LAGOS IN TALKS WITH NATIONAL, BRITISH MUSEUMS TO REVIVE J.K. RANDLE CENTRE - SANWO-OLU

•Governor Appoints Trustees for Yoruba History Centre, Pledges to Restore Lagos Heritage

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday, reiterated his resolve to restore the lost glory of the J.K. Randle Centre for Yoruba Culture and History, as he inaugurated the Board of Trustees (BoT) for the Centre.

The Governor is the chairman of the seven-member Board set up to revive tourism and engender cultural renaissance in Lagos. The Board comprises four Government officials and three professionals from the private sector.

The BoT members were inaugurated at a ceremony organised by the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, and held at the State House, Alausa.

The Centre, originally built in 1928, used to serve as a hub for cultural tourism, recreation and entertainment. Its reconstruction started in 2018.

Sanwo-Olu, as chairman of the Board, pledged to make the Centre a critical reference point for Yoruba culture and arts, stressing that the constitution of the Trustees was imperative, given the near completion of the reconstruction work on the Centre located in Onikan.

The Governor said his administration’s commitment towards bringing the Centre back to life remained unshaken, saying the Government had set the completion deadline for the contractor handling the reconstruction work.

He said: “I take up this opportunity to serve as the chairman of the Board of Trustees of the J.K. Randle Centre for Yoruba Culture and History with a sense of responsibility, and I assure stakeholders in the Arts, Culture and Tourism ecosystem that we will do everything to ensure that the Centre becomes a reference point, not only for Yoruba culture and arts, but also brings back the old glory of Lagos culture.

“We are expecting the reconstruction work on the Centre to be completed before the end of the year. That is why it is important to have a Board of Trustees to run the institution and take it to the level where the Centre would be second to none in the documentation of Yoruba history and culture. Our commitment on this project is unshaken and we are monitoring the contractor, which has committed itself to the delivery of the project.”

Sanwo-Olu disclosed that the State Government was already in discussion with arts and culture organisations and professionals, including national museum, British Museum, and private Arts collectors on the availability of compendiums and collection of works documenting the rich history of Yoruba and their arts in the Centre.
He said the revival of the Centre would reinvigorate tourism in the State, stressing that the Board had been empowered with administrative authority to engage both local and international players in arts and culture in conversations that would make the Centre realise its mandate.

He said: “We are not leaving anything behind to ensure the J.K. Randle Centre becomes an international destination for local and foreign tourists to learn about old and contemporary cultural heritage of the Yoruba. The Centre is sited on a location that is accessible and it provides the ambience for people to learn.

“The building of the Centre also fits into our overall global objective in Arts, Culture and Tourism. We recently launched our 20-year Arts and Tourism master plan and delivering the Centre would help bring our strategy to making Lagos a tourism destination a reality.”

Sanwo-Olu said the inclusion of private sector players in the Board was to provide a robust platform for engagement that would put the Centre on the world map. He charged members of the Board to bring their wealth of experience to bear as they serve in the capacity.

Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Mrs. Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf, presented the Board members to the Governor and urged them to justify their appointments.

Secretary to the State Government, Mrs. Folashade Jaji is the Vice Chairman of the Board, while the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture,
Mrs. Adenike Adedoyin-Ajayi is the Secretary.

Other members are Mrs Olubunmi Osiewu (Treasurer), Mrs. Polly Alakija, Chief Euzebio Babajide Damazio, and Mr. Abdul-Rafiu Babatunde Adewale.

GOV. BABAJIDE SANWO-OLU INAUGURATES THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FOR THE J.K RANDLE CENTER FOR YORUBA CULTURE AND HISTORY AT LAGOS HOUSE, IKEJA, ON THURSDAY, JULY 8, 2021

PIX 1 L-R: Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor on Arts & Culture, Mr. Solomon bonu Saanu; Board Secretary, J.K Randle Center for Yoruba Culture & History/Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture, Princess Adenike Adedoyin-Ajayi; board member, Chief Babajide Damazio; Board Vice Chairman & SSG, Mrs. Folashade Jaji; Chairman, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu; another board member, Otunba Abdul Rafiu Adewale; Commissioner for Tourism, Arts & Culture, Pharm. (Mrs) Uzamat Akinbile-Yusuf and the Board Treasurer, Mrs. Olubunmi Osiewu, during inauguration of the Board of Trustees for the J.K Randle Center for Yoruba Culture & History, at Lagos House, Alausa, Ikeja, on Thursday, July 8, 2021.

PIX 2 L-R: Lagos State Governor and Chairman, the Board of Trustees, J.K Randle Center for Yoruba Culture & History, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu; Commissioner for Tourism, Arts & Culture, Pharm. (Mrs) Uzamat Akinbile-Yusuf; board member, Otunba Abdul Rafiu Adewale and Board Treasurer, Mrs. Olubunmi Osiewu, during the inauguration of the Board at Lagos House, Alausa, Ikeja, on Thursday, July 8, 2021.

PIX 3 L-R: Board member, J.K Randle Center for Yoruba Culture & History, Chief Babajide Damazio; Board Secretary, J.K Randle Center for Yoruba Culture & History/Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture, Princess Adenike Adedoyin-Ajayi; Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat and Board, Chairman, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, during inauguration of the J.K Randle Board of Trustees, at Lagos House, Alausa, Ikeja, on Thursday, July 8, 2021.

PIX 4 L-R: Board member, J.K Randle Center for Yoruba Culture & History, Chief Babajide Damazio; Board Vice Chairman & SSG, Mrs. Folashade Jaji; Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat; Board Chairman, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu; another board member, Otunba Abdul Rafiu Adewale; Commissioner for Tourism, Arts & Culture, Pharm. (Mrs) Uzamat Akinbile-Yusuf and the Board Treasurer, Mrs. Olubunmi Osiewu, during inauguration of the J.K Randle Board of Trustees, at Lagos House, Alausa, Ikeja, on Thursday, July 8, 2021.

naptu2:
J.K. Randle x3


Dr John Kehinde "JK" Randle


Dr John Kehinde "JK" Randle was born in Sierra Leone in 1855. His father, Thomas Randle, was a liberated slave from Oyo, who had settled in Freetown. He later moved to Lagos. John Randle attended the CMS Grammar School in Freetown, Sierra Leone, before working as a dispenser in the colonial hospital. He saved enough money that enabled him to attend the University of Edinburgh in Scotland between 1884 and 1888, graduating with a gold medal in materia medica. Randle and his fellow-student Obadiah Johnson obtained positions in 1889 as Assistant Colonial Surgeons in the Lagos Colonial Hospital. At the same time, Randle practiced privately, treating most of the European traders of Lagos, particularly the Germans.


In November 1890 Randle married Victoria Matilda Davies, the daughter of the famous and wealthy Captain James Pinson Labulo Davies and Sarah Forbes Bonetta, Queen Victoria's god-daughter. Queen Victoria had given Matilda Davies the name Victoria at her christening, had bestowed an allowance of £40 for life and had given her a solid gold christening set. The queen donated the material for Matilda's wedding gown.


Randle resigned from the Colonial Service in 1892. He was angry that as an African he was given about half the salary of a European with the same training, and that he was being required to serve as a doctor in locations far from Lagos. Gilbert Thomas Carter, Governor of Lagos in 1891–97, said of his resignation, "My past experience of native doctors ... does not encourage me to place much faith in their aptitude for this profession..." Randle withdrew his resignation, but asked for an increase in salary to £500 per year. Randle was dismissed from the service in September 1893 for his persistent refusal to make tours of duty to the British military outpost at Ijebu Ode. He devoted himself to private medical practice, in which he was highly successful. He served patients from all levels of society, providing free treatment to the poor. Randle was successful in treating yellow fever and guinea worm infestation.


Dr Randle grew wealthy, acquired a lot of land in Lagos and had a significant shareholding in the Bank of British West Africa (now First Bank Nigeria). He was one of the famous "Victorian Gentlemen" of Lagos (in the late 1800s and early 1900s). He even went as far as ordering his food from England!


He was one of the leaders of the idea that an African Church needed to be created. A lot of Nigerian priests had received advanced formal education in the late 1800s, but this did not translate into senior positions for them. Some African priests had complained, but they were suspended on basically, racist grounds. In 1890 Randle was a member of a committee that invited the pan-Africanist educator, journalist and politician Edward Wilmot Blyden (a Liberian) to Lagos to support them in their dispute over the Niger Mission. On 2 January 1891, at a meeting attended by Governor Cornelius Alfred Moloney, Blyden proposed an independent African Church with Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther as its head. (An African Church was eventually established in 1901 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_African_Church).


Although Herbert Macaulay's Nigerian National Democratic Party (NNDP) was the first political party in Nigeria, many political associations had existed long before the NNDP was created in 1922. These associations were created to promote certain causes and fight for certain rights, rather than to contest elections. Dr JK Randle became active in politics and the governor of the Colony of Lagos, Sir William MacGregor, made him a provisional member of the Legislative Council in 1899. Dr JK Randle, along with other notable and legendary Lagosians like Dr Orisadipe Obasa, Sir Kitoye Ajasa, Sir Adeyemo Alakija and Dr Richard Akinwande Savage formed The People's Union, a political association, in 1908.

In my personal opinion, the main problem that the People's Union had was that it was not radical enough for Lagosians. It actually fought against some of the policies of the Colonial Government, but it did not go as far as Lagosians would have liked.

For example, the People's Union fought against the water rate that was proposed by the Colonial Government. The government had planned to tax Lagosians and to use the revenue to build the Iju Waterworks. Many Lagosians, especially traditional Lagosians, felt that the new waterworks would be primarily used by the Europeans and therefore the Europeans should pay for it. The traditional Lagosians were satisfied with the water that they bought from Da Rocha and with the many wells that were dug across the city. When the government insisted on imposing the water rate, the traditional Lagosians, led by the Oba of Lagos, Eshugbayi Eleko, staged a mass protest that led to a riot.

In contrast, although the educated elite, led by the People's Union, opposed the water rate, their reason for opposing it was that there should be no taxation without representation (this was similar to the demand of the American independence agitators). They demanded that the government should conduct elections, so that Lagosians would have a say in how their tax money was being used, only then would they accept the water rate (traditional Lagosians were not ready to accept the water rate for any reason). The educated elite, led by the People's Union, later capitulated when they were threatened by the government (Lord Lugard brought back the idea of the water rate and threatened the members of the People's Union with charges of sedition and threats of agitation).

The members of the People's Union also fought against the proposal by Lord Lugard to convert all land in Nigeria to government property. They toured Yorubaland and even went to London to campaign against the proposal. The government subsequently dropped the idea.

The People's Union waned during World War 1 and Dr Randle and Dr Obasa formed the Reform Club after the war. The Reform Club took an interest in politics and education and seemed to be a continuation of the People's Union.

Herbert Macaulay formed the Nigerian National Democratic Party in 1922 and Governor Sir Hugh Clifford instituted elections in Lagos in 1923 and in response to these activities, the People's Union was revived. However, as I said earlier, it was not radical enough for Lagosians. Herbert Macaulay and his NNDP vigorously challenged the policies of the Colonial Government, while the People's Union advocated for gradual change. The people of Lagos loved Macaulay very much.


The pool and garden

However, our main concern in this piece is the major contributions and donations that Dr JK Randle made to Lagos.

Dr Randle lived in the Marina area of Lagos (you might remember that I told you that Europeans and wealthy Lagosians lived on the Marina before the Onikoyi gave the Europeans land on which they built a European settlement in Ikoyi). He could see as Lagosians were being ferried from the Island to the Mainland and vice versa in boats (which were the main means of transport at the time). Every so often there would be a mishap and a boat would capsize and people would die. Dr Randle felt that the situation could be improved if Lagosians were taught how to swim. He wrote several letters to the Colonial Government, urging them to build a public swimming where Lagosians would be taught how to swim, but his letters were ignored.


Dr Randle then decided to do the task himself. He built a public swimming pool in the Onikan area of Lagos and handed it over to the Lagos Town Council to run. He went as far as donating money for the maintenance of the pool. That pool is the famous Onikan Swimming Pool.


Dr Randle also felt that ordinary Lagosians should have a park where they can relax in the evenings. The park and beach at the Marina was mainly used by Europeans and he wanted somewhere that indigenous Lagosians could relax. He therefore built the famous Randle Love Garden near the pool and handed it over to the council to run.



Dr Randle also made huge donations to several communities across West Africa. In 1920 he was appointed one of the vice-patrons of the Sierra Leonean Friendly Society of Lagos. He built a chapel and two schools in his birth town of Regent, and contributed funds to erect a science building at Fourah Bay College, Sierra Leone and to support science teaching there. He donated his medical and scientific books and journals to Fourah Bay College, and donated money for a professorship and medical scholarships.


Dr John Kehinde "JK" Randle passed away on February 27th, 1928 at the age of 73. He was buried at the rear of the Ikoyi Cemetery, but in 1940 his remains were moved to the front of the cemetery as a gesture to acknowledge his achievements. JK Randle Road, Onikan (between Tafawa Balewa Square and State House Marina) is named after him.

naptu2:
Chief Joseph Kosoniola "JK" Randle (MVO MBE)


Chief J.K. Randle was the son of Dr J.K.Randle. He was born in 1909 and he attended CMS Grammar School and King's College Lagos. He was a keen sportsman in school and loved playing cricket and football. He was also the first captain of the Zik Athletic Club.

His father died while he was in his final year at King's College and although he was the son of a wealthy man, most of his father's wealth was willed to charity. Therefore his dream of attending a university became financially infeasible. He worked as a clerk in Lagos before moving to Ilesha to try his luck at gold mining. He was unsuccessful. He returned to Lagos and got involved in the business world, where he finally found success.


Chief J.K. Randle donated huge sums of money to schools in Lagos. He donated millions of naira (in today's money) each to colleges and organisations. Though he was a Christian, two Muslim schools – Ahmadiyya College, Agege and Ansarudeen College, Isolo as well as a Catholic school – Holy Cross Primary School, Lagos all benefited from his philanthropist gesture. Chief Randle founded the Nigerian arm of the Anti-Tuberculosis Society and he was also involved in politics as a member of the Lagos Town Council.


He held the chieftaincy title of the Lisa of Lagos. It was given to him by the Oba of Lagos, Oba Adeniji Adele. He was also a founding member and later chairman of the Island club. A sports enthusiast, he was vice president of the Nigerian Olympic and British Empire and Commonwealth Games Association and a trustee of the proposed National Stadium at Surulere. He was also the chairman of the Lagos Race Club (horse racing was very popular in Lagos at the time). Randle was the Chef de Mission of the Nigerian Olympic team to the 1956 Summer Olympics. He was awarded the medal of the Victorian Order. He took ill on his flight from Melbourne, and later died at the Lagos General Hospital in December, 1956. Randle Avenue, Surulere was named after him.


J.K. Randle Memorial Hall

The Prime Minister, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, was distraught at the news of Chief Randle's death. He decided that something must be done to immortalise him. He secured a piece of land opposite the Prime Minister's Residence (between the residence and the JK Randle Swimming Pool and Garden) and people donated money to build the Randle Memorial Hall. It was used for performing plays and staging cultural shows. Akin Euba, Adelugba, Prof. J.P. Clark etc. and members of the schools of Drama Arts in Ibadan, Ile Ife and Lagos were regular users of the Randle Hall. In fact, J.P. Clark had resident Ghanaian actors there for several years.

naptu2:
Bashorun Jaiye Kofolaran (JK) Randle

Bashorun JK Randle is the son of Chief JK Randle and the grandson of Dr JK Randle. He is married to Mrs Folashade Randle (nee Lawson), the daughter of Chief Adeyemi Lawson. She is the little girl that presented a bouquet of flowers to Queen Elizabeth II when she visited Nigeria in 1956.

Bashorun Randle said that his father told him, when he was 10 years old, that he should not expect any inheritance from him. His father said that all he owed him was a first class education, a first class reputation and a good family name. His father tried to clarify matters somewhat by explaining that those who would take over power in Lagos in particular (and Nigeria in general) are likely to emerge from an entirely different background. According to him, it is only through education that they too would be exposed to opportunities in order to enable them to excel. Anything short of that would be recipe for resentment, envy and vindictiveness. His father died 2 years later, just a few days before Bashorun JK Randle's 13th birthday.


Bashorun JK Randle attended Kings College Lagos before going to the United Kingdom to study accountancy. He said that he only fully understood his father's advice when he got to the UK. His grandfather was the only black person that lived on the Marina in Lagos and his father was very wealthy, so in Lagos he lived like a king, but in the UK he was a nobody and it was his education that saw him through.

Bashorun JK Randle worked at KPMG in Nigeria and he retired as the chairman and chief executive of the company. He also served as the president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), chairman of the board of Eko Hotels Limited, pro-chancellor and chairman of the governing council of the Lagos State University (LASU), vice chairman of the Musical Society of Nigeria (MUSON) and he has also served on the boards of numerous other companies. He currently serves as the chairman/chief executive officer of J.K. Randle and Co. Chartered Accountants and Sloane Buford and Fulbright Management Consultants, Lagos.


Bashorun JK Randle, like his father and grandfather, has also dabbled into politics. He was the candidate of the Social Democratic Mega Party (SDMP) for the governorship of Lagos in the 2011 elections. He spent most of his time at the 2011 governorship debate condemning the ACN led government of the state for destroying Lagos. When the moderator finally got him to talk about the things that he would do if he was elected governor (rather than condemning the ACN), the then Lagos State governor, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola replied that the problem with Bashorun Randle was not his age (JK Randle was the oldest of the contestants), but the age of his ideas. This reply angered JK Randle very much.


He is a prolific writer and is well known for his famous toasts and speeches. He was awarded the national honour of Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) by President Goodluck Jonathan. Two of his children are also named JK Randle.

naptu2:
There was an uproar in 2016 when the Lagos State Government demolished the JK Randle Memorial Hall, the JK Randle Swimming Pool and the JK Randle Garden. Remember that this was around the same time that the famous Ilojo Bar was demolished. Lagosians complained that the government was erasing Lagos' history. Many people blamed Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, while some said that Asiwaju Bola Tinubu wanted to steal the land. Many famous and older Lagosians condemned the government in the media. The demolished sites consisted of the Chief J.K. Randle Memorial Hall, Dr. J.K. Randle Swimming Pool and Dr J.K. Randle Love Garden.


However, it later emerged that the government wanted to rebuild the place. Governor Ambode wanted to turn Onikan into a tourist haven and so he planned to rebuild the Onikan Stadium, to take over State House Marina and turn it and Lagos House into museums, to assist the Lagos Lawn Tennis Club to rebuild their stadium, to work with the National Museum to revamp their place and to rebuild the JK Randle Centre. The new JK Randle Centre will have indoor and outdoor tennis courts, a swimming pool, a youth centre, an exhibition hall, a multi-purpose hall, a library, orientation rooms and learning spaces, gift shops, and a lounge. I'm still not sure which of the JK Randles it will be named after.

These are the most recent pictures of the project. They were posted by the Lagos State Government a few weeks ago.

snofunk472:
Ok

Bashorun JK Randle, like his father and grandfather, has also dabbled into politics. He was the candidate of the Social Democratic Mega Party (SDMP) for the governorship of Lagos in the 2011 elections. He spent most of his time at the 2011 governorship debate condemning the ACN led government of the state for destroying Lagos. When the moderator finally got him to talk about the things that he would do if he was elected governor (rather than condemning the ACN), the then Lagos State governor, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola replied that the problem with Bashorun Randle was not his age (JK Randle was the oldest of the contestants), but the age of his ideas. This reply angered JK Randle very much.

The new JK Randle Centre will have indoor and outdoor tennis courts, a swimming pool, a youth centre, an exhibition hall, a multi-purpose hall, a library, orientation rooms and learning spaces, gift shops, and a lounge. I'm still not sure which of the JK Randles it will be named after.

Sanwo-Olu disclosed that the State Government was already in discussion with arts and culture organisations and professionals, including national museum, British Museum, and private Arts collectors on the availability of compendiums and collection of works documenting the rich history of Yoruba and their arts in the Centre.

neyoohhh:
So oyinbos will restore our heritage. Slave mentality na craze mentality

naptu2:
The reason that they are consulting the Nigerian National Museum and the British National Museum is obviously because both institutions will have historical materials about Lagos, since the British once ruled Lagos and Lagos was once the capital of Nigeria.

Obviously it's a good idea if such materials can be returned, borrowed, copied or in some way put on display at the centre.

The governor said: