised & Approved March 2017.
- PREAMBLE
- ARTICLE 1 – NAME OF THE ASSOCIATION
- ARTICLE 2 – DEFINITION & MEANING
-
❖ “Academy” means Baptist Academy Lagos.
❖ “Annual General Meeting” wherever it occurs in this Constitution shall refer to the meeting of the National Convention and shall have the same meaning as “Convention”.
❖ “Badge” and “Emblem” mean the identification emblem and badge of THE ASSOCIATION as provided in Article 1 (b)
❖ “BAOSA” means BAPTIST ACADEMY OLD STUDENTS ASSOCIATION
❖ “Common Seal” means the approved common seal of THE ASSOCIATION as provided in Article 7.
❖ “Convention” means the meeting of the National Convention and shall have the same meaning as the Annual or Extra-Ordinary General Meeting in this Constitution.
❖ “Extra-Ordinary General Meeting” wherever it occurs in this Constitution shall also refer to the meeting of the National Convention and shall have the same meaning as “Convention”.
❖ “Member” means a person who has undertaken a course of educational study in the Academy irrespective of the duration or level of such study; and who shall have been admitted into the membership of THE ASSOCIATION as provided in this Constitution.
❖ “Trustees” means The Registered Trustees of the Baptist Academy Old Students Association Lagos or such number of them to whom the specified powers had been delegated by the whole.
- ARTICLE 3 – MOTTO
- ARTICLE 4 – BADGE & EMBLEM
- ARTICLE 5 – REGISTERED OFFICE
- ARTICLE 6 - AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
6.2 To provide a forum for the stimulation of spiritual and intellectual growth and social interaction among the Old Students of the Academy.
6.3 To actively encourage both Old and Present Students of the Academy to uphold the ideals, precepts and virtues inherent in their training i.e. TRUTH, HONESTY and SELFLESS SERVICE both in their private and public life.
6.4 To promote enduring comradeship and cooperation between the old and present students of the Academy.
6.5 To develop mutually beneficial relationship with old students’ associations of other educational institutions with identical aims and ideas.
- ARTICLE 7 – MEMBERSHIP OF THE ASSOCIATION
There shall be three(3) categories of membership:
7.1.1 Ordinary Member: This shall apply to any person who has undertaken a course of study in the Academy as specified in Article 7.2 below.
7.1.2 Financial Member: This shall apply to any ordinary member, who has met all his financial obligations to THE ASSOCIATION as specified in Article 7.3 below.
7.1.3 Privileged Member: This shall apply to any person who is conferred and appointed to the position of Honorary Member, Patron or Patroness as specified in Article 7.4 below.
7.2 ORDINARY MEMBER An Ordinary member is any person who has undertaken a course of study in the Academy irrespective of the duration or level of such study; and who shall have been admitted into the membership of THE ASSOCIATION as provided in this Constitution.
7.3 FINANCIAL MEMBER A Financial member is an ordinary member, who has fulfilled all his financial obligations as shall be prescribed by the National Executive Council and duly approved by the National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION within the stipulated period. For purposes of clarity, such financial obligations shall include up-to-date payment of Annual subscription dues and other duly approved levies.
7.4 PRIVILEGED MEMBERS There shall be two (2) classes of Privileged Members:
7.4.1 HONORARY MEMBER
7.4.1.1 Honorary membership shall be conferred as a mark of honour from time to time on not more than six (6) persons of high repute and exemplary character on the recommendation of the National Executive Council and duly approved by the National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION.
7.4.1.2 Such persons, who shall not necessarily be Old Students of the Academy, shall satisfy THE ASSOCIATION that they have made meaningful contributions to the growth and development of the Academy; and the welfare of THE ASSOCIATION.
7.4.1.3 Honorary members shall enjoy the privilege to attend and participate at the meetings and activities of THE ASSOCIATION but shall not have the right to vote or be voted for.
7.5 PATRON OR PATRONESS
7.5.1 THE ASSOCIATION shall appoint and confer the title of Patrons or Patronesses on not more than six (6) persons considered to be of sound integrity, high repute and exemplary character in the society on the recommendation of the National Executive Council and duly approved by the National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION.
7.5.2 Persons so appointed as Patrons or Patronesses shall possess inspiring and outstanding leadership qualities; and shall have identified with and contributed to the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION and also contributed to the social and intellectual wellbeing of the citizens of Nigeria in general.
7.5.3 Patrons or Patronesses shall enjoy the privilege to attend and participate at meetings and activities of THE ASSOCIATION but shall not have the right to vote or be voted for.
- ARTICLE 8 - MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTION, DUES & FEES
8.1.1 The National Executive Council shall from time to time, determine the subscription, dues, fees and other levies, as appropriate, to be paid by members, which shall be subject to final approval at the National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION.
8.1.2 The prescribed annual membership subscription shall become due and payable on the first day of January in each year or on such other date as may be specified by the National Executive Council.
8.2 CONCESSIONARY MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTION
8.2.1 A concessionary membership subscription rate shall be established to encourage active participation by fresh school leavers in the activities of THE ASSOCIATION.
8.2.2 The concessionary subscription rate shall be proposed by the National Executive Council and thereafter determined by the National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION.
8.2.3 The concessionary subscription rate shall only apply to Old Students of the Academy, who are considered as fresh school leavers within a moratorium period of ten (10) years upon exit from the Academy.
8.2.4 Members who pay the concessionary subscription rate shall be entitled to the full rights and privileges of financial members.
- ARTICLE 9 - MEMBERSHIP PRIVILEGES, RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
9.1 Each member shall be entitled to any benefit, gain, profit and/or goodwill that may accrue to THE ASSOCIATION as a corporate body.
9.2 Each member shall be eligible to attend and participate in all activities and programmes of THE ASSOCIATION and shall endeavour to attend such meetings regularly and punctually.
9.3 Each member shall be entitled to vote and be voted for at any meeting; and shall also be eligible for nomination to hold any office of THE ASSOCIATION, subject to the provisions of this Constitution.
9.4 Each member shall meet his obligations to THE ASSOCIATION regularly by ensuring prompt and regular payment of all membership dues, fees and/or other levies, as may be prescribed from time to time by THE ASSOCIATION.
9.5 Each member shall conduct himself in a manner, which is a credit to the interest and wellbeing of all other members; and shall ensure compliance with the provisions of this Constitution and any other Bye-laws, Rules and Regulations, which may be issued from time to time by THE ASSOCIATION.
- ARTICLE 10 – COMPOSITION OF THE NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL (NEC)
1 President
2 Deputy President
3 Vice Presidents (as shall be approved by the National Convention)
4 General Secretary
5 Assistant General Secretary
6 Treasurer
7 Financial Secretary
8 Communication Officer
9 Assistant Communication Officer
10 Immediate Past President
- ARTICLE 11 – DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL (NEC)
11.1 Manage, administer and superintend over the affairs and activities of THE ASSOCIATION.
11.2 Formulate appropriate policies for the achievement of the aims and objectives and the general direction of THE ASSOCIATION.
11.3 Manage, control and apply the finances of THE ASSOCIATION, including custody, safekeeping and disbursement of funds towards achieving aspirations of THE ASSOCIATION.
11.4 Maintain the funds and monies of THE ASSOCIATION in reputable banksto ensure safety and security of such funds.
11.5 Arrange and organise appropriate meetings, including convening the National Convention each year and also ensure timely execution and implementation of all decisions and resolutions approved at all meetings of THE ASSOCIATION.
11.6 Circulate and publicise useful information and bulletins aimed to inform, educate and generally create awareness on the state of affairs of THE ASSOCIATION and its members.
11.7 Propose and recommend for final approval at the National Convention, appropriate membership subscription, dues and other levies; and any waiver, exemption or suspension of dues or levies to be paid by members or any group of members from time to time.
11.8 Maintain record and particulars of all members of THE ASSOCIATION in the Membership Register, which shall be kept at the National Secretariat of THE ASSOCIATION.
11.9 Maintain record of proceedings of all meetings, including National Executive Council Meetings, National Conventions (Annual General Meetings or Extra-Ordinary General Meetings) and any other meetings; and ensuring recording of historical records of all meetings in the appropriate Minutes Book at the National Secretariat of THE ASSOCIATION.
11.10 Disseminate timely notices of meetings as appropriate; and ensuring that in the case of the National Conventions (Annual General or Extra Ordinary General Meetings); such notices shall not be less than 21days from the specified date of the meeting so as to achieve good representation and satisfactory attendance at such meetings.
11.11 Maintain proper record of attendance of members at all meetings and in the case of the National Executive Council meetings, shall publish such record of attendance in the Annual Report of THE ASSOCIATION.
11.12 Determine suitable gifts, whether of monetary nature or in kind, which may be given to members or any other person on special occasions or landmark events or anniversary.
11.13 Maintain proper books of accounts and financial records in respect of all financial dealings and make such books of accounts available for inspection by members and any other authorised person(s) as and when called upon to do so.
11.14 Cause to prepare the Statement of Income and Expenditure Account and Balance Sheet at the end of each financial year, in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.
11.15 Produce and present the Annual Report of Activities, including reports from other BAOSA Chapters and Audited Financial Statements of THE ASSOCIATION for each financial year, for consideration at the National Convention not later than the end of the first quarter after the end of each financial year.
11.16 Constitute appropriate Committees (whether Standing or Ad-hoc in nature) as deemed necessary; and may delegate its duties to such Committees for the successful running and achievement of the goals and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION.
11.17 Appoint or co-opt any member of THE ASSOCIATION into any such Committees; and also determine the number and composition of such constituted Committees.
11.18 Invite or summon any person, whether or not a member of THE ASSOCIATION to attend the National Executive Council Meeting from time to time, as may be deemed necessary.
11.19 Appoint, disengage and determine the duties, responsibilities and salaries of the Organising/Administrative Secretary and all other employees of THE ASSOCIATION.
11.20 Recommend appropriate disciplinary action against any member that engages in acts that are contrary to the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION and detrimental to the collective interest of THE ASSOCIATION and its members, for determination at any National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION.
- ARTICLE 12 – FUNCTIONS & DUTIES OF PRINCIPAL OFFICERS OF THE NEC
12.1.1 The President shall be the Chief Executive Officer of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.1.2 The President shall have general authority for the supervision, direction and control over the conduct and affairs of THE ASSOCIATION; and shall provide direction, guidance and leadership to the National Executive Council and all Committees.
12.1.3 The President shall preside as Chairman at all meetings of THE ASSOCIATION and have a casting vote in the event of a tie in the number of votes cast at such meetings, except as otherwise provided in the case of election of officers.
12.1.4 The Presidentshall direct and summon meetings of THE ASSOCIATION including Annual Conventions (Annual General Meetings, Extra-Ordinary General Meetings, National Executive Council Meetings and any other appropriate meeting, in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.
12.1.5 The President shall direct and exercise authority over all other officers in the performance of their duties and be at liberty to assign duties to other officers and members of THE ASSOCIATION from time to time, as appropriate.
12.1.6 The President shall ensure prudent and effective deployment of investments and acquisitions; and efficient use of the assets and resources of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.1.7 The President shall authorise and approve all expenditure and financial dealings regarding the finances of THE ASSOCIATION and be designated as an “A” signatory among the signatories to the bank account of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.1.8 The President shall perform any other duties, which may be assigned to him by the general body of members at the National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.2 Deputy President
12.2.1 The Deputy President shall assist the President in the performance of his duties and in any manner, as may be prescribed by the President.
12.2.2 The Deputy President shall also assist the President in policy formulation and implementation of the programmes of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.2.3 The Deputy President shall in the absence of the President, perform the duties of the President; and shall be designated as an alternate “A” signatory among the signatories to the bank account of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.2.4 The Deputy President shall perform any other duties that may be specifically assigned to him by the President and/or the National Executive Council.
12.3 Vice Presidents
12.3.1 THE ASSOCIATION shall have such number of Vice Presidents as shall be determined and approved by the National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.3.2 The Vice Presidents shall coordinate activities in each geographical Area or Region designated and approved by the National Convention as BAOSA Chapter for effective linkage and achievement of the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.3.3 Each Vice President shall establish an Executive Committee, composed of members of THE ASSOCIATION, who shall assist in ensuring effective mobilisation of members and coordination of activities in the geographical Area or Region.
12.3.4 Each Vice President shall arrange to hold periodic meetings as appropriate and furnish detailed report of activities and programmes in each geographical Area or Region on quarterly basis to the National Executive Council.
12.3.5 Each Vice President shall also assist the National Executive Council to inform, educate and create awareness of the programmes and activities of THE ASSOCIATION in each geographical Area or Region.
12.3.6 Each Vice President shall assist the National Executive Council to notify all members in the geographical Area or Region of their financial obligations to THE ASSOCIATION from time to time.
12.3.7 The Vice Presidents shall perform any other duties that may be specifically assigned to them by the President and/or the National Executive Council.
12.4 General Secretary
12.4.1 The General Secretary shall be the Administrative Head of the National Secretariat and ensure smooth, effective and efficient supervision and management of the National Secretariat at all times.
12.4.2 The General Secretary shall furnish timely notices of all meetings, ensure prompt dispatch of letters, circulars and other correspondence as appropriate; and maintain proper record of attendance at all meetings of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.4.3 The General Secretary shall keep an accurate record of proceedings of all meetings and ensure that the Minutes of previous meetings as appropriate are duly circulated and presented to members at every subsequent meeting.
12.4.4 The General Secretary shall maintain a complete and historical record of proceedings and activities of THE ASSOCIATION in the appropriate Minutes Book.
12.4.5 The General Secretary shall maintain a comprehensive Membership Register and shall compile an up-to-date directory of members of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.4.6 The General Secretary shall compile detailed record of all programmes and activities in each year, which shall be transmitted into the Annual Report of Activities of THE ASSOCIATION and presented on behalf of the National Executive Council at the Annual National Convention.
12.4.7 The General Secretary shall serve as Ex-officio member of all Committees set up by the National Executive Council.
12.4.8 The General Secretary shall exercise authority as a designated signatory to all bank accounts of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.4.9 The General Secretary shall perform any other duties that may be assigned to him by the President and/or the National Executive Council.
12.5 Assistant General Secretary
12.5.1 The Assistant General Secretary shall assist the General Secretary in the performance of his functions and also perform any other duties specifically delegated to him by the General Secretary.
12.5.2 The Assistant General Secretary shall in the absence of the National Secretary perform his dutiesand any other duties duly assigned to him by the President and/or the National Executive Council.
12.6 Treasurer
12.6.1 The Treasurer shall be responsible for the collection of dues, fees and levies from members; and from time to time, shall notify members of their financial obligations to THE ASSOCIATION.
12.6.2 The Treasurer shall be responsible for the safe-keeping and deposit of the funds and monies received from all sources on behalf of THE ASSOCIATONand shall promptly lodge such monies in the bank account of THE ASSOCIATON.
12.6.3 The Treasurer shall be the custodian of the funds of THE ASSOCIATON and all bank instruments, cheque books and records shall remain in his custody
12.6.4 The Treasurer shall receive, keep, and disburse funds of THE ASSOCIATON in compliance with best practice and the approved financial guidelines as stipulated in this Constitution; and in any other Rules and Regulations of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.6.5 The Treasurer shall maintain records of all receipts and payments; and shall circulate on periodic basis, statement of membership dues/levies paid along with outstanding obligations.
12.6.6 The Treasurer shall exercise authority as a designated signatory to all bank accounts of THE ASSOCIATION and shall, in conjunction with the Financial Secretary, maintain a register of all financial members of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.6.7 The Treasurer shall produce on periodic basis, for the consideration of the National Executive Council at its meetings, Report of Bank balances, Statements of Receipts and Expenditure and any outstanding obligations of THE ASSOCIATION, whether on monthly or quarterly basis or as may be desired from time to time,.
12.6.8 The Treasurer shall provide and furnish relevant and useful information to aid and assist the Auditor in carrying out the audit exercise of the accounts and financial records of THE ASSOCIATION from time to time; and/or any other person or body of persons duly authorised, as and when called upon to do so.
12.6.9 The Treasurer shall act, in the absence of the Financial Secretary to maintain and keep proper records of all financial dealings and accounts of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.6.10 The Treasurer shall perform any other duties that may be assigned to him by the President and/or the National Executive Council.
12.7 Financial Secretary
12.7.1 The Financial Secretary, who shall be the Chief Financial Officer of THE ASSOCIATION, shall keep and maintain proper books and records of the income and expenditure and all financial dealings of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.7.2 The Financial Secretary shall also compile and maintain the list of donors and subscribers to the funds of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.7.3 The Financial Secretary shall produce at the end of each financial year, the Report of Income and Expenditure (Profit & Loss Statement) and Balance Sheet of THE ASSOCIATION for consideration at the Annual Convention.
12.7.4 The Financial Secretary shall produce a Budgeted Statement of Income and Expenditure in conjunction with the Treasurer for consideration at the meeting of the National Executive Council, at the beginning of each year.
12.7.5 The Financial Secretary shall present on behalf of the National Executive Council, the Audited Financial Statements and Balance Sheet of THE ASSOCIATION to the National Convention for consideration and approval.
12.7.6 The Financial Secretary shall also assist in the supervision of the accounts department at the National Secretariat of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.7.7 The Financial Secretary shall, in conjunction with the Treasurer, maintain a register of all the financial members of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.7.8 The Financial Secretary shall act, in the absence of the Treasurer to maintain and keep proper records of all funds and monies of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.7.9 The Financial Secretary shall perform any other duties that are specifically assigned to him by the President and/or the National Executive Council.
12.8 Communication Officer
12.8.1 The Communication Officer shall be the image maker of THE ASSOCIATION and the Academy.
12.8.2 The Communication Officer shall strive to maintain good public relations between the National body, other affiliates of THE ASSOCIATION and the general public.
12.8.3 The Communication Officer shall ensure prompt, timely and effective publicity of the programmes and activities of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.8.4 The Communication Officer shall promote, build and project the image and reputation of THE ASSOCIATION and the Academy nationwide and beyond, through appropriate publicity and media channels, including personal contacts; and/or other traditional, electronic or digital means.
12.8.5 The Communication Officer shall advance the cause of social interaction, harmony and companionship among members of THE ASSOCIATIONand also promote meaningful interaction between the current students, staff of the Academy and the general public in furtherance of the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION.
12.8.6 The Communication Officershall coordinate and arrange all social activities, events and functions of THE ASSOCIATION except as may be otherwise directed by the President or the National Executive Council.
12.8.7 The Communication Officer shall perform any other duties that may be assigned to him by the President and/or the National Executive Council.
12.9 Assistant Communication Officer
12.9.1 The Assistant Communication Officer shall assist and cooperate with the Communication Officer in the performance of his duties and also carry out any duties that may be assigned to him by the Communication Officer.
12.9.2 The Assistant Communication Officer shall perform other duties that may be assigned to him by the President and/or the National Executive Council.
- ARTICLE 13 – THE AUDITORS
13.2 The Auditors shall not be members of the National Executive Council and shall report to the general body of members at the National Convention.
13.3 The Auditors shall ensure that the finances of THE ASSOCIATION are operated in adherence and strict observance of the approved financial guidelines, rules and regulations of THE ASSOCIATION as stipulated in this Constitution.
13.4 The Auditors shall carry out a detailed examination of the books of accounts and all financial records of THE ASSOCIATION, including Assets and Liabilities and Income and Expenditure Statements at the end of each financial year; and shall present an Audit Report of findings for the consideration of members at the National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION.
13.5 The Auditor shall carry out any other duties, which may be assigned to them from time to time, by a resolution of members at any meeting of THE ASSOCIATION.
- ARTICLE 14 – SOURCES OF FUNDS
14.1 Annual Membership Subscriptions
14.2 Special Membership Levies
14.3 Fund Raising Activities
14.4 BAOSA’s Annual Week of Events
14.5 Donations, Gifts, Grants, Sponsorships, Promotions, etc.
14.6 Sale of Souvenirs and Other Miscellaneous Sources
- ARTICLE 15 - ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL REGULATIONS
15.2 The National Executive Council shall have the power to prescribe membership subscription, dues, fees and other levies as appropriate, subject to the final approval of the National Convention; and shall retain the liberty to receive and make donations, grants, subsidies, loans etc in furtherance of the objectives of THE ASSOCIATION.
15.3 All monies received on behalf of THE ASSOCIATION shall be deposited in the name of Baptist Academy Old Students Association in the designated bank account(s) duly approved by the National Executive Council; and all payments shall be disbursed from the appropriate bank account as authorised by the National Executive Council.
15.4 Membership dues and subscriptions shall become due and payable on the first day of January in each year; and a member whose subscription is in arrears of a period exceeding twenty four (24) months may be sanctioned by the National Executive Council.
15.5 Without prejudice to the provisions of this Constitution, THE ASSOCIATION reserves the right to waive, exempt, reduce or postpone the payment of subscription, dues, fees and/or levies by any member or group of members of THE ASSOCIATION.
15.6 The National Executive Council shall cause proper books of accounts to be kept in respect of all Income and Expenditure and Assets and Liabilities of the Association; and shall also ensure the conduct of proper audit of the books of accounts at the end of each financial year or as may be required from time to time.
15.7 The books of accounts shall be kept at the National Secretariat of the Association or at such place or places as the National Executive Council may deem fit; and such books of accounts shall be made available and open for inspection and audit by the Auditors and/or persons or body of persons which may be appointed by the National Executive Council or the general house for purposes of audit.
15.8 A member of THE ASSOCIATION who is in good financial standing and not in arrears of his/her obligation to the Association shall be entitled to inspect such books of accounts and financial records upon approval by the National Executive Council.
15.9 The National Executive Council shall lay before the body of members at the National Convention in each year for consideration, not later than the end of the first quarter after each financial year, the Report of Income and Expenditure Statement and the Balance Sheet for the preceding year, along with the Report of the Auditors.
15.10 The Audited Financial Statements comprising the Balance Sheet and Income & Expenditure Statement or Profit & Loss Account shall be duly certified by the Auditor and annexed to the Annual Returns for proper filing at the Corporate Affairs Commission appropriately.
- ARTICLE 16 - OPERATION OF BANK ACCOUNTS
16.2 All monies and funds received on behalf of THE ASSOCIATION shall be deposited in the name of Baptist Academy Old Students Association in the designated bank account(s) and all payments shall be disbursed from the designated bank accounts as shall be authorised and approved by the National Executive Council.
16.3 The Authorised signatories and mandate for the operation of the bank account(s) of THE ASSOCIATION shall at all times be two joint signatories, comprising of a combination of any one “A” signatory and one “B” signatory as specified below:
Office Signatory Capacity
President “A”
Deputy President “A”
General Secretary “B”
Treasurer “B”
16.4 The Treasurer shall be the custodian of all bank instruments including: cheque books, deposit slips, statement of accounts and other banking records.
- ARTICLE 17 – TYPES OF MEETINGS
17.1: NATIONAL CONVENTION (ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING)
17.1.1 THE ASSOCIATION shall hold once in every calendar year, a National Convention not later than the end of the first quarter after the end of each financial year.
17.1.2 The notice of the meeting, which shall clearly indicate “Notice of National Convention” shall not be less than twenty one (21) days from the specified date of meeting and shall be deemed to have been communicated to and received by members whether by post and/or advertisement in a National Newspaper.
17.1.3 The Purpose/business of the National Convention (Annual General Meeting) shall be:
17.1.3.1 To receive the Report of the National Executive Council for the preceding year.
17.1.3.2 To consider the Financial Statements of THE ASSOCIATION and Auditor’s Report for the preceding year.
17.1.3.4 To conduct Election of Officers.
17.1.3.5 To consider any other matter pertaining to the progress of THE ASSOCIATION.
17.1.3.6 Any other business.
17.2 EXTRA- ORDINARY GENERAL MEETING
17.2.1 An Extra-Ordinary General Meeting of THE ASSOCIATION shall be held at any time toconsider matters of extreme importance and beneficial interest to THE ASSOCIATION.
17.2.2 Such matters, which are considered special business and of grave concern, shall be submitted to the general house for determination at Extra-Ordinary Meetings.
17.2.3 An Extra-Ordinary General meeting shall also be convened, upon receipt of a petition in writing signed by not less than fifty (50) financial members of THE ASSOCIATION provided that: -
17.2.3.1 The petition explicitly states the purpose(s) for the demand of the meeting,
17.2.3.2 It shall be the duty of the National Executive Council to summon and organise the Extra-Ordinary General Meeting for the purpose demanded within a period of twenty one (21) days from the date of receipt of the petition; and
17.2.3.3 No business other than the matters specified in the petition shall be transacted.
17.2.4 Notice of such meetings shall not be less than twenty one (21) days from the specified date of meeting and shall be deemed to have been communicated to and received by members, whether by post and/or advertisement in a National daily.
17.3 NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL MEETING
17.3.1 The National Executive Council meeting shall be open to all officers composed of the National Executive Council as provided in Article 9 of this Constitution.
17.3.2 Without prejudice to the provisions of this Constitution, the President or the National Executive Council shall reserve the prerogative to summon or invite any other member or person to attend the National Executive Council meeting as shall be deemed necessary from time to time.
17.3.3 The National Executive Council meeting, shall as far as practicable be held on monthly basis but not less than six (6) times in a year; or at such other times as shall be determined by the President or the National Executive Council.
17.4 EMERGENCY GENERAL MEETING
17.4.1 The National Executive Council shall convene on emergency basis; any other general meetings of THE ASSOCIATION from time to time in the course of each year, to consider matters of general interest that pertain to the progress and development of THE ASSOCIATION and its members.
17.4.2 Adequate notice of such general meeting, which shall not be less than seven (7) days from the specified date of the meeting,shall be communicated to all members; and such notice shall be deemed to have been communicated to and received by members, whether by post and/or advertisement in a National daily.
17.4.3 All decisions taken at the general meeting shall be arrived at by resolutions passed by a simple majority of members present and voting; and such resolutions shall remain binding on all members of THE ASSOCIATION, whether present or not at the meeting.
17.5 BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING
17.5.1 The Trustees, for the purposes of promoting good governance of THE ASSOCIATION, shall from time to time play advisory role to the National Executive Council towards the achievement of the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION.
17.5.2 The Board of Trustees of THE ASSOCIATION shall convene appropriate meetings as shall be considered from time to time, to consider matters of beneficial interest to THE ASSOCIATION in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.
17.5.3 The Trustees shall appoint one amongst them to preside as Chairman at the meeting of the Board of Trustees; and such meetings of the Board of Trustees shall be called at the instance of the Chairman of the Board of Trustees or his designate.
- ARTICLE 18 - QUORUM
Type of Meeting Quorum
18.1 National Convention (Annual General Meeting) At least 50 members
18.2 Extra-Ordinary General Meeting At least 75 members
18.3 Emergency General Meeting At least 40 members
18.4 National Executive Council (NEC) Meeting At least 1/3rd of NEC members
18.5 Board of Trustees (BOT) Meeting At least 1/3rd of BOT members Provided that if the quorum has not been achieved after one hour and one third of the members of the National Executive Council being present in agreement with other financial members present the meeting will be declared adequately quorate
- ARTICLE 19 - PROXY
19.2 An eligible financial member shall have the right to appoint another eligible member, who is entitled by this Constitution, to exercise his voting right at a meeting of THE ASSOCIATION.
- ARTICLE 20 - CONDUCT OF MEETINGS AND RESOLUTIONS
20.2 The National Executive Council shall determine the time, place and duration of all meetings of THE ASSOCIATION.
20.3 Attendance at all meetings shall be open only to members of THE ASSOCIATION except where approval is granted by the President to representatives, proxies; and other invited person(s) or interest groups.
20.4 All decisions taken at meetings shall be arrived at by resolutions passed by a simple majority of members present and voting at such meetings, except as otherwise provided in this Constitution.
20.5 Proceedings at all meetings shall be duly recorded in the appropriate Minutes Book, which shall be maintained and kept at the National Secretariat of THE ASSOCIATION.
20.6 All meetings of THE ASSOCIATION shall be conducted in English Language except where the President or the Presiding officer, in consultation with members of the National Executive Council present at the meeting, approve the use of any other language at the particular meeting and authorise translation of English Language into any other language.
- ARTICLE 21 - VOTING OF MEMBERS
21.2 Voting shall be conducted by simple show of hands at the venue of the meeting except as otherwise provided in this Constitution.
21.3 Each member present in person or represented by proxy (where permitted and approved) shall have only one vote except in the case of election, where voting shall be by secret ballot.
21.4 A simple majority of votes cast at all meetings shall be sufficient to pass a resolution, which shall become binding on THE ASSOCIATION, subject to the provisions of this Constitution and other applicable laws of the land.
21.5 The President or Presiding officer shall have a casting vote in the event of a tie in the number of votes cast at meetings, which shall be exercised at his exclusive discretion; but such casting vote cannot be exercised in the case of election of officers.
- ARTICLE 22 – ELECTRONIC VOTING
22.2 Electronic voting shall be allowed in the case of election of officers, where acceptable and dependable technological framework are in place and subject to a resolution passed and adopted by a simple majority of members present and voting at a National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION.
- ARTICLE 23 - ELECTION OF OFFICERS
23.1.1 The qualification and eligibility criteria to contest election into the National Executive Council and any other office shall be as stipulated in this Constitution.
23.1.2 Every financial member of THE ASSOCIATION, who is current and up-to-date in the payment of his Membership Subscription shall be eligible for election into the National Executive Council or any other office of THE ASSOCIATION;
23.1.3 Candidates for the offices of the President or Deputy President shall:
23.1.3.1 be eligible members of THE ASSOCIATION of not less than ten (10) years’ standing after leaving the Academy; and
23.1.3.2 have previously held office in any capacity in the National Executive Council for at least one term of two (2) years each; or served as chairman of a class set or group;
23.1.3.3 be ordinarily resident in Nigeria.
23.1.4 For purposes of clarity, a member shall be eligible if he has paid all his dues up-to-date, including the Membership Subscription for the current year, which shall be paid not later than one week prior to the holding of the National Convention in each year.
23.1.5 A member seeking to contest election shall be physically present at the meeting to vote and be voted for except as stated in the case of BAOSA Diaspora Chapters in this Constitution.
23.1.6 Except in the case of the office of the Auditors, a member who has held office for two (2) terms of two (2) years each, shall no longer be eligible to be nominated for the same office.
23.2 TENURE OF OFFICE
23.2.1 Every officer of THE ASSOCIATION shall hold office for a period of two (2) years in the first instance, except as otherwise stated in this Constitution.
23.2.2 Every officer shall be eligible for re-election provided that an officer shall not hold the same office for more than two (2) terms, except as otherwise stated in this Constitution.
23.2.3 An officer who is in contravention of the provisions of the provision of Tenure of office shall stand disqualified and shall immediately vacate his office.
23.3 ELECTION PROCEDURE
23.3.1 Election of officers shall be conducted at the National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION, specifically called for the purpose of election.
23.3.2 The offices of THE ASSOCIATION for purposes of election shall include the following:
23.3.2.1 President
23.3.2.2 Deputy President
23.3.2.3 Vice Presidents (as shall be approved by the National Convention)
23.3.2.4 General Secretary
23.3.2.5 Assistant General Secretary
23.3.2.6 Treasurer
23.3.2.7 Financial Secretary
23.3.2.8 Communication Officer
23.3.2.9 Assistant Communication Officer
23.3.3 The National Executive Council shall cause to be appointed an Electoral body comprising of not less than three (3) members of THE ASSOCIATION, who are not presently holding any offices as Electoral Officers, one of whom shall be designated as the Chief Electoral Officer.
23.3.4 A member seeking an elective post shall obtain the requisite nomination form from the electoral body appointed to conduct elections, through the platform of THE ASSOCIATION and shall thereafter return the completed form within the period stipulated by the body.
23.3.5 Prior to the election, the Electoral body shall verify and ascertain those members eligible and qualified to contest for office and shall announce the names and particulars of persons, as well as offices to be contested at the venue of the election.
23.3.6 Except as may be otherwise agreed by a resolution at the National Convention, voting for the purpose of election shall be conducted by secret ballot at the venue of the election.
23.3.7 The Electoral officers shall carry out the following duties at the National Convention:
23.3.7.1 Ensure a peaceful and conducive atmosphere in order to achieve free, fair and transparent elections.
23.3.7.2 Account and classify the votes cast appropriately.
23.3.7.3 Collate the results of the election at the meeting and determine the winner, which shall be the candidate who received the highest number of votes for any given office.
23.3.8 For practical purposes, elections for the offices of Vice Presidents as applicable to the BAOSA Chapters as specified in this Constitution shall be held prior to the National Convention and the outcome of such election results shall be announced along with other results at the National Convention.
23.3.9 The Chief Electoral Officer shall announce the full results of the election at the close of elections; and shall thereafter declare the winner for each office contested; provided that in the event of an equality of votes, a “Run-Off” by way of fresh round of voting shall be conducted between the two leading candidates and the result shall be determined by the candidate who received the largest number of votes in the Run-off.
23.3.10 Where, however, no nominations was received for a vacant office, upon expiration of the term of the previous officer, the newly constituted National Executive Council shall arrange a byeelection within a period of three (3) months or as shall be agreed by its members.
23.3.11 In the event that there is still no nomination for the vacant office after the prescribed period, the National Executive Council shall appoint or co-opt an eligible financial member to fill the vacancy so created, and such appointed or co-opted member shall hold the office as though he has been duly elected.
23.3.12 Where a vacancy occurs before the expiration of an officer’s term of office, the National Executive Council shall appoint or co-opt a financial member to fill the vacancy created and the co-opted member shall hold office for the unexpired term of the former office holder.
23.3.13 The newly constituted National Executive Council shall assume office and be sworn into office, immediately after the elections at the National Convention.
- ARTICLE 24 - CESSATION FROM OFFICE
An officer shall cease to hold office in the event of the following:
24.1.1 Death
24.1.2 Voluntary resignation of appointment, duly communicated in writing.
24.1.3 Incapacitation due to insanity or failing health and inability to perform his duties.
24.1.4 Officially declared bankrupt.
24.1.5 Convicted of a criminal offence or any acts of dishonesty by a Court.
24.1.6 Ceases to be a member of THE ASSOCIATION.
24.2 REMOVAL FROM OFFICE
24.2.1 An officer shall be removed from office on the recommendation of National Executive Council and duly approved by a simple majority vote of members present and voting at the National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION, on any of the following grounds:
24.2.2.1 Gross misconduct and/or abuse of office.
24.2.2.2 Engaging in acts that are contrary to the aims and objectives of the Association and detrimental to the interest of the Association and its members.
24.2.2.3 Conviction of a crime or any acts of dishonesty by a Court of competent jurisdiction.
24.2.2.4 Officially declared bankrupt.
24.2.2 In the event that an officer ceases, for any reason whatsoever, to be a member of the National Executive Council, such a person shall not be eligible to lay claim to the office previously held, nor shall the person have any interest, benefit or claim against the funds or property of THE ASSOCIATION; and such person shall with or without demand deliver any property OF THE ASSOCIATION in his possession to the National Executive Council.
- ARTICLE 25 - PROPERTY OF THE ASSOCIATION
25.2 Any document, paper, map or plan presented for the use of THE ASSOCIATION shall be the property of THE ASSOCIATION and such document, paper, map or plan may be published or used in any way deemed fit by THE ASSOCIATION.
25.3 All the proceedings and documentation presented at any meeting of THE ASSOCIATION shall belong to THE ASSOCIATION and no member or person shall publish the proceedings and documentation presented at any meeting of THE ASSOCIATION without the prior written consent of the National Executive Council.
25.4 The National Executive Council shall retain the power to manage and control all property and possessions, including landed property of THE ASSOCIATION.
- ARTICLE 26 - DONATIONS, BEQUESTS AND AWARDS
26.2 The National Executive Council shall have power to bestow awards, medals, certificates and/or any other instruments to members of THE ASSOCIATION or the general public for meritorious services, outstanding contributions and other invaluable support rendered in furtherance of the objectives of THE ASSOCIATION.
26.3 The National Executive shall exercise the power to confer honorary award of privileged membership and/or such other honour to person(s) or body of persons in recognition of the meritorious services and excellent contributions rendered in furtherance of the objectives of THE ASSOCIATION.
26.4 The National Executive Council shall retain the power to manage and control all donations, gifts, bequests and awards issued and/or received on behalf of THE ASSOCIATION.
- ARTICLE 27 - ROLE AND FUNCTIONS OF BAOSA CHAPTERS & CLASS SETS
27.1.1 THE ASSOCIATION shall encourage the formation of BAOSA Overseas/Regional Chapters and Local Branches and Class Sets at global, regional, area or cell group levels.
27.1.2 The BAOSA Chapters and Class Sets shall promote the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION, project the image of the Academy and also assist to stimulate active interest and participation of all members in the affairs of THE ASSOCIATION.
27.1.3 THE ASSOCIATION shall accord due recognition to BAOSA Chapters in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution and any other Bye Laws, Rules and Regulations, which may be issued from time to time by National Executive Council.
27.1.4 Each approved BAOSA Overseas/Regional Chapter shall undertake the following:
27.1.4.1 Set up an Executive Committee, comprising of the Vice President as Chairman for the geographical area along with other appropriate representatives.
27.1.4.2 Make rules and regulations, which shall conform to the provisions of this Constitution and other rules and regulations of THE ASSOCIATION.
27.1.4.3 Seek the consent and approval of the National Executive Council on all projects to be embarked upon towards achieving the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION.
27.1.4.4 Prescribe local dues, fees and levies and/or receive donations from members and/or other persons including the National body, in furtherance of the activities and programmes of each BAOSA Chapter.
27.1.5 Each approved BAOSA Class Set shall undertake the following:
27.1.5.1 Set up an Executive Committee, comprising the Chairman along with other appropriate representatives.
27.1.5.2 Make rules and regulations, which shall conform to the provisions of this Constitution and other rules and regulations of THE ASSOCIATION.
27.1.5.3 Seek the consent and approval of the National Executive Council on all projects to be embarked upon towards achieving the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION.
27.1.5.4 Prescribe local dues, fees and levies and/or receive donations from members and/or other persons including the National body, in furtherance of the activities and programmes of each BAOSA Class Set.
27.1.6 The BAOSA Chapters shall hold appropriate meetings and endeavour to furnish the report of their activities and programmes to the National Executive Council on periodic basis, and at least, once in the course of each financial year.
27.1.7 The provisions of this Constitution shall apply to all BAOSA Overseas/Regional Chapters, subject to peculiar changes applicable in the respective localities or regions with regard to the organisation of each BAOSA Chapter; and which may not be expressly provided for in this Constitution.
27.1.8 Nothing in this Constitution shall prevent any eligible member from exercising his right of membership of THE ASSOCIATION, where such a member elects not to join any BAOSA Chapter, where the person resides or is situated.
27.1.9 For effective administration and coordination of activities in each specified area, region, branch, class set or cell groups, the BAOSA Chapters shall be classified as follows:
27.1.9.1 BAOSA “Diaspora” Chapter
27.1.9.2 BAOSA “Branch or Class Set” Chapter
27.1.9.1 BAOSA “DIASPORA” CHAPTER
27.1.9.1.1 THE ASSOCIATION shall encourage active participation of members, who are resident in the Diaspora, through formation of Overseas BAOSA Chapters in furtherance of the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION.
27.1.9.1.2 Each BAOSA “Diaspora” Chapter shall be designated with the appendage of the overseas region or geographical area ascribed to it and shall ensure effective administration and coordination of the activities in the region or area.
27.1.9.1.3 Such BAOSA “Diaspora” Chapter that are presently in existence and active; and are located in the United Kingdom (UK) and United States of America (USA) may be referred to as: BAOSA “UK” Chapter and BAOSA “North America” Chapter.
27.1.9.1.4 All existing BAOSA “Diaspora” Chapters shall seek formal recognition in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.
27.1.9.1.5 The National Executive Council shall exercise the prerogative to determine the geographical area that makes up a BAOSA Chapter (global, regional or branch) and upon consideration of any request for recognition; shall present its recommendation at the earliest meeting of the National Convention of THE ASSOCIATION.
27.1.9.1.1 The National Convention reserves the right and discretion to grant, refuse, approve and/or accord recognition to any request or representation made.
27.1.9.2 BAOSA “BRANCH OR CLASS SET” CHAPTER
27.1.9.2.1 The Class Sets and Branches shall at all times strive to propagate and further the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION, stimulate active participation of members in the affairs of THE ASSOCIATION and promote harmony and social interaction amongst Old Students of the Academy.
27.1.9.2.2 The National Executive Council shall endeavour to invite the Chairmen of branches, class sets and cell groups to its meetings from time to time and on periodic basis, in order to interact and be acquainted with their envisioned plans and programmes for the development of the Academy and achievement of the goals of THE ASSOCIATION.
- ARTICLE 28 – BOARD OF TRUSTEES (BOT)
28.2 The Board of Trustees of BAOSA, for the purpose of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 1990, Part C, shall be appointed at the Annual General Meeting of THE ASSOCIATION.
28.3 THE ASSOCIATION shall have at least three (3) and not more than ten (10) Trustees and the Trustees shall appoint one amongst them to preside as Chairman at the meeting of the Board of Trustees.
28.4 A quorum of one third (1/3rd) of the Board of Trustees shall be required for the meeting of the Board of Trustees.
28.5 In the event of a vacancy in the Board of Trustees, the National Executive Council may in the interim appoint an eligible member, who shall hold office until the next Annual General Meeting, when the appointment shall be ratified or a new Trustee appointed.
28.6 A Trustee may hold office for life but shall cease to hold office if he:
28.6.1 Resigns his office;
28.6.2 Becomes insane and/or incapacitated in any form whatsoever, and is unable to perform his/her duties,
28.6.3 Is officially declared bankrupt;
28.6.4 Is convicted of a criminal offence involving acts of dishonesty by a court or tribunal of competent jurisdiction;
28.6.5 Is recommended for removal from office by the Board of Trustees or the National Executive Council and duly approved by a simple majority vote of members present at any General Meeting or Convention of THE ASSOCIATION.
28.7 The Trustees, for the purposes of promoting good governance of the Association, shall from time to time, play advisory role to the National Executive Council towards the achievement of the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION as stated in this Constitution
28.8 The Board of Trustees shall exercise the following powers:
28.8.1 Accept, acquire and hold in trust, properties, title documents and/or any other real, personal or intangible assets for and on behalf of THE ASSOCIATION.
28.8.2 Execute documents, deeds and instruments, including cheques, bills of exchange, promissory notes, etc. for and on behalf of THE ASSOCIATION under the Common Seal.
28.8.3 Borrow or raise funds, for the beneficial purpose of THE ASSOCIATION, from members and/or any other persons or body of persons, such sums of money, at such rate of interest, in any form or manner and for any period as they may think appropriate; and to secure the payment of such monies or any monies which THE ASSOCIATION may be liable to pay by mortgage, charge, debenture or any other security and/or otherwise forming a charge upon the whole or any of the assets of THE ASSOCIATION.
28.8.4 Enter into lawful contracts and/or transactions of any kind whatsoever, for and on behalf of THE ASSOCIATION.
- ARTICLE 29 – COMMON SEAL
29.2 The Common Seal shall be kept in the custody of the General Secretary, who shall produce it when required for use by the Trustees.
29.3 All documents to be executed by the Trustees shall be signed by any such approved number of them and affixed with the Common Seal of THE ASSOCIATION.
- ARTICLE 30 - INTERPRETATION OF THE CONSTITUTION
30.2 All matters of interpretation as shall be decided upon by the National Executive Council shall be brought to the knowledge of members at the next National Convention or Annual General Meeting immediately following the date on which such decision was taken by the National Executive Council.
30.3 Upon presentation of such interpretation by the National Executive Council and if such interpretation is accepted or approved or appropriately amended; and accepted by at least two-thirds (2/3rd) majority of members present and voting at the meeting, such approved interpretation shall be duly recorded in the Minutes Book and shall be deemed to be part and parcel of this Constitution.
- ARTICLE 31 - AMENDMENT AND ALTERATION OF THE CONSTITUTION
31.1.1 The National Executive Council
31.1.2 An eligible financial member of THE ASSOCIATION, who shall submit a proposal for amendment in writing to the National Executive Council; and which shall be duly seconded by at least twenty (20) other eligible members of THE ASSOCIATION.
31.2 The National Executive Council shall process the proposal(s) for consideration at the National Convention (Extra-Ordinary General Meeting) specifically called for such purpose.
31.3 A resolution to amend, alter, add or delete any part of this Constitution shall be passed at the Extra-Ordinary General Meeting by a majority vote of at least four-fifth (4/5th) of members present and voting at the meeting.
31.4 The commencement date of any amendment, alteration, addition and/or deletion to this Constitution shall be the date at which such resolution was adopted at the Extra-Ordinary General Meeting of THE ASSOCIATION.
- ARTICLE 32 - SPECIAL CLAUSE
32.2 NO ADDITION, alteration, or amendment shall be made to the CONSTITUTION for the time being in force, unless the same have been previously submitted to and approved by the Registrar-General of the Corporate Affairs Commission.
32.3 IN the event of a winding up or dissolution of The Baptist Academy Old Students Association Lagos there remains, after the satisfaction of all its debts and liabilities, any property whatsoever, the same shall not be paid to or distributed among the members of The Baptist Academy Old Students Association Lagos but shall be given or transferred to some other institution or institutions, having objects similar to the objects of The Baptist Academy Old Students Association Lagos and the body or bodies are prohibited from distributing its or their income and property among its or their members to an extent under or by virtue of the SPECIAL CLAUSE hereof, such institutions to be determined by the members of The Baptist Academy Old Students Association Lagos; If effect cannot be given to the aforesaid provision then to some charitable object.
- ARTICLE 33 - TITLE AND COMMENCEMENT
- APPENDIX I - BYE LAWS
1.1 Collate and produce an up-to-date directory Old Students of the Academy with relevant information and bio-data for purposes of periodical publication in the Academy’s “WHO IS WHO”.
1.2 To assist in this exercise, it shall be the duty of the Secretariat at the end of every academic year to obtain from the Principal of the Academy, a comprehensive list of names and addresses, achievements and every other pertinent information about all students that are passing out of the Academy in each particular year.
2 THE ASSOCIATION shall endeavour to issue Membership identity cards to all financial members, which shall be duly signed and affixed with the seal of THE ASSOCIATION. Such Membership identity cards shall be the duly recognised identification for each member at any event or meeting of THE ASSOCIATION.
3 Every member shall be entitled to wear the Badge or Emblem of THE ASSOCIATION.
4 Special Membership cards shall be issued to all Privileged members comprising Honorarymembers and Patrons as the case may be for purposes of identification.
5 In the execution of the organisational structure of THE ASSOCIATION, care shall be taken to ensure in its totality, the national character and representation of the membership.
6 The National Convention shall be the highest decision-making organ of THE ASSOCIATION and shall be the supreme authority to infuse unity and progress within THE ASSOCIATION.
6.1 The National Convention shall meet in the first quarter of the year on a date, place and time to be decided by the National Executive Council.
6.2 Attendance at the Convention shall be availed to duly accredited delegates and observers and representatives of Area or Regional Chapters of THE ASSOCIATION.
6.3 The National Executive Council shall exercise the prerogative to invite guests and observers from other Old Students Associations to the National Convention.
6.4 The National Convention shall deliberate on issues that promote the progress and sustenance of the Academy and the growth and development of THE ASSOCIATION.
6.5 The National Convention shall receive an address from the President and also receive and deliberate on the report of the National Executive Council of THE ASSOCIATION.
6.6 The National Convention shall also receive and deliberate on the Audited Accounts of THE ASSOCIATION, which shall be presented by the Treasurer on behalf of the National Executive Council.
6.7 The National Convention shall receive and deliberate on the Principal’s Report, which among others, shall highlight academic achievements, successes, challenges and other accomplishments recorded by the Academy in the preceding year.
7 The National Executive Council shall be the highest administrative and executive organ of THE ASSOCIATION.
7.1 The National Executive Council shall administer and superintend over the affairs of THE ASSOCIATION and shall formulate policies and programmes tailored towards the achievement of the aims and objectives of THE ASSOCIATION.
7.2 The National Executive Council shall summon and convene the National Convention in accordance with the stipulated provisions of this Constitution.
7.3 It is the duty of the National Executive Council to coordinate the activities of and ensure the spirit of oneness among the branches of THE ASSOCIATION.
7.4 The National Executive Council shall retain the power to set aside an appropriate date for the Annual celebration and observance of THE ASSOCIATION’s anniversary, which shall also coincide with the Annual FOUNDER’s Day Celebration.
8 THE ASSOCIATION shall set up a National Secretariat in Lagos, which shall constitute the operational and administrative centre of THE ASSOCIATION.
8.1 The National Secretariat shall consist of:
8.1.1 The General Secretary who shall be the Chief Administrative Head of THE ASSOCIATION.
8.1.2 The Assistant General Secretary.
8.1.3 The Organising/Administrative Secretary, who shall be a full time employee, is to take charge of the day-to-day administrative affairs of THE ASSOCIATION under the directive of the General Secretary or his Assistant.
8.1.4 Other staff as the National Executive Council may consider necessary.
8.2 Duties
8.2.1 The National Secretariat shall assist the National Executive Council to ensure timely implementation of all decisions and resolutions of THE ASSOCIATION.
8.2.2 The National Secretariat shall assist in the collation and maintenance of up-todate record and directory of Old Students of the Academy.
8.2.3 The National Secretariat shall assist to coordinate the link between the National Executive Council and all branches and Area or Regional Chapters of THE ASSOCIATION.
8.2.4 The National Secretariat shall assist the General Secretary to compile relevant reports and vital information, including reports from the Principal of the Academy, to all the appropriate bodies of THE ASSOCIATION.
8.2.5 The National Secretariat shall maintain close liaison with the Principal of the Academy and the Parents-Teachers Association of the Academy.
8.2.6 The National Secretariat shall carry out any other functions which may be assigned to it by the National Executive Council.
8.3 Salaries
The salaries and other emoluments of the employees of THE ASSOCIATION shall be determined by the National Executive Council.
9 THE ASSOCIATION shall encourage formation of BAOSA Branches, Class Sets and Cell Groups to stimulate active participation of members in the affairs of THE ASSOCIATION and also promote harmony and social interaction amongst Old Students of the Academy.
10 THE ASSOCIATION shall also encourage active participation of members, who are resident Overseas, through formation of BAOSA “Diaspora” Chapters in designated geographical areas or regions, subject to the consent and approval of the National Convention.
11 Every BAOSA Chapter shall hold regular meetings and furnish report of activities and programmes in each geographical area to the National Executive Council on periodic basis; and at least once a year or as may be prescribed by the National Executive Council.
12 Every recognised and approved Overseas BAOSA Chapter shall operate and function at all times, within the confines and framework of the Constitution of THE ASSOCIATION.
13 Notwithstanding any provision made for the formation of BAOSA Chapters, the provisions of this Constitution shall apply and remain binding on all Old Students of the Academy, whether resident locally or in the Diaspora or elsewhere.
14 Nothing in this Constitution shall prevent any eligible member from exercising his right of membership of THE ASSOCIATION, where such a member elects not to join any BAOSA Chapter, where the person resides or is situated.
Dcn. Gbenga Abodunrin
2018 - Present
| Previous Principals | |
|---|---|
| Name | Period |
| Rev. Joseph Harden | 1855 - 1864 |
| Miss Lucile Reagan | 1924 - 1937 |
| Dr. A. Scott Patterson | 1937 - 1940 |
| Rev. B. T. Griffin | 1941 - 1945 |
| Rev. John Mills | 1946 - 1951 |
| Rev. G. Lane | 1951 - 1953 |
| Rev. Dr. J. A. Adegbite* 1 | 1954 - 1975 |
| Mr. Abayomi Ladipo* 2 | 1976 - 1978 |
| Rev. V. S. Adenugba | 1978 - 1981 |
| Rev. S. O. B. Oyawoye | 1981 - 1982 |
| Mr. Olakunle | 1982 - 1983 |
| Mr. Aiyelokun | 1983 - 1991 |
| Mr. C. O. Oduleye | 1992 - 1994 |
| Mr. A. C. Adesanya | 1994 - 1999 |
| Mrs. F. O. Ojo | 1999 - 2003 |
| Mr. H. O. Alamu | 2003 - 2009 |
| Rev. Mrs. B.A Ladoba | 2009 - 2018 |
| Legend * 1: First Indigenous Principal * 2 Old boy |
|
Baptist Academy Old Student Association (BAOSA) Mission statement Be great brand ambasadors of our alma mater Baptist Acadamy
BAOSA has as its objectives
The maintenance and projection of the role and prestige of the Academy as a leading educational institution in Nigeria.
Provision of a forum to stimulate spiritual and intellectual growth and social interaction among the old students of the Academy.
Encouragement of both old and present students of the Academy to uphold the ideals, precepts and virtues inherent in their training i.e. TRUTH, HONESTY and SELFLESS SERVICE in their private and public life.
Promotion of enduring comradeship and cooperation between the old and present students of the Academy.
Development of mutually beneficial relationship with old students’ associations of other educational institutions with identical aims and ideas.
Marriage
Births
Obituary
1 Savior like a shepherd lead us
Much we need Thy tendrest care
In thy pleasant pastures feed us
For our use thy folds prepare,
Chorus
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus,
Thou hast bought us, Thine we are
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus
Thou hast bought us thine we are.
2 We are thine, do thou befriend us
Be the Guardian of our way
Keep thy flock, from sin, defend us
Seek us when we go astray
Chorus
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus
Hear; oh hear us, when we pray
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus
Hear; oh hear us, when we pray
3 Thou hast promised to receive us,
Poor and sinful though we are;
Thou hast mercy to relieve us
Grace to cleanse, and power to free,
Chorus
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus
Let us early turn to thee
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus
Let us early turn to thee
4 Early let seek thy favour,
Early let us do thy will;
Blessed Lord and our savior,
With thy love our bosoms fill;
Chorus
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus
Thou hast loved us love us still
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus
Thou hast loved us love us still
World Remit
Shout out to Baptacadians outside the shores of Nigeria, shower some milk of human kindness the way of your alma mater. "A little rain drop here, a little rain drop there you 'gotta' flood" In due course benevolent hearts out there shall be informed by BAOSA treasurer how to proceed.
"The person that ask is a fool for five minutes, the person that does not ask remains a fool forever." - Chinese proverb
"Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them" - William Shakespeare
Classified
Shout out to Baptacadians with the wherewithall (Self-Employed or Employee); transparently direct advertising Nira the way of your alma mater via BAOSA.The operator(s) of Baptist Academy Old Student Association website makes no warranties or representations of any kind that the services provided by this website or any linked site will be uninterrupted, error-free, or that the site or the server that hosts the site are free from viruses or other forms of harmful computer code. All such information is provided "as is,"; and with specific disclaimer of any warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, or non-infringement. In no event shall The operator, its agents, or anyone else who has been involved in the creation, production, or delivery of these pages, be liable for any direct, incidental, or consequential damages resulting from the use of this website or any linked site.
EXTERNAL LINKS
Links to other websites do not imply an endorsement of the materials disseminated at those websites, nor does the existence of a link to another site imply that the organization or person publishing at that site endorses any of the materials at this site. Links to other websites are provided by the operator(s) of this website as a convenience to its users. The operator(s) of this website is not responsible for the materials contained at any website linked to this site.
UNLAWFUL OR PROHIBITED USE
As a condition of your use of the Baptist Academy Old Student Association website (here after Service), you will not use the Service for any purpose that is unlawful or prohibited by these terms, conditions, and notices. You may not use the Service in any manner that could damage, disable, overburden, or impair this and/or any other website, or interfere with any other party's use and enjoyment of the Service. You may not attempt to gain unauthorized access to the Service, computer systems or networks connected to any of the operators' server/server hosting this site or to any of the Service, through hacking, password mining or any other means. You may not obtain or attempt to obtain any materials or information through any means not intentionally made available through the Service
USE OF Baptist Academy Old Student Association Website SERVICE(S)
Baptist Academy Old Student Association Website is designed to let you garner information about the Baptist Academy Old Student Association. You agree not to use Baptist Academy Old Student Association Website for any other purpose. By way of example, and not as a limitation, you agree that you will not:
1 Use the Baptist Academy Old Student Association Website in connection with surveys, contests, pyramid schemes, chain letters, junk email, spamming or any duplicative or unsolicited messages (commercial or otherwise).
2 Advertise or offer to sell or buy any goods or services. In other words only operator(s) of Baptist Academy Old Student Association website have these (propriatory) rights
3 Publish, post, distribute or disseminate any inappropriate, profane, defamatory, obscene, indecent or unlawful topic, name, material or information.
4 Use any material or information, including images or photographs, which are made available through the Baptist Academy Old Student Association Website in any manner that infringes any copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, or other proprietary right of any party.
5 Provide links to files that contain viruses, Trojan horses, worms, time bombs, cancelbots, corrupted files, or any other similar software or programs that may damage the operation of another's computer or property of another.
6 Download any file posted by another user of a Service that you know, or reasonably should know, cannot be legally reproduced, displayed, performed, and/or distributed in such manner.
7 Falsify or delete any copyright management information, such as author attributions, legal or other proper notices or proprietary designations or labels of the origin or source of software or other material contained in a file that is uploaded.
8 Restrict or inhibit any other user from using and enjoying the Baptist Academy Old Student Association Website. Violate any code of conduct or other guidelines which may be applicable for any particular Service.
9 Harvest or otherwise collect information about others, including e-mail addresses.
10 Violate any applicable laws or regulations.
11 Create a false identity for the purpose of misleading others.
12 Use, download or otherwise copy, or provide (whether or not for a fee) to a person or entity any directory of users of the Baptist Academy Old Student Association Website or other user or usage information or any portion thereof.
The operator(s) reserves the right to review materials posted to the Baptist Academy Old Student Association Website Service(s) and to remove any materials at its sole discretion. The operator(s) reserves the right to terminate your access to Baptist Academy Old Student Association Website at any time, without notice, for any reason whatsoever.
Home of men of timber and caliber.
Baptist Academy Brief Introduction.
Address Mile 7.5 Ikorodu Road, Obanikoro. Yaba, Lagos, Lagos State Nigeria
P.O. Box 321, Yaba, Lagos, Lagos State Nigeria.
Year Founded 1855
Vision of the School The school is a mission minded, Christ exalting independent organization with high Spiritual, academic, aesthetic and moral standard, reaching the school , family, Neighboring community and world for Christ.
Mission of the school To serve and glorify God through the provision of qualitative Christian education to Produce Christ dominated, highly intellectual servant leaders who will take the light and Life and hope of Jesus Christ to Nigeria, Africa and the world.
Strategic Plans To serve and glorify God through the provision of Qualitative Christian Education. This we intend to achieve by producing Christ dominated highly intellectual servant leaders who would serve in Nigeria.
Mobilization Song
We are Baptist Academy boys
And we are proud of dear alma mater
Where sweet fellowship we enjoy
Where the spirit of Christ is taught
Where our captain God leads us along
We’ll be true to our alma mater always
Up school!
"If A is a success in life, then A equals x plus y plus z. Work is x; y is play; and z is keeping your mouth shut." Albert Einstein
"In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of. In a country badly governed, wealth is something to be ashamed of." Confucius
Your greatest treasures are simplicity, patience, compassion. Lao Zi
"The greatness of nation is not measured by its number just like the greatness of man is not measured by its height. The only measure is intelligence and moral character." Victor Hugo
"The richest man is not he who has the most, but he who needs the least." Unknown
From the wall of Senator Shehu Sani
Via Wale Remys Anifowoshe
We should be human and spiritual, to equally appreciate those among us whom were once our childhood colleagues, but unable to rise to the material heights of life.
We should recognize and honor as well as help those who ‘couldn’t make it in life’. They are not failures in life, they are those not privileged by fate to acquire or assume the vanities or the ephemeralities of life.
Old Boys and Old Girls Association should be a reunion of souls, to recount the good old days of brotherly or sisterly unconditional love and celebrate the wrinkles,baldness and the grey hairs that marked our mileage.
It should be a place to recall history with jokes and smiles and prayers for those who departed earlier than us.
The prevailing situations in most old Boys and Girls meeting is that in which the ‘rich old boys or girls’ comes to show off and the ‘poor old boys or girls are intimidated’. This must change.
Yes, fingers are not equal [classic BELL CURVE ie Normal Distribution] and life has been good to some, but let not those attainments kill that comradely spirit we shared in our classrooms and hostels, as young people unaware of what life has for us in the future we now live.
Memories and particularly Childhood memories are the priceless treasures of all alma mater. School life was our raw and innocent stage in life before we became processed and possessed.
On the final note,life will always be busy and packaged with its challenges, but try and spare a moment to visit the orphans and widow(er)s left behind by your once good school friend.
You may not have anything to give, but your presence matters most to his spirit and they will see him in you. Lets be human once again. Lets keep the spirit.......
Baptist Academy Old Boys Association (BAOSA), BAOSA Secretariat, Lagos Baptist Academy, Obanikoro, Lagos, Lagos State, Nigeria. Home of men of timber and caliber.
| Meetings Info | |
|---|---|
| Today is | Next Meeting is on |
| Meeting Coordinates | |
| Meeting Location | BAOSA Secretariat. |
| Start Time | 4PM (16:00 Hours) |
| End Time | Duration Dependent |
| Miscellaneous | Open to all alumni. |
 |
|
|
Welcome to BAOSA virtual house on the World Wide Web Baptist Academy Old Boys Association (BAOSA), BAOSA Secretariat, Lagos Baptist Academy, Mile 7.5 Ikorodu Road, Obanikoro Yaba, Lagos, Lagos State, Nigeria. [Home of] "Men of timber and caliber" - alumnus Kingsley Ozumba Mbadiwe. |
|
| Meetings Info | |
| Today is | Next Meeting is on |
| Meeting Coordinates | |
| Meeting Location | BAOSA Secretariat. |
| Start Time | 4PM (16:00 Hours) |
| End Time | Duration Dependent |
| Miscellaneous | Open to all alumni. |
|
Obituary
Daa Bereofori Sokari George (aka Big G) (April 16th 1956 - January 24th 2021) 1974 Cohort Rev. Michael Mabayoje Ojo Oshunkeye (September 20th 1959 - April 24th 2020) Baptacadian* via HSC/A level Babajide Olympio Arije (April 27th 1960 - April 26th 2020) 1978 Cohort Michael Adesoji Onibokun (Frebuary 2nd 1959 - Frebuary 2nd 2020) 1976 Cohort Christian Akioja Olakpe (June 5th 1954 - March 30th 2020) 1972 Cohort Title* Baptacadian = Attended and Graduated from BaptAcad |
|
School Motto Deo Duce; GOL(God Our Leader)
Address Mile 7.5 Ikorodu Road, Obanikoro. Yaba, Lagos, Lagos State Nigeria
P.O. Box 321, Yaba, Lagos, Lagos State Nigeria.
Year Founded 1855
Vision of the School The school is a mission minded, Christ exalting independent organization with high Spiritual, academic, aesthetic and moral standard, reaching the school , family, Neighboring community and world for Christ.
Mission of the school To serve and glorify God through the provision of qualitative Christian education to Produce Christ dominated, highly intellectual servant leaders who will take the light and Life and hope of Jesus Christ to Nigeria, Africa and the world.
Strategic Plans To serve and glorify God through the provision of Qualitative Christian Education. This we intend to achieve by producing Christ dominated highly intellectual servant leaders who would serve in Nigeria.
The school's history can be traced to the establishment of First Baptist Church Mission in Lagos by an African-American missionary [J. M. Harden]. The mission was given a parcel of land by Oba Dosunmu and structures were soon built on the land. Educational activities started after the completion of the buildings and the expansion of missionary activities led to a gradual growth in the school's population. By 1886, the school had about 129 boys and 95 girls in the primary section and about 14 boys and 3 girls in the secondary section. Prior to 1926, American pastors of the Baptist Mission acted as principals for the school but in January 1926, Eyo Ita and E.E. Esua joined the staff and in August of the year, Ita became the headmaster.*
The initial venue of the school was on Broad Street, Lagos and later moved to a new location along the Ikorodu Road, Lagos. The Primary School section remained at that location but was renamed.
Rather than close the Primary School on Broad Street, Lagos; only the secondary school moved to Ikorodu Road in Obanikoro. The Primary school remained at Broad Street and was renamed W.J David (William Joshua David) Memorial Baptist Primary School after one of the American baptist missionaries that started the baptist Mission in Nigeria. The Primary school remained at the Broad Street location until the late nineteen eighties when its building was pulled down in anticipation of expanding the First Baptist Church (adjacent to the school) to include a high-rise business building. All the students at W.J David were transferred to other Baptist primary schools in the area.
Legend * Increase Coker (1955). "Our Secondary Schools, 'Baptist Academy'". Daily Times of Nigeria. p. 5
Mobilization Song
We are Baptist Academy boys
And we are proud of dear alma mater
Where sweet fellowship we enjoy
Where the spirit of Christ is taught
Where our captain God leads us along
We’ll be true to our alma mater always
Up school!
"If A is a success in life, then A equals x plus y plus z. Work is x; y is play; and z is keeping your mouth shut." Albert Einstein
"In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of. In a country badly governed, wealth is something to be ashamed of." Confucius
Your greatest treasures are simplicity, patience, compassion. Lao Zi
"The greatness of nation is not measured by its number just like the greatness of man is not measured by its height. The only measure is intelligence and moral character." Victor Hugo
"The richest man is not he who has the most, but he who needs the least." Unknown
From the wall of Senator Shehu Sani
Via Wale Remys Anifowoshe
We should be human and spiritual, to equally appreciate those among us whom were once our childhood colleagues, but unable to rise to the material heights of life.
We should recognize and honor as well as help those who ‘couldn’t make it in life’. They are not failures in life, they are those not privileged by fate to acquire or assume the vanities or the ephemeralities of life.
Old Boys and Old Girls Association should be a reunion of souls, to recount the good old days of brotherly or sisterly unconditional love and celebrate the wrinkles,baldness and the grey hairs that marked our mileage.
It should be a place to recall history with jokes and smiles and prayers for those who departed earlier than us.
The prevailing situations in most old Boys and Girls meeting is that in which the ‘rich old boys or girls’ comes to show off and the ‘poor old boys or girls are intimidated’. This must change.
Yes, fingers are not equal [classic BELL CURVE ie Normal Distribution] and life has been good to some, but let not those attainments kill that comradely spirit we shared in our classrooms and hostels, as young people unaware of what life has for us in the future we now live.
Memories and particularly Childhood memories are the priceless treasures of all alma mater. School life was our raw and innocent stage in life before we became processed and possessed.
On the final note, life will always be busy and packaged with its challenges, but try and spare a moment to visit the orphans and widow(er)s left behind by your once good school friend.
You may not have anything to give, but your presence matters most to his spirit and they will see him in you. Lets be human once again. Lets keep the spirit.......