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My vision for Ogbomoso if I ascend Soun throne — Oyegoke-Olaoye

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My vision for Ogbomoso if I ascend Soun throne — Oyegoke-Olaoye

My vision for Ogbomoso if I ascend Soun throne — Oyegoke-Olaoye

My vision for Ogbomoso if I ascend Soun throne — Oyegoke-Olaoye

World War II veteran and celebrated American author, salesman and motivational speaker, Hilary Hinton ‘Zig’ Ziglar, in his famous quote said: ‘‘If you want to reach a goal, you must see the reaching in your own mind before you actually arrive at your goal.’’

There have been enormous proven researches to the effect that visualising the outcome and understanding the ‘how’ to a predetermined destination would get a man of vision there no matter the obstacles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A prominent Prince of the Olaoye Ruling House and frontliner in the race for the next Soun of Ogbomosoland, Prince Gbolahan Idowu Oyegoke-Olaoye, is well-cast in the class of visionary leaders as defined by Ziglar. He is already upbeat with ideas and thoughts on how to uplift the revered Soun of Ogbomoso throne and the ancient town with value-additions.

As the process of selection gets underway, the multi-talented and multi-disciplinary prince and descendant of Oba Atanda Olaoye Orumogege, a past Soun of Ogbomoso, has unfolded his vision for the development and growth of the ancient kingdom if he emerges the next paramount ruler.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prince Oyegoke-Olaoye said his immediate preoccupation would be the reconciliation and unification of all the princes and various interested parties as the father of all. He also said the pursuit of religious harmony among the various adherents of the major religious faith – Christianity, Islam and traditional religion, amicable resolution of all pending court cases instituted in the contest for the throne, and promotion of peace would be expeditiously implemented.

‘‘In the past few weeks, there has been some kind of pause on the religious harmony of Ogbomosoland. I’m sure it is not a big task; everything generated from the choice of who should become the next Soun of Ogbomosoland. I am sure by the time this is resolved and it turns out to be yours sincerely, we will speak to every religious leader individually and collectively.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

‘‘We will tell them what our town has been in terms of religious harmony. We love each other and there is no family you get to in Ogbomoso that you will not find all these religions – Christianity of several denominations, Islam and traditional believers. We feast together during festivals; there is no dichotomy among us. We will find a way to resolve that; it will be a very short period of time,’’ he said in an interview, Prince Oyegoke-Olaoye, who is a leading candidate for the throne, also stated that he would find amicable resolutions of pending litigations occasioned by the choice of the new king, stressing that the Ogbomoso princes and the indigenes of the town are peace-loving people. ‘‘They love peace. They want to fight for their right but once they see reasons they will join hands and resolve things and move ahead.’’

He also promised to focus on key factors that can engender real development and growth of the historic town among which are human capacity development, youth empowerment, agriculture, industrialisation and harnessing the human resource asset by wooing indigenes in the Diaspora and friends to invest in the economy of the town.

 

 

 

 

 

 

His words: ‘‘Majorly, the bigger picture – there has been clamour for industries and companies to come into Ogbomoso. I agree with it perfectly but I believe establishment of industries rests on one factor – human capacity and capability. Most of our indigenes that have capacity and capability live in bigger towns; you will find them in Lagos, Ibadan, London, America and northern part of Nigeria. They find it strange to stay in Ogbomoso.

‘‘In the last seven months that I have been there physically to live among them, I have discovered that they are wonderful people, loving people. The stories that our forefathers have been telling us that ‘they will kill you’ are not real. If you go home nobody is killing anybody. So, we will try and bring them to see the good side of Ogbomoso. We will let them see the serenity of the town; the peace that exists in Ogbomoso. Except we have this set of people among us, we may not have growth. Once they come in, they will establish industries whether cottage industries or micro and small businesses.’’

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prince Oyegoke-Olaoye further stated that the education sector would be invigorated, while the tourism potential of the town would be developed into recognisable international brands as part of steps to project Ogbomoso to the larger world.

Speaking further, he said he would leverage his vast professional expertise and work experience by bringing innovation into the administration of the kingdom, as well as leverage his circle of influence to attract investors for socio-economic prosperity to the benefits of the generality of the indigenes and residents of the town. “I also believe that as an individual we must have that capacity that is developed that we can sell to the world. If our young ones can develop their capabilities, we stand a better chance. Even for those that have learnt one trade, technical skills or the other they need to perfect that act. It is not compulsory that everybody must work in the office. We can boost the capacity and capabilities of our trained carpenters, tilers, masons and bricklayers; those who need them will come to Ogbomoso instead of going to bring people from Cotonou or Togo. By the time we grow their capacity there will be growth in our economy,’’ he asserted.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While revealing that Ogbomoso is also blessed with rich agriculture land for large-scale farming, Prince Oyegoke-Olaoye, said he would attract investors within and outside the town to invest in the agriculture value chain, himself being a farmer with two large acres of farmland comprising a 10-acre farm at Jabata and another 20-acre farm at Budo-Ora.

On tourism, he explained that his vision for the sector would entail the development of the tourism potential of the town including transforming the various cultural heritages, sites and festivals such as Odun Oba and Odun Oole, as well as the rich local cuisines into international brands to make Ogbomoso an attractive tourist destination.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

‘‘We have good and rich local delicacies and assortment of cuisines. There are several good eateries in Ogbomoso. The breeze is superb. There is peace in our town. We will develop our festivals into tourism assets; we will give them publicity. We also have great people from this town that have made and are making impact nationally and globally. Some of them have been ignored; we will take steps to reach them. Despite the setback suffered by LAUTECH, it is still rated among the top 10 best universities in Nigeria. It will interest you to know that many of the students that graduate from LAUTECH don’t like to leave the town. If you go to Under-G, most of the shops are owned by the students.

‘‘Those who are outside the town who have the ideas that can bring innovation, we will invite them to come. If they need land, we will talk to families that own land to give them land. If it is to buy land, we will buy. The agriculture ecosystem of Ogbomoso is fantastic; there was a time IITA came to Ogbomoso to buy corn seedling, I brokered that deal. By the time we do all of these, Ogbomoso will become bigger in terms of human capital that will dovetail into economic wellbeing of the citizens,’’ he noted further.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On education, Prince Oyegoke-Olaoye assured that he would launch some programmes to strengthen and support the various initiatives by the state government to revamp education. ‘‘We cannot ignore the place of education because it is the bedrock of human capital development. The bigger vision will be improvement of human capacity that will dovetail into overall socio-economic wellbeing of the people of Ogbomosoland,’’ he stressed.

Born on the 15th of August 1965 of the Kapelaye royal family compound in Ogbomoso, Prince Oyegoke-Olaoye is the great grandson of a past Soun of Ogbomosoland, late Oba Atanda Olaoye Orumogege. His biological father, late Prince Olaleye Oyegoke-Olaoye, was the first son of Aremu Oyegoke Olaoye, a direct descendant of Oba Atanda Olaoye Orumogege. Also in his blood line was Oba Lawani Oke Lanipekun, also, a direct descendant of Oba Orumogege.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prince Oyegoke-Olaoye is currently the Head of Practice of a diversified group of companies comprising Gbolahan Oyegoke & Company (Chartered Accountants), Primehill Professional Services (Chartered Tax Practitioners), GIO Associates (Company Secretaries) and Capacity Building & Management Services. His experience cuts across start-ups, growing and matured private limited liability companies that are involved in banking, manufacturing, telecommunications, Information and Communication Technology with progressive responsibilities involving assisting, controlling and directing financial management and administration.

He holds multiple academic qualifications including NCE in Business Ed. (Accounting) from the Federal College of Education, Abeokuta; B. Sc. (Ed.) Economics from Lagos State University; Master’s of Business Administration (MBA) in Marketing from the University of Port Harcourt, and another MBA (Financial Management) from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso. He also holds Masters in Education Administration and Planning from the University of Lagos and he is currently a Ph. D Student at UNILAG.
He is a Certified Forensic Accountant (CFA); Fellow, Chartered Institute of Administration of Nigeria (FCIA); Fellow, Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (FCTI); Fellow, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (FCA); and Associate member of the Business Recovery & Insolvency Practitioners (ABR). He also holds CertIFR (ACCA) – Certificate in International Financial Reporting Standards and Certificate of Participation in Effective Project Management of the prestigious Lagos Business School (LBS).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the career path, Prince Oyegoke-Olaoye has occupied numerous strategic and key roles at all levels and notably at middle, senior, managerial and executive levels. These include Assistant General Manager/COO, Network Support Services Limited; Manager/Group Head (Finance, Project & Admin.), Bocom Communications Limited; Manager/Head (Finance & Project), Mobitel Limited; Manager/Consultant, Solomon Osunba & Company (Chartered Accountants); Clerk, National Bank of Nigeria Limited; and Audit Clerk, David Osho & Company (Chartered Accountants). Others include Part-Time Lecturer, Auditing and Cost Accounting, Lagos State Polytechnic; and Lecturer, Cost Accounting& Financial Accounting (ATS II), Alpha Tutors, ICAN professional examinations preparatory class, amongst others.

Prince Oyegoke-Olaoye is a complete family man, married with a wife for the past 28 years and blessed with children. He is a devout practising Christian, a philanthropist per excellence, a highly respected community leader and well connected with his roots – both the Olaoye Ruling House and the royal dynasty, the Palace of the Soun of Ogbomoso. He is also an industry leader and has held many professional positions. He is a co-published author of professional books, a highly-sought conference speaker and training facilitator.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One can say without gainsay that as a man of vision, Prince Gbolahan Idowu Oyegoke-Olaoye is highly qualified, well-suited and well-prepared to occupy the vacant throne of Soun, barring all unforeseen last-minute circumstances.

By Ashiru AYINDE, A cultural enthusiast writes from Ogbomoso., Oyo State.

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Accident Leaves King Khoisan SA in Hospital: Council Urges Privacy

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Council Confirms King Khoisan SA in Hospital After Accident in Northern Cape

 

Northern Cape, South Africa – The Khoisan Kingdom Council has confirmed that King Khoisan SA, the prominent leader and figurehead of the Khoisan people in South Africa, is currently in hospital after being involved in an accident in the Northern Cape.

In a statement issued earlier today, the Council expressed concern over the well-being of the King and his family but reassured the public that he is receiving medical attention following the incident, which occurred on [date]. The details of the accident, including its cause, remain unclear at this stage.

“We are deeply saddened by this unfortunate event but are grateful that King Khoisan SA is in good hands and receiving the best possible care,” said the Council in a brief statement. “We ask that the public respects his privacy during this time and continues to offer their prayers and support.”

King Khoisan SA has been an influential advocate for the rights and recognition of the Khoisan people in South Africa, often speaking out on matters of indigenous rights, land, and cultural preservation. His leadership has earned him both national and international attention.

As the nation awaits further updates on his condition, messages of support have poured in from various groups and individuals, including political leaders and Khoisan communities across the country.

Authorities are investigating the cause of the accident, and a spokesperson for the King’s family has requested that the media respect their wishes for privacy while they focus on his recovery.

Further updates will be provided as more information becomes available.

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Hawks Raise Alarm Over Increasing Human Trafficking Networks in SA

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Recent Human Trafficking Cases in South Africa Cause for Concern: Hawks

 

Johannesburg, January 11, 2025 – South African authorities are sounding the alarm over the growing number of human trafficking cases in the country, with the Hawks, South Africa’s elite crime-fighting unit, expressing deep concern over the rise in victims being exploited for forced labor and sex trade.

 

The Hawks revealed that human trafficking syndicates are becoming increasingly sophisticated, with operations spanning multiple provinces and even international borders. “We are witnessing an alarming trend where vulnerable individuals, often young women and children, are being lured into trafficking rings with promises of better lives or employment opportunities, only to be subjected to horrific exploitation,” said Hawks spokesperson Captain Linda Mthembu.

 

In recent months, the unit has reported multiple raids and rescues, but experts argue that these cases only scratch the surface of the growing issue. According to the National Freedom Network, a non-profit organization dedicated to combating human trafficking, an estimated 1,000 cases of human trafficking have been reported across the country in the last year alone.

 

Authorities are calling for heightened awareness and collaboration between local law enforcement, non-governmental organizations, and international partners to dismantle the criminal networks responsible. “The fight against human trafficking is a collective one, and we need stronger cooperation to ensure the safety of vulnerable individuals,” said Mthembu.

 

Human trafficking, which remains one of the most lucrative forms of organized crime worldwide, has taken root in South Africa due to its strategic location and high levels of poverty and unemployment, which make people susceptible to exploitation. South Africa’s Tourism Ministry has also noted a disturbing trend where victims are trafficked for sex work in the country’s booming tourism industry.

 

The Hawks have promised to intensify investigations and increase raids in known trafficking hotspots, but law enforcement officials are urging the public to be vigilant and report suspicious activities.

 

As the issue continues to escalate, experts stress that a multi-pronged approach is required to eradicate this heinous crime, from stricter border controls to better victim support and rehabilitation program

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Nigerian Maritime Journalists to Honour Customs CG with “Iconic Maritime Personality of the Year

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Nigerian Maritime Journalists to Honour Customs CG with “Iconic Maritime Personality of the Year”

By Ifeoma Ikem

All is set for Nigerian Maritime Journalists (NMJ) award to be conferred on the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, as the “Iconic Maritime Personality of the Year 2024”.

The need for the Nigerian maritime media practitioners to honour the CGC is a unanimous decision by all maritime journalists covering the maritime beat, cutting across print, electronic and online media, led by the different beat associations.

These include the Maritime Reporters Association of Nigeria (MARAN), League of Maritime Editors (LOME), Association of Maritime Journalists of Nigeria (AMJON), Maritime Journalists Association of Nigeria (MAJAN), Shipping Correspondents Association of Nigeria (SCAN), Online Maritime Media Association of Nigeria (OMMAN) and Congress of Maritime Reporters Association of Nigeria (CONMMEP).

They believe that CG Adeniyi has registered sterling and excellent performance since his assumption of office as the Customs CGC.

According to a nomination letter sent to the CGC by the Secretary, Award Planning Committee, Mr Innocent Orok, “there is no gainsaying you have redeemed and repositioned the Service in all areas. These include revenue collection, anti-smuggling activities, trade facilitation, national security, staff welfare, inter-agency collaboration, infrastructural upgrading, Information and Communication Technology, and Corporate Social Responsibility, among others.

“It is also incontestable that your record-breaking performance has attracted national and international laurels to you, the Service, and Nigeria as a whole. Unarguably, it is partly for these reasons that the Leadership Newspaper Group recently honoured you with the award of the Public Service Personality of the Year.

“We, the maritime journalists, comprising both print, electronic and online media covering the beat, are happy to be part of this history-making with you as partners in progress.

“In appreciation of your superlative performance and, by extension, your unrelenting support to the media, especially the maritime media, we nominate you as the ICONIC MARITIME PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR.”

On his part, the Chairman of Award Planning Committee, Dele Aderibegbe, explained that “the award is coming at no better time than during the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who is looking for focused and dedicated leaders to take the Nigerian economy out of the woods.

According to him, “this honour is very symbolic. First, this is the first time in the maritime sub-sector that all the journalists covering the beat will come together to honour a deserving performer per excellence, who has made the Customs and Nigeria proud by his purposeful, professional and patriotic leadership.

“Secondly, the Nigeria Customs Service under Adewale Adeniyi has been reconnected to international frontiers and leading in revenue collection, anti-smuggling activities, trade facilitation, ICT, modernisation, and inter-agency collaboration, among others.

“This honour by maritime journalists is also to set an agenda for other agencies of government and their appointees that the ever vibrant and dogged maritime media are watching them.

“We are inviting special guests, especially other agencies’ heads and maritime stakeholders to come and witness this great event, which is first of its kind in the Nigerian maritime industry.”

The award ceremony is coming up on Thursday, 16th January, 2025 at the Apapa Port Customs Command Auditorium, at 12noon prompt.

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