The Oyo State administration has promised that it won’t sway the process of choosing the new Alaafin of Oyo from among all the applicants who have expressed interest in filling the vacant seat, as well as all sons, daughters, and Oyomesi. Speaking at the 2022 World Sango Festival celebration’s grand finale on Saturday at the Alaafin Palace in Oyo, acting Oyo State Governor Barr. Abdul-Raheem Adebayo Lawal provided the guarantee.

In response to the agitating question of when the Oyo kingdom would get the new Alaafin after the passing of late Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, Barr. Lawal, who was represented by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Culture and Tourism, Hon. Akeem Ademola Ige, hinted that the government was well aware that this was the question that was weighing heavily on the minds of all indigenes and in fact the entire Yoruba race. However, the government will not interfere with or influence.

The acting governor congratulated supporters of Sango and all Yoruba culture and customs on this year’s celebration and said that the government will continue to support initiatives that promote Yoruba culture and values, particularly at a time when Yoruba values are in danger of extinction.

In her remarks at the event, Hon. Kafilat Olakojo, the executive chairperson of Atiba Local Government, urged the people of Yorubaland to step up their efforts to ensure that the Sango festival celebration is sustained with a better package not only for cultural reawakening but also as a means of alternative revenue generation considering its tourism potentials. Mrs. Olakojo thanked the organizers for preserving the cultural heritage following the death of late Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, whose contribution and commitment was geared toward revitalizing the Yoruba cultural heritage and tradition. She revealed that the festival had gained global recognition and attention to the extent that it was being celebrated in about 42 countries around the world, including Brazil, Cuba, the Caribbean, and so on.

Highlights of the big finale celebration included Sango performance and cultural troupe performances from the states of Oyo, Osun, Kwara, Ogun, Lagos, Ekiti, and Ondo.

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