Ogun State Governor Prince Dapo Abiodun has ended the 16-months of interregnum in the Obaship stool of Olu of Orile Ilawo community in Odeda local government area of the state as he presented the staff of office and other instruments of office to Professor Alexander Olusegun MacGregor as the new traditional ruler of the town.
The event which was held at the Elegun-Mefa ancestral home of the Ilawo amidst pomp and pageantry, witnessed a convergence of prominent traditional rulers in the state, Egba sons and daughters, as well as MacGregor’s international friends from the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
Presenting the instruments of office to MacGregor, Abiodun charged the new monarch, a professor of pharmaceutical technology, to strive towards bringing his “reputable” academic experience to bear while administering the affairs of the people of the community.
Represented by the commissioner for chieftaincy and local government affairs, Him. Ganiu Hamzat, the governor tasked the new monarch to unrelentingly foster cooperation with other royal fathers in the state; extending hands of love and fellowship to all those who competed for the stool with him through “speedy reconciliation”, as well as ensure that he is “accessible, receptive and responsive to the yearnings of the peoples in his domain.”
Emphasising that emergence of MacGregor as the Olu of Ilawo town followed the due process as prescribed by the Obas and Chiefs Law of Ogun State, 2021 as well as the custom and traditions of Orile Ilawo, the governor however, admonished Oba MacGregor to ensure that he deploy all efforts that will further champion peaceful co-existence with other neighbouring townships in Egbaland and the state “in order to justify the mandate and trust reposed in you.’’
In his acceptance speech, MacGregor vowed to use his new status as an avenue to re-awaken and sustain justice, peace and unity which he said is exactly what royalty represents from the days of their progenitors.