Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has declared support for the 1st World Yoruba Carnival of Arts and Culture, holding next year February in Ile- Ife, Osun State, and becoming its ambassador extraordinaire.
The World Yoruba Carnival of Arts and Culture is a celebration of the rich and ancient history of the arts, crafts, and culture of the Yoruba people, with the week-long carnival, projected to welcome Yoruba descendants and visitors from all over the world.
Chairman, Central Planning Committee of the Carnival, Dr Tunde Adegbola, announced this when he led his team on a visit to the former president in his Otta home, Ogun State to discuss the modalities of the first edition of the carnival.
Adegbola, in a release made available to newsmen by the Carnival Director, Prof. Ademola Araoye, emphasised the unique diversity of the Yoruba arts and culture and how individuals from the ethnic groups had excelled greatly beyond the shores of Nigeria in every continent across the globe but noted with great regret the inability to cultivate such rich cultural heritage in the country “to the point where it would forester our growth in the area of economics or innovative development as seen in some nations.”
Adegbola, an engineer and a cultural activist, whose committee was inaugurated in May by the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Eniitan Ogunwusi Ojaja 11, however, said it was such situation that inspired the hosting of the carnival, pointing out that the arts and cultural event would include colloquiums and other interactive sessions to dissect the Yoruba heritage in a bid to harvest its benefits for the future of the race and Nigeria as a whole.
“The carnival would include colloquiums and other interactive sessions to dissect the Yoruba heritage in a bid to harvest its benefits for the future of the Yoruba and Nigeria as a whole,” he said.
Chief Obasanjo, in his own remark, while fully endorsing the carnival, reiterated the uniqueness of the Yoruba language, by way of names individuals bear and their meanings, the oriki, among others, saying such could be used to define the origin of the individuals.
Members of the Central Planning Committee who were with Dr Adegbola on the visit include; Otunba Femmy Carrena, Prince Tunde Odunlade, Prince Lekan Tejuosho, Mr Dele Lucas, Mr Seni Jawando, Prince Akin Onalaja, Aare Jide Taiwo, Mrs Bose Ijabiyi, Mr Oluwaseun Olayiwola and Mr Seyi Johnson.
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