Oyinkansola, NOUN student, emerges Miss Oya 2015

Traditional drumming, cultural dance, chanting of festivity songs, beauty pageant contest amongst many other activities ushered the commemoration of the 5th edition of Oya festival held in Ira, Kwara state. The festival was put together by the Olokun Festival Foundation. Prior to the festival in Ira, the night before, guests and facilitators of the event converged on Offa to witness the beauty pageant. Kekong Angela Oyinkansola defeated 12 other contestants to win this year’s edition of Miss Oya Pageant which held at Avalon Hotel, Offa, Kwara State. Oyinkansola, an undergraduate of Tourism Management from the National Open University, NOUN, went home with a brand new car among other items while Sunday Nneka Loveth emerged first runnerup and Amos Foluso Abosede emerged as second runnerup. Speaking during the competition, the Chief promoter of Olokun Foundation Festival, the organiser of the event, Otunba Gani Adams said, “Our girls are the beauty and brains of the younger generation . Through this competition, we want to showcase the African beauty and culture and to tell the world that we have talented ladies who can compete internationally on any platform.” He recalled that eight years ago, the foundation added beauty pageantry to the celebration of various festivals being organised by the foundation in order to incorporate the younger generation by giving them an opportunity to showcase their talents to the world and make them to identify with their culture and heritage “Olokun Foundation Festival has 15 different pageants competitions and currently two of the beauty queens are serving their fatherland. I am happy that we will continue to project our cultural heritage beyond Nigeria and that is why we established Oodua Progressive Union, OPU in other parts of the world. Currently we have OPU in 63 countries”, he said. The festival however came to full bare with a visit to Oya shrine the next day. The shrine which is revered was however relatively empty as most of the inhabitants expected to be present to celebrate the festival were conspicuously absent, leaving the premises somewhat desolate, except for few women who came to pay tribute to the river goddess and to welcome the national coordinator, Oodua People’s Congress, OPC and chief promoter, Olokun Festival Foundation, Otunba Gani Adams. Speaking to journalists the Abore Oya Agbaye and lecturer, Institute of Cultural Studies, Obafemi Awolowo University, OAU Ile-Ife High Chief Lekan Oyinlola explained that the festival was part of the events being celebrated to hold the culture and tradition of Yoruba people, which is facing western threat. “The challenge has always been the western religion and education. Those that are worshipping Oya in time past have been changing to western religion mostly Christianity and Islam. Those who worship Oya now are mostly royal families in collaboration with the Oodua People’s Congress, OPC.” Creating curiosity to many who visited the shrine was a woman tying a white wrapper and seated in the inner chamber. The woman according to Oyinlola was the carrier of Oya balabash and who intercedes on behalf of the people to Oya, a position she would maintain for seven years, five of which she has spent. According to the Abore Oya Agbaye succession of his post and that of the Oya calabash carrier are exclusively inspired by the oracle. Relating the significance of Oya Abore explained that “Oya is very important to Yoruba issue because Oya was one of Sango’s wives and the closest to him. When Sango was king and was confronted with many battles it was Oya that brought him the power of thunder from Nupe, her fatherland. "After the death of Sango, Oya while returning to her people in Nupe decided to submerge in the earth in Ira for fear of not being received by her parents," he concluded. The presence of Osunmuyiwa Ajala, a white woman at the shrine could not have provoked the much focus it received from other black tourists and Oya festival enthusiasts as several white folks usually tourists often visit many of the African rituals. But the attention Ajala who has been practising African tradition for about ten years drew, to many came following her obeisance at the shrine. She and some five Oya priests found comfort on bare mother earth where they sat solemnly in semi-circle looking into the inner chamber of the shrine where the carrier sat believed to be interceding for worshippers of the river goddess. When asked how she came about Oya she said: “Oya came about me. I wish I could explain better but I am clueless. God finds one and it’s not hard because they are in us already. “Orisa has chosen me and I’ve chosen them and they have given me a job to do their work and to bring their message to people, to pray for them and to do what I can to relieve people from their suffering by being kind to them, to take responsibility to serve humanity, to see brotherhood and sisterhood to simply do what is right without condition to be compassionate.” Ajala came about her name when she was initiated in 2012 by her husband and godfather, an Ifa priest and king Ajala of Osogbo. To many Nigerians the practice of African traditional religion is barbaric. But to Ajala the narrative is far different from such sentiment as she averred being fulfilled in not only practising the tradition but canvassing it across Nigerian borders, a faith which is repulsive to the very indigenes. “I’m more fulfilled than ever in my life practising the African religion. My mission makes me complete and I pray everybody can fill this; this oneness. “All I feel is to rejuvenating Africa and we can all belong to different religions, different cultures, it doesn’t always eventually lead to one because if a tree forgets its root, it will die.” In his address Gani noted that the reason for celebrating the festival is to promoting Yoruba cultural heritage and celebrate the heroic lives of the ancestors and progenitors, a campaign which he has since remained resolute in propagating. The Oodua national coordinator said history has it that Oya is worth celebrating following her contributions to the Yoruba race. According to him Oya is famous for her bravery, virtues, beauty, warrior and agent of change. And being a river goddess and favourite wife of Sango, the god of thunder her deeds cannot be overemphasized. “Oya is a custodian of morality, she gives succour to all adherents, giving them the desires of their hearts and protecting them from danger. She gave everything to her husband, Sango. “The lesson we can learn from the life and times of Oya are legions. It was all about courage, determination, purposefulness and self assertiveness. A virtuous woman and leader of all woman; these are great qualities we can learn from the great ancestors and heroine who has always been a mother of all.” Adams pitiable however lamented that it is sad that in the present generation many do not appreciate ancestors, heroes and heroines, a development attributed to foreign religions. He particularly berated the Ira community for their perceived cold attitude towards the festival. According to him instead for the community to come out en masse in various attires depicting their different group to celebrate their heroine, they remained in their closets for no just cause. He harped that the African traditional culture most Africans did not value is being appreciated by some western community who knows the value and worth. He stressed that the festival to the community could usher them apart from spiritual benefits, economic, social and political rewards, adding that celebrating a festival such as this would guarantee them protection from crisis. The tradition advocate further enjoined the host community and all Nigerians particularly the Yorubas to preserve the golden cultural heritage bequeathed to them by their ancestors. The event had in attendance HRM Alh Abdul Wahab Oyewale Oyetoro, the Onira of Ira Land; HRM Oba Joseph Moronfoye Okunola, the Onigbaye of Igbaye; Prof Ayo Olu Akinwale of the Department of Performing Arts, University of Ilorin, amongst others.