Oba Ghandi Visits Olu Of Warri

His Imperial Majesty,
Oba Ghandi Afolabi Olaoye, Orumogege III, Soun of Ogbomosoland
visits
His Majesty
Ògíamẹ̀ Atúwàtse III, CFR – Olú of Warri

His Imperial Majesty, Oba Ghandi Olaoye – Soun of Ogbomoso
Was welcomed to the Palace by Miss Alero Larisa Ometan

Olu of Warri says Christianity and traditional thrones are not
in conflict.

In a historic visit to the Olu of Warri, His Majesty Ògíamẹ̀ Atúwàtse
III, CFR by the Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Ghandi Afolabi Olaoye,
Orumogege III, the Warri monarch has declared that traditional
institutions and Christendom are not necessarily antithetical.

He also debunked the wrong assumption that tradition is
synonymous with superstition and the worship of creations made
by human hands and reasoning.
Ògíamẹ̀ Atúwàtse III, CFR spoke when he received the newly
installed Soun of Ogbomoso in his palace in Warri. Oba Ghandi Afolabi Olaoye paid a royal visit to the Warri monarch in his first formal trip outing after his installation three weeks.
The significance was not lost on Ògíamẹ̀ Atúwàtse III who noted
that “for this, we feel highly honoured”, adding “your choice of
Warri kingdom as your first port of call was also divinely directed
and your choice as Soun was divinely ordained”.

With both monarchs being practicing Christians, Ògíamẹ̀ Atúwàtse III remarked that “what Almighty God has called us to is a challenge for us to lead with courage as we work together to leverage our cultures of progressive thinking to motivate our people and bring them prosperity in today’s fast-changing,
technology-driven world”.

Earlier in his address, Oba Ghandi Afolabi Olaoye who was a
Senior Pastor at the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) before his call to the throne of his ancestors, noted that as Christian monarchs, “Almighty God has called both of us to lead our people as a light to the world.”

Quoting the Holy Bible in Matthew 5:15, the Soun said their emergence in their respective kingdoms is akin to divine light shining on their people. In effect, “We have a divine obligation to
lead in righteousness, justice, fairness and Equity, are not empty abstractions but compelling ideals.

“Only when driven by a singular commitment to these ideals
can we lead our people into visible, functional development – materially, mentally and spiritually.”

He advocated for the adoption of “Cultural Diplomacy for Development” in order “to transform our traditional institutions into impactful partners in the quest for accelerated growth and
development for our people.”

Oba Ghandi Afolabi Olaoye offered to grant scholarship to 10 children (six girls and four boys) from Warri kingdom in Ogbomoso through Junior and Senior Secondary School beginning next academic session. Hoping that Ògíamẹ̀ Atúwàtse
III will reciprocate the gesture, he said the educational exchange
“will seal this relationship between us – as a first step”. Ògíamẹ̀
Atúwàtse III accepted the offer and promised to reciprocate.

Just like his royal guest whose ascension to the Ogbomoso
throne had initially raised eye brows in some quarters given his status in RCCG as a Senior Pastor, the Warri monarch also came with a high Christian pedigree of the Pentecostal mould to the
palace.

In apparent reference to this, the Soun stated: “It is no coincidence that our emergence on the respective thrones of our ancestors has happened in the same decade that is seeing gamechanging developments for people and cultures worldwide. This means we are bound to have shared experiences as peculiar to
the times as we are in. We are convinced that Almighty God has called both of us to lead our people as a light to the world.”

Oba Ghandi Afolabi Olaoye was installed on September 8th, 2023, succeeding Hus Imperial Majesty, Oba Jimoh Oladunni Oyewumi, JP, CON, Ajagungbade III who transited to the great
beyond, on December 12, 2021.

He invited his host to be his
Special Guest in Ogbomoso when the ceremonies of his formal
coronation comes up.
His choice of Warri monarch as the first to visit even ahead of his
peers in Yorubaland is historic and is seen as largely inspired by their shared evangelical Christian background. Both hold on to the belief and do not see their royal status and custodians of their people’s tradition as being in conflict.

The Soun was accompanied on the visit by Rear Admiral Jacob Ajani (rtd), Prof. Shola Adepoju (rtd), Air Vice Marshall Bolaji Adigun (rtd) – Akogun of Ogbomoso Land and Pastor Agu Irukwu.

Both Warri and Ogbomoso have rich histories that date back centuries. Warri Kingdom, also called Iwere Nation, was established in 1480. It was part of the Nigerian traditional states
with its ancestral capital based in Ode-Itsekiri, Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State.

Founded in the mid-17th century, Ogbomoso was a minor outpost of the then Yoruba Oyo empire until the beginning of
the Muslim Fulani conquests of Oyo in the early 19th century.

However, Ogbomoso survived the Fulani onslaught. Afterwards, the walled town attracted many Oyo refugees and became one of the largest Yoruba settlements.