Yinka Kolawole in Osogbo 

Former President Goodluck Jonathan, weekend, said the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammed Sa’ad Abubakar and the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, were the two most prominent Nigerian kings.

He said this when the Ooni wrapped up his 3-day working visit to Balyesa State, where  he held meetings with relevant stakeholders.

The stakeholders, aside from Jonathan, included Governor Duoye Diri, and Chairman of the state Council of Traditional Rulers and members of his council, who expressed excitements to host Ooni, who doubled as the Permanent Chairman of the Southern Nigeria Traditional Rulers Council(SNTRC) and Co-Chair, National Council of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria (NCTRN).

In a statement yesterday in Osogbo by the Director, Media and Public Affairs, Ooni’s Palace, Ile-Ife, Otunba Moses Olafare, said in hosting Ooni and his entourage at his Otuoke country home in Otuoke, Jonathan described the monarch as a great gift to Africa.

He said  whenever the National government wanted to do something in the country, the two most prominent kings they always called were the Sultan of Sokoto and the Ooni of Ife, calling them the two greatest kings in the country.

“Your Majesty, I used to tell you that I’m from Osun State. I did my NYSC in the town of Iresi in Osun State. Maybe that was why I was very close to Osun State while I was the president. You, Osun people, may not know the importance of the Ooni because he’s your traditional ruler.

“When I was there as the President, I met a committee of National Traditional Rulers of Nigeria, Sultan and Ooni were the permanent Co-chairmen of all the Nigeria’s traditional rulers. Sultan for the North and the Ooni for the entire South. That tells you the pedigree of the Ooni of Ife, when it comes to kingship in Nigeria,” he said.

Balyesa State governor had earlier paid a private visit to the Ooni at his lodge, where he described Ooni’s visit as long overdue and golden opportunity for the people of Balyesa to see the  great Nigerian king for the first time.

Diri expressed his intention to bring Ooni Ogunwusi back to the state when Balyesa would celebrate its 29th year creation anniversary, which would come up later in the year.

“Your Majesty, government and the good people of Balyesa love you so passionately and we see this your coming as our opportunity to invite you to be our Special Royal Father of the day later this year during 29 years  anniversary of our state creation. 

“You are a leader we all love and respect. You have so far comported yourself with royal dignity of majestic simplicity. Your humility is second to none and I am so happy with the high esteem in which our traditional rulers here hold you,” Governor Diri said.

Ooni, also met with members of the Balyesa State Council of Traditional Rulers in Yenagoa on Friday, during which they all deliberated on issues bordering on the economy and security of the nation.

They equally adopted cross cultural visits and communication as veritable tools to unite the Nigerian people(s) for peace and tranquility to reign in the country. 

He seized the opportunity to solicit the state traditional rulers’ support for the President Bola Tinubu administration with prayers to succeed in his renewed hope agenda for Nigeria.

“We have no other country except Nigeria. What Nigeria needs to progress in is peace and there cannot be peace without unity of purpose. This is where the government needs our support. 

“Let us all lead our subjects alright as traditional rulers of this country for Nigeria to have peace so that various developmental policies of government’s Renewed Hope Agenda can positively manifest in the lives of all our subjects across the country. 

“To do this, we must encourage cross cultural communication and visits like this,” Ooni said.

Speaking on behalf of the Balyesa traditional rulers, Chairman of the state Council of Traditional Rulers, who is also the king of Agada town in Bayelsa, His Royal Majesty, King Bubaraye Dakolo, Agada IV. the Ibenanaowei of the Ekpetiama Kingdom, described Ooni’s visit as historic being the first state out of the 17 states in the entire Southern Nigeria to host the Ooni after his official inauguration as the Permanent Chairman of the Southern Nigeria Traditional Rulers Council (SNTRC) last year.

He commended the Ooni for being a leader, who stops at nothing to foster unity among the traditional rulers in the country, particularly in the Southern part of the country.