The people of ancient town of Ado Awaye, Araromi LCDA in Oke Ogun region of Oyo State on Saturday 19th November, 2022, celebrated the Iyake International Annual Festival.
The ocassion which was kickstarted on the 16th November and came to an end on Saturday 19th had the the Oyo State Commissioner for Establishment, Trade and Investments,Alhaji Siju Lawal representing Gov. Seyi Makinde and Barrister Iyiola Oladokun, former Deputy Governor of Oyo State, as the Chairman of the occasion.
The event which took place at the festival arena, foot of Ado mountain, Ago Afin, Ado Awaye, Araromi LCDA, Iseyin Local Government, Oke Ogun region of Oyo State witnessed some interesting programmes of activities such as cultural display, boxing, speeches, beauty contest, music, among others.
The Chairman of the Central Planning Committee, Mr.Bola Olalere while speaking, appreqciated Kabiesi Alado of Ado Awaye for giving him the privilege to head the Central Planning Committee of this year 2022 edition of Iyake international festival .The Chairman said,” I have always seen Iyake Suspended lake as one of our heritages in Oke Ogun that is wasting away and needing a different approach to make it world class destination. When I see the calibre of people in the Committee selected by his Royal Majesty which cuts across different fields of professional give me courage that we shall succeed in the assignment “.
The Chairman stated further that, to achieve the target, they started reaching out to indigenes of Oke-Ogun and Oyo State in general for possible assistance which gave them the power to embark on the rehabilitation of the 50 steps and erection of the entrance gate at the Ado mountain. He therefore called on every indigene and residents of Oke-Ogun and Oyo State in general to join hands by donating bags of cements and other needed materials to do the required job.
In his royal address, the Alado of Ado Awaye kingdom who was also the Royal Chief host welcomed all dignitaries present at the occasion. Speaking further, Kabiesi said,”we are here to celebrate history and wonders of the only two natural suspended lakes in the world-Iya Alaro and Iyake lakes being the major one, and other mystical heritages on Ado mountain. Ado Awaye is not only rich in history and culture, it also has what it takes to contribute greatly to the development of Oyo State and turn around Nigeria’s economy “. According to Kabiesi, Iyake suspended lake in Ado Awaye has been rated the third among the 7 wonders of the world, thus, it is a tourist attraction to behold. The first cassava Sorbitol Factory in Africa located at Ado Awaye is another giant economic booster for the state. Ado Awaye is also blessed with grade “A” kaolin deposit which is the major material for pharmaceutical products “.
Furthermore, His royal Majesty stated that, as a matter of fact, Ado-Awaye has become an important world center because of many local and international visitors coming in for tourism activities. Oba Folakanmi added that for us to maximise the economic potentials of Ado Awaye and turn it into a magnificent tourist destination, we need to put in place some supporting facilities, such as; construction of fibre rope railings with iron at every three metres along the road to the mountain, construction of 5-square meters model resting points along the road leading to the top of the mountain, building of good hotel accommodations for tourists, repair of the steps leading to the mountain top, among others. Kabiesi Alado therefore appealed to the government of Oyo State and other stakeholders to support the course in the interest of economic development of state at large.
In his good will message, the Iseyin born Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Barrister Hammed Raaji SAN appreciated His Royal Majesty, Oba Rev’d Ademola Olugbile Folakanmi for his strong determination to develop Ado-Awaye through tourism heritage development. The Oke-Ogun born legal luminary opened that we should not be waiting for government to do every needs because of the meagre financial resources in the state and he promised to reconstruct 200 hundreds steps out of remaining 300 steps in honour of Governor Seyi Makinde, Barrister Bayo Lawal, Deputy Governor, Chief Iyiola Oladokun, former Deputy Governor of Oyo State and Kabiesi Alado of Ado Awaye as part of his own contribution.
The Chairman of the occasion who is also an indigene of Ado Awaye, Barrister Iyiola Oladokun in his good will message equally appreciated Kabiesi Alado of Ado Awaye for his untiring efforts towards the development of Ado Awaye and Iyake Suspended lake in particular. Barrister Iyiola Oladokun in his further address established that Iyake lake was a unique one compared with the other one in Colorado, USA, which is man-made. He therefore charged the state government to develop the site for the economic development of the state and he appreciated Barrister Hammed Raaji for his contributions towards the development of Ogun region.
The Oyo State Commissioner for establishment, trade and investment, Hon. Shiju Lawal,while speaking on behalf of the State Goernor, Engr. Abiodun Makinde, reiterated the Oyo State Government commitment to transform Ado Mountain Tourism Center to a global standard. He added that the 2023 budget has taken care of the monumental projects of the state government which were to be carried out at Ado Awaye tourism center. He concluded his address by appreciated His royal majesty for his genuine love for the people of his kingdom as evidently manifested in his quest to improve their standard of living through tourism industrial development.
The Chairman, Oyo State Tourism Board, Ajetumobi and S A to His Excellency on tourism, Hon. Akeem Ademola Ige, on a separate note equally corroborated the speech of the Honourable Commissioner on the Oyo State position to carry out the monumental projects and it’s budgetary provision in the 2023 budget appropriation.
Mr. Bolanle Bukola Opeyemi,who represented the CEO, Psaltry International Limited, as one of the special guests at the occasion when he was speaking, mentioned some of the positive contributions previously made by his company to the development of Ado Awaye in general and he pledged on behalf of his boss to renovate 50 steps up to the Ado mountain as part of the company’s contribution.
Other dignitaries at the event were members of Araromi Traditional Council, Iseyin Local Government Traditional Council, Kabiesi Elero of Ilero, Oniserin of Iserin land, Oba Abdulrasheed Motolase, among others.