₦airaland Forum

Gravas:
Don't be daft! A very serious issue is been tabled and u ar messing around here. This is not jokes section.

you are very correct bro. With the kind of attitude displayed by some of these youths, you will be worried for the future of this nation

Abdulrazaq O Hamzat
Suite xxxxx, Maitama xxxxxxxxxxxx,
Fct Abuja.
Chief Justice of Nigeria
Federal Republic of Nigeria
Fct, Abuja.
06/February/2017
Dear Sir,

MY LORD, WHY NOT CLOSE DOWN THE COURTS?

My name is Abdulrazaq O Hamzat, an applicant in a Fundamental Human Rights suit at the Federal High Court, Lagos Judicial Division. My colleagues and I at the Congress Of NOUN Students (CONS) ran to court in 2015 to search for justice, when we were unjustly violated and rusticated by the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) for exercising our rights to freedom of Association and Expression as contained in Sections 39 and 40 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999 as amended).

My Lord, we had thought that the court, as they say, was the last hope of the common man. However, our experience since 2015 only tells us that the court is nothing other than a platform for the powerful to not only break the common man and ridicule him, but to also drain his resources. As a matter of fact, a court is the weapon of the highly placed people to permanently subjugate common man.

My Lord, since our matter first came up for hearing on 26th January 2016, it has been adjourned more than 10 times, all at the instance of either the Open University or the court itself. This was in spite the affidavit of urgency duly attached, signifying the urgency of the matter, not minding Article 36 (paragraph 1) of the 1999 Constitution which provides that every determination of civil right cases must be done within reasonable time. It’s almost 2 years my lord and the time is yet to be reasonable for judgment. The hearing is being started all over again.

May I inform my lord that between when we filed this suit and now, the University has held two convocations ceremonies and most surprisingly, the matter had also been reserved for judgment on two occasions, first on 18th April, 2016 and 26th January, 2017 and on both occasions, no judgment was ever delivered. This was due to application to “arrest judgment’’ filed by the University’s counsel.

On 26th January 2016, when students from all over the country were waiting for the final judgment for the second time, the judge, Hon C.M.A Olatoregun whose obvious intention was to protect the powerful over the weak did the unthinkable. She ruled in favor of NOUN application to “arrest the court’s judgment’’ under the guise of fair hearing.

My Lord, the same Open University that has done everything to frustrate judgment, that has often deliberately absented themselves from court, that has shown disregard for lay down procedures as contained in the provisions of Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure Rules, 2009), that has knowingly or unknowingly filed wrong responses and outright lied before the court were granted favor of arresting judgment under the illusion of fair hearing. My Lord, who in this world is unaware that application to arrest judgment is unknown in Nigeria’s jurisprudence?

My Lord, can we say Justice Olatoregun is unaware that “arrest of judgment’’ is alien to Nigeria’s judicial system? Most definitely not my lord.

This application was deliberately initiated to waste our time, so we can either run out of resources to start the process afresh or to abandon the case altogether. It is a familiar tactics often used by management of Institutions to dissuade student leaders from protecting their lawful rights and interests, but unfortunately, through the help of the court.

My Lord, it is not hidden that should this matter be dragged on and left undecided till 100 years from today, NOUN suffers no damage whatsoever. As a matter of fact, this is what they desire and are set out to achieve. However, every single day that passes by without judgment being delivered takes away some parts of our lives, which can never be regained. Time is the most precious thing in this world my lord. It is more valuable than money. We can make more money, but we can’t make more time. And when the court is wasting our time, it is wasting our lives. (May God forgive the court and its judges), but I doubt if he will ever do so. So, as the court continue to waste our time and resources on a suit, whose judgment should have been delivered almost a year ago, let it be known that the court is wasting away our lives and no remedy can ever compensate for our wasted lives. Nigerian courts, as it operates today do not uphold any law, neither do they do justice.

My Lord, we are not unaware that the court is not a place for justice, but more surprisingly is the fact that, it is also not a place for law, as obviously, judges are not guided by any known law. If a judge can rule in favor of an unknown application, in which the Supreme Court has consistently ruled against, that tells us that no law is binding.

With this ruling in favor of arrest of judgment, all we have done since 2015 has amounted to nothing. The unjust party is benefiting from their injustice through the help of the court, while we, the victims are still suffering from their act of impunity.

My Lord, students are being violated all across Nigerian institutions and student leaders are being rusticated for standing for their rights. In University of Lagos, Tai Solarin University, University of Portharcourt etc, those violating students suffer no consequence for their abuses.
My Lord, can the court ever do justice? Even if we start the process over again and the judgment is eventually delivered, probably after another year, can we call that justice?

My Lord, what is the essence of justice, if it doesn’t remedy injustice? What is the essence of judgment, if the powerful can arrest it? What is the essence of court, if it only benefits the rich?

May I also inform my lord that, the lawsuit between NOUN Law graduates and Council of Legal Education, NOUN, NUC and Office of Attorney General of the federation whose final judgment had been reserved for 27th January 2017 was also not delivered. The presiding judge, Hon. B.O Quadri was suddenly transferred from Portharcourt to Abuja few days to the judgment without notifying the students.

My Lord, the transferred judge is at liberty to personally deliver judgment on concluded matters or transfer case files to his successor to read the judgment, but none of this happened. As the judgment was not delivered as scheduled, it implies that the students who submitted to the legal system may perpetually be kept in the court with different technicalities.

My Lord, the dangerous implication is that having waited patiently since 2015 in the court and finally got the judgment but was technically quashed for whatever reasons, the new judge may restart the case afresh which may linger again as evident in our judicial system.

What message is the court sending out to Open University students, who have maintained the culture of not taking laws into their hands? Two lawsuits file since 2015 by students of NOUN lasted till date. Two judgments reserved for 26th and 27th January 2017 were both refused to be delivered.

My Lord, should NOUN students, like others in conventional Universities begin to explore other means of seeking justice, like protest and violence, don’t you see the possibility of chaos considering our large population and wide spread across the country?

My Lord, patriots often defend the law, as contained in the Constitution despite knowing the authorities have power to hurt them, but they persevere for the good of the society and are aware that, though the authorities might be against them, the law is always behind them.

If the constitution no longer have meaning like it is proving to be in Nigerian courts, if courts can no longer defend the law, if judges are now in court to help the unjust benefit from their injustice, let the court come out and say so publicly, so that patriots can no longer risk their lives under the guise of defending their rights in accordance with law.

My Lord, if the court can no longer make pronouncement in defense of law, if they have resolved to aid injustice perpetrated by those in authority against helpless students, let it be known that whatever the students do in their moments of frustration is solely to be blamed on the court.
My Lord, to demonstrate the importance of Fundamental Human Rights, it takes just 7 working days for a United States Federal judge, James Robert to stop the travel ban executive order made by the new U.S President. While the U.S authorities wanted to delay the judgment, the court knew it would amount to injustice to delay a Fundamental Human Rights suit filed by citizens.

My Lord, the essence of the judiciary is to check the excesses of other arms of government, not to aid or join them in those excesses.

In conclusion my Lord, I will end this letter by telling you a story.

A Nigerian family relocated from Germany back to Nigeria few years ago. They enrolled their 6 year old daughter in a private school in Kwara State, Nigeria. In her first day in school, the primary 2 pupil saw the class teacher violate a pupil. She couldn’t watch without taking a step to correct it. She walked into the proprietor’s office to register her complain and demanded that the teacher be sacked with immediate effect. The proprietor summoned the teacher and after confirming her guilt, she was cautioned and transferred to another class. When the 6 year old girl’s mother came to pick her at closing hour, she was informed about what her daughter had done that day. The mother asked the girl, why did you report your class teacher to the proprietor? The little girl responded with enthusiasm that the teacher abused a classmate and that she reported to the proprietor for the teacher to be sacked.

My Lord, to protect human rights violation, perpetrators must not be allowed to benefit from their abuses. Even children in civilized nations fight for their rights, but here in our country, the court’s protection of the powerful has made Nigerians docile in terms of standing for their rights.

My Lord, why not close the courts, if they cannot uphold Nigeria’s constitution in the interest of all Nigerians?

Yours Sincerely,
Abdulrazaq O Hamzat

True

How To Remember June 12 Correctly
Abdulrazaq O Hamzat
Discus4now@gmail.com

Exactly today, 20 years ago, precisely on June 12 1993, the Nigerian military President, General Ibrahim Gbadamosi Babangida (IBB)conducted an election which was widely regarded as the most free, fair
and peaceful in the history of Nigeria and at the same time,the election was annulled or cancelled by him, sealing him the title of an evil genius a.k.a Maradona as he is called.

The June 12 election which was annulled or cancelled would have earned
IBB a permanent historical compliment based on its wide acceptance,
but the annulment or cancellation of that election turned around to
earn him what now seems alike a permanent historical tag of an evil
genius.

In that event, two significant things occurred.
1. Conducting what the entire country and world accepted to be the
best election in the history of Nigeria.
2. Annulling or cancelling what the entire country believes to be valid.

It is worth to note that, All over the world, it is believed that
every human want to strive to be the best in life, especially people
with political and leadership zeal and orientation, they want to be
remembered for good in history for their leadership contribution. It
is my profound opinion that, General Ibrahim Babangida in pursuance of
historical remembrance in positive light, conducted what the entire
world adjudged to be the most free, fair and peaceful election in the
history of Nigeria.

IBB as he his fondly called captured this in these words, ‘’ History
will bear witness that as an administration, we have always striven,
in all our policy decision, to build the foundation of lasting
democracy. Lasting democracy is not temporary show of excitement and
manipulation by an over-articulated section of the elite and its
captive audience, lasting democracy is a permanent diet to nurture the
soul of the whole nation and the political process’’.

This confirms my believe that, every visionary leader is constantly
in search of good name in history, by doing what he or she deem fit to
advance his historical pursuit. However, in the course of pursuing
this dream, it is always better to set aside our personal pursuit for
a collective good even if it means losing our personal pursuit, but
only selfless leaders can do that.



If general Ibrahim Babangida (IBB), having conducted an election that
would likely earned him his desired positive light in Nigerian
history, decided to annul or cancel the election for reasons which
said,’’ he was compelled to nullify the election because of security
threats to the enthronement of a democratic government at that time’’,
I believe Nigerians over the years are supposed to use the
opportunity of this June 12 remembrance to review our ever critical
observation and look deep into the worries of IBB that made him
jeopardise a juicy historical relevance to assume the status of a
villain.

In his annulment speech, IBB stated that, I feel, as I believe
yourself feel, a profound disappointment at the outcome of our last
efforts at laying the foundation of a viable democratic system of
government in Nigeria. Knowing that his action would place him in dark
light of history which he found less important as his reason for the
annulment and its consequence, he added that, ’It is true that by
cancelling the presidential election, we all found the nation at a
peculiar bar of history which was neither bargained for, nor envisaged
in the reform programmes of transition as enunciated in 1986/87.’’‘In
the circumstance, the administration had no option than to respond
appropriately to the unfortunate experience of terminating the
presidential election.’’

IBB who stated clearly that his interest first lies in the unity of
the country, along with the enthronement of lasting democracy noted
that, ‘’To continue action on the basis of the June 12 election, and
proclaim and swear in a president who encouraged a campaign of divide
and rule among our ethnic groups would have been detrimental to the
survival of the third republic.

Having carefully analysed the event of the June 12 election and the
later events, It is my believe that, the annulment of the June 12
election was beyond the self-interest of IBB alone, it is above
personal commitment to advance selfish desire, but it rather look like
a patriotic action which may have been better handled to correct the
mistakes or some hidden truth is still yet to be revealed.

Explaining the reason for the annulment citing instances, IBB in the
annulment speech said, ‘’you would recall that it was precisely
because the initial presidential primaries of last year (1992) did not
meet the basic requirements of free and fair election that the Armed
Forces Ruling Council had good reason to cancel those primaries. The
recently annulled presidential election was similarly affected by
these problems.

He noted that, Even before the presidential election and indeed at the
party conventions, the Armed forces Ruling Council had full knowledge
of the bad signals pertaining to the enormous breach of rules and
regulations of democracy elections, but because we were determined to
keep faith with the deadline of 27th august, 1993 for the return of
civil rule, we overlooked the reported breaches. Unfortunately, these
breaches continued into the presidential election of June 12, 1993 on
an even greater proportion.

He further added that, there were allegation of irregularities and
other acts of bad conduct levelled against the presidential
candidates, but the National Election Commission (NEC) went ahead and
cleared the candidates. Adding that, there were proofs as well as
documented evidences of widespread use of money during the party
primaries as well as the presidential election. These were the same
bad conduct for which the party presidential primaries of 1992 were
cancelled, adding that, Evidence available to government put the total
amount of money spent by the presidential candidates as over two
billion, one hundred million naira (N2.1billion). The use of money was
again the major source of undermining the electoral processes. He
said.

Some citizens who would have reasoned with IBB on the reason for
annulling the election begin to wonder, if the government had these
information prior to the election, why didn’t it correct it? But IBB
explained that, these allegations and evidences were known to the
national defence and security council before the holding of the June
12,1993 election, but these area were overlooked in nits determination
to fulfil the promise to hand over to an elected president on due
date.

It is worth to note that, the IBB regime had long over stayed its
welcome, it had on several occasions promised to hand over to civilian
administrators without doing so. For this reason, it is expected that
the people would not reason with the government on whatever reason
they gave if the date of the election were to be changed or cancelled,
hence the continuation of the process as scheduled.

I believe the government is also scared of creating the wrong
impression which would give the impression that it is not interested
in handing over on the earlier scheduled date which may have created
greater problem in the country.

After the election has been annulled, IBB restated the commitment of
his administration to hand over government on the scheduled date, but
maintained that the errors which lead to the annulment of the election
be corrected. In his words,’’ our actions are in full conformity with
the original objective of the transition to civil programme. It is
also in conformity with the avowed commitment of the administration to
advance the cause of national unity, stability and democracy. In
annulling the presidential election, this administration was keenly
aware of its promise in November,1992 that it would disengage and
institute a return to democracy on august 27,1993. We are determined
to keep the promise. Since this ‘transition and indeed any transition
must have an end, I believe that our transition programme should and
must come to an end, honestly and honourably.

To clear the impression that it is not handing over, IBB maintained
that the handing over would take place as scheduled, which would give
the interim government an opportunity to conduct another election that
would correct the negative indices observed in the annulled election.

Another major reason for the annulment according to IBB is money
inducement and moral issues. He said, ‘’Apart from the tremendous
negative use of money during party primaries and presidential
election, there were moral issues which were also overlooked by the
defence council. There were cases of documented and confirmed conflict
of interest between the government and both presidential aspirants
which would compromise their position and responsibilities were they
become president.’’

President Babangida also maintained that, it is true that the election
is was generally seen to be free, fair and peaceful. However, there
was in fact a huge array of election malpractices virtually in all the
states of the federation before the actual voting began. There were
authentic reports of the election malpractices against party agents,
officials of the national electoral commission and also some members
of the electorates.

‘’If all these were clear violation of these electoral, there were
proofs of manipulation through offer and acceptance of money and other
forms of inducements against officials of the national electoral
commission and members of the electorates. There `was also evidence of
conflict in the process of authentication and clearance of credentials
of presidential candidates. Indeed, up to the last few hours to the
election, we continued in our earnest steadfast with our transition
deadline to overlook vital facts. ’He said

But one fact I have deduced from the annulment of the June 12 election
is that, even though it is seen by many as free, fair and peaceful,
the man who conducted what is seen as free, fair and peaceful feels
otherwise, and based on his conviction, he believed the election
failed to meets its stated objectives. While noting the failure of the
election to meet the objectives which can be seen in the lay down
rules and regulation, the IBB government said it didn’t annul the
election based on these failure alone, it instead try to overlook the
failures several times hoping that it can be corrected over time.

But what the government could not overlook in the election
malpractices according to IBB was the threat to national unity and
security. This is the major reason for the annulment based on the
government position and it is seen in these words ‘’to continue action
on the basis of the June 12 election, and proclaim and swear in a
president who encouraged a campaign of divide and rule among our
ethnic groups would have been detrimental to the survival of the third
republic.

Furthermore, Many who were present during the election also confirmed
that the reasons given for the annulment of the election actually
occurred, they agreed that there was offer and acceptance of money at
the election poll, they agreed that there were reports of intimidation
of agents, they agreed also that, there was sectional campaign in the
course of the electioneering, they also agreed that, they were other
election malpractices in form of rigging in some quarters, though,
they disagree with the annulment for what they say, the reasons does
not worth the annulment.

To me, this reason, if it is actually the main reason for the
annulment is worthy of note.
However, today, citizens across the country continue to talk about the
state of the nation, which span from the evil election malpractices of
the People Democratic Party (PDP) since the beginning of the fourth
republic in 1999, followed by that of the Action Congress of Nigeria
(ACN) in some states along with others.

The Nigerian opposition parties of today both in states and nations
elections; if it had the power will annul or support the annulment of
the elections that brought President Goodluck Jonathan and Former
president Umaru Musa Yar’adua into power respectively, as well as
other state elections. It is such a regret that what was said to be
the reason for annulling an election 20 years ago is still predominant
in our political process today 20 years after, yet, we continue to
condemn the government which tries to point out these facts to us for
our national good. The reason for opposition today’s wish for
annulment is simple, electoral fraud and malpractices ranging from
rigging, agent intimidation, and money politics etc. If IBB who is in
the position to either uphold the June 12 election and gain historical
fame as the man who conducted the most free, fair and peaceful
election or annul it, based on similar reasons why we seek for today’s
election be cancelled, I think the castigation of IBB for annulling
the June 12 election 20 years ago for the same reason for what we wish
to be done today should take a setback and we should promote critical
analysis of lessons to be learnt instead of playing the blame game 20
years after.

The 4 major reasons for annulling the June 12 election as stated by
IBB include: Election Malpractices, Rigging, Offer and acceptance of
money and Sectional Campaign which threatens the unity of the country.

You will agree with me that today, all these four reasons threaten the
unity and existence of our dear nation. It threatens the pursuit of
good governance and development and of course, the unity and
advancement of democratic principles.

In conclusion, If the reasons for annulling the June 12 election was
addressed after IBB, If Mashood Kashimawo Abiola (MKO) hadn’t went to
South Africa to declare himself president of the federal republic of
Nigeria against the Abacha Military Government that took over, If we
had concentrated on solving the mistake of June 12 and corrected the
reason for its annulment, if we had carefully let patriotism prevail
over sectionalism, if we had insisted on following the lay down rules
and regulations, if we had discouraged money politics and the
intimidation of oppositions, if we had allowed reason to prevail over
sentiments, if we had followed the rule of law and due process, may
be, just maybe, the June 12 annulment would have served as a positive
antidote, may be, just maybe, it would have helped Nigeria attain the
status of a sane nation, where democratic principle would be practiced
like the rest of the developed world.

Although, the June 12 annulment is regrettable, but I have just learnt
that, it is in the past and would always remain so. What lesson have
we learnt from it? Blame? Have we corrected the reasons for annulment
as stated by IBB? What are we doing about it 20 years after? How do we
remove them from our polity and how do we prevent it reoccurrence?
These and many more question should be our priority now, we should
continue to search for the answers and apply them accordingly. If we
do that, that will be the best way to remember June 12 correctly.

Abdulrazaq O Hamzat

The only thing is certain in war is death, blood and sorrow. Nothing else is true. No enslaver, no freedom fighter. Just war mongers

Keep the hopeless hope alive

They led the killing of over 3 million people over power and politics, yet after settling their personal scores, they laugh over the dead people's blood as they eat together. They use the poor people.

These are the two people, that led the killing of over 3 million people during the Civil War. You will always die, they will always live and laugh together. #Think

This is the situation of someone waiting for Nigeria to split. May God be with you.

Maigida Mass Transit: Did Abdulrazaq O Hamzat got it wrong?
Abdulrazaq O Hamzat

In 2012, when Former President Goodluck Jonathan increased the pump price of fuel, Nigerians trooped out enmasse to protest the increment in a popular mass revolt known as #OccupyNigeria and after several days of protest in which the country was basically shutdown, the Government was forced to reverse its policy, though not as demanded by the people.

As part of measures taken to cushion effect of the fuel price increment, FG gave some of the poorest states Mass Transit Buses to reduce transportation problems. Kwara is one of those poor states that received those buses. Between 2012 and 2017, it’s just 5 years interval and if I may ask, where are those Mass Transit buses given to Kwara State? They are no where to be found.

Some say they are dead due to lack of sustainability, other says they simply could not survive due to lack of patronage. Some people that spoke to me after my opinion piece about the Maigida Mass Transit even claimed that the so called Maigida Mass Transit were the same refurbished buses donated by the former President. According to them, the buses could not survive then and wouldn’t now, they will soon pack up. Though they may be needed in the future, but definitely not now. The Mass Transit Scheme is doomed to fail, they reaffirm.

I gave you the above background due to an opinion piece widely circulated yesterday by government propaganda agents from Kwara and Abuja yesterday. The piece was titled, ‘’Maigida Mass Transit: Abdulrazaq got it wrong’’. It was in response to my piece titled Mass Transit is doomed to fail is Kwara.

I must concede here that the writer is free to express his views about my opinion. However, i was surprise that despite the huge budget set aside to oil propaganda machine by the Kwara State government, none of their home ground agents could come up with a response, they had to go all the way to Abuja to author a rejoinder. Since the author like me is resident in Abuja, i don’t know if he visit Ilorin regularly like I do. Nonetheless, i may invite him to break Ramadan with me some of these days.

In his the fact less rejoinder, the upper part was used to attack my person, while the other part was concentrated on the subject. Since i do not respond to attacks against my person, the writer of the rejoinder won in that aspect. I shall thereby concentrate on the issues.

According to the writer, my condemnation of the Soludero (Confusionist) project is fundamentally flawed because according to him, ‘’I am still locked in the past’’.
I think I agree with the writer.

Since 1979, when Saraki came into Kwara political equation, the state has remained in standstill. It could be that I and the rest of our people remained in the past because, while we are in 2017, development in the state still remains in the pre 1979 era. Conversely, one may not even say Kwara development had been on stand still, instead, we may say without fear of contradiction that Kwara development had actually been on retrogression.

This is so because the pre Saraki Kwara is a developing state, with several striving establishments, whiles the Saraki Kwara is a perfect example of an under-developed state. Probably, this is why Kwara progressives and i prefer to remain in the developing era, while the writer and the gang who held kwara to ransom choose the opposite.

Some time past, I came across a report titled, ‘’Bacita: Kwara's forgotten industrial town’’Let us read together from that report:

‘’The mention of Bacita immediately evokes memories of the now comatose Nigeria Sugar Company. The image of the defunct firm still lies in the town which used to be a commercial hub in Kwara State. But today, the town is a shadow of itself, with the once-known industrial town lacking in development. The absence of good roads may have contributed to the deplorable nature of the town. The collapse of the Sugar Company and Nigeria Yeast and Alcohol Manufacturing Company has made life in the town unattractive. "Bacita used to be tourism and excursion center for students and visitors who came to the state. It really assisted the economy of the country then because of the Sugar firm and NIYAMCO that were functioning. But now, the moribund nature of the companies has led to the collapse of most activities in the community."

The above clearly tells the difference between pre Saraki and Saraki era in Kwara State, as the above description isn’t just the case in Bacita, it also applies to every sector, town and communities across the then developing State, now in comatose. From once-known industrial state, we became DE-industrialized state and from a road developing state; we became a state synonymous with deplorable roads. In other words, Kwara is a shadow of itself and this is what kept us as the 32nd least paying state.

Additionally, the writer had claimed that, ‘’anyone who has witnessed the harrowing experience students go through looking for transportation will understand why there is need for intervention in the sector in the way the state government has done, but Mr Lanre Sahad, a decent observer of trend in the state while responding to my previous piece on Kwara Must Change succinctly presented the arguement.

For the purpose of argument, let us assume that 2 of the buses will ply Challenge to Unilorin road, it can only carry full passengers from challenge to Unilorin during rushing hours between 8-10am and return with low or no passenger at all. If the driver insists on carrying passengers while returning to challenge, he or she should be ready to wait like forever. In this jet age, no reasonable person will sacrifice the time to wait in a Mass Transit, even if it is free. Conversely, rushing hours from Unilorin back to Challenge last between 4 – 6pm. The bus will equally return to Unilorin with low or no passengers. Same analysis goes for the 2 buses that will ply Kwara Polytechnic via Teaching Hospital. These are the only places with considerable passengers that may board the buses, but unfortunately, they are only there occasionally.

Can such concessional passengers sustain a Mass Transit bus? You decide.

Furthermore, the writer also dived into the Internally Generated Revenue drive by the Kwara State government. According to him, ‘’when this government started the internal revenue revolution, many critics condemned it because to them, there is no money in a civil service state like Kwara. But today we know the difference; from N600 million monthly to N1.2 billion.

It is funny how the writer reason in such a questionable manner, because it appeared that collecting money from Peter to pay Paul is now seen as a good virtue. To start with, nobody ever doubted the fact that money can be collected forcefully from the people, what we maintained was that such forceful collection of money from already improvised people will further push the people into deeper poverty. This is exactly the case.

Those following the trend must have read my piece on the Kwara Internally generated revenue few weeks back. Let me reproduce some part of what i wrote here.
Kwara State Government received in tax from hard working Kwarans, a whopping sum of Seventeen Billion, Two Hundred and Fifty Three Million, Eight Hundred and Twenty Nine Thousand and Five Hundred and Fifty Nine Naira (N17,253, 829,559) just in 2016. With this huge amount generated as Internally Generated Revenue, The Confidential Tax Index say Kwarans are the fifth most paying tax in Nigeria, despite being one of the least paying states.

While Kwarans are earning lesser income than their colleagues in other parts of the country, we are forced to be paying more in taxes and in spite this higher rate of tax compliance, Kwarans are not getting half of what other states are getting. In 2014, i wrote a piece in which i quoted all the earnings of Kwara State workers. In that report, which was based on the pay slip of Kwara workers available to me, i stated thus, '' that, from level 1 to 15, no one single civil servant in Kwara State earn up to N85,000 salary, no matter their years of service or qualification. Level 15 civil servants in Kwara state earn N84,114.66'' and till date, the situation has not changed. It is in spite this low income that Kwarans paid higher taxes than most states of the federation.

And what does this mean? It means poorer citizens, wealthier government. The government is forcing the poor masses to part with their hard earned resources, thereby making itself richer, yet the citizens continue to get poorer, with no meaningful development. If this is what the writer termed as progress, I can’t help but say, sorry.

Abdulrazaq O Hamzat
Kwara Must Change
https://www./157251821104479/?ref=bookmarks

London

The unholy deal is usually facilitated through Saraki’s SA on new media Bamidele Omisore

It is funny, how the likes of @Omojuwa @ogundamisi who claims to be advocates are being used by @bukolasaraki to deceive Nigerians.

While @Omojuwa and @ogundamisi keeps deceiving the public with occasional criticsm of @bukolasaraki unknown to many,they are on his pay list

Hum

True

Why millions starved to death during Biafra war.
OPEN LETTER OF RESIGNATION TO ODUMEGWU OJUKWU
FROM Robert S. Goldstein

Public Relations Representative of Biafra in the United States
(Published in the Morning Post, Lagos, August 17, 1968)

As your Public Relation's Representative in the United States, it is my distasteful duty to tender my resignation based on the following points:

POINT 1 - In November of 1967 when we met in Umuahia, you and your Cabinet were very impressive. You told me of the woes of your little Republic, that thousands of people had died, were dying and more were prepared to die for freedom's sake.
You and your Cabinet told me you believed world opinion would help your cause if you could get your story across.
You expressed the opinion that very few if any people in the United States knew of the plight of the Biafrans.
You asked me to tell the world that Britain had teamed up with Russia in a conspiracy with the Federal Government of Nigeria to murder every Ibo in Biafra. You suggested I use my talents to induce the Press to write about the Biafran side of the war, as at that time all news came out of Lagos.
You will recall I did not take the asssignment that day but stayed on several days before deciding to take that job.
To help win the peace
At that time I stated to you and your cabinet that I was taking the assignment making it crystal clear I would try my best to help win the peace not the war.

POINT TWO - I immediately arranged the first world Press conference in Biafra inviting the US Press as well as journalists and television people from England, France, Switzerland, Africa and other parts of the Globe. This was the first news break through. I arranged regular trips into Biafra for the world Press, helped set up stringers, etc., so that your statements and the statements of your Cabinet would be heard.
At that time, I was absolutely positive you were right and your cause was a just one in the best interests of the free world and your countrymen.

POINT THREE - Finally the Republic of Biafra was recognized first by Tanzania, then quickly followed by Gabon, the Ivory Coast and Zambia. Our public relations work was paying off, world opnion was starting to side with us.
Peace talks were arranged at Kampala. I thought that if anyone walked away from the table it would be the Federal Government. But to my dismay it was Biafra that left the Conference. After all the fighting and killing, I knew that peace would not come easy but I could not understand leaving the Peace Conference until the last point was negotiated and the avenue explored.

POINT FOUR - Then urgent telex messages were received from 'Biafra' telling of tens of thousands of people starving in the refugee camps, the villages, the bush country - stating if something werent done in the next few months over a million women, children and aged would be starved to death. I immediately contacted the Press, urgently petitioned the State Department for action on their part. Food, medicine and milk were sent to the only available ports open for immediate shipment to 'Biafra' via land routes through Federal and Biafra territory, under the auspices of world organizations such as the International Red Cross among others.
Then came the incredible answer from 'Biafra' that land corridors could not be acceptable until there was a complete ceasefire, and that an airlift was the only solution to feed the starving.
You then appeared before the various Heads of State and representatives of the OAU at Niamey in Niger. I fully expected you to at least accept the world help that was offered your starving throngs. However, you delayed, hoping to use these unfortunates with world sympathy on their side as a tool to further your ambition to achieve war concessions at the upcoming peace talks in Addis Ababa. Thus innocent victims continue to perish needlessly of starvation, the most agonising death that can befall any living creature.

POINT FIVE - This was incredible to me. I am now convinced that I have been used by you and your cabinet to help in military adventures of your origin....using your starving hordes as hostages to negotiate a victory.
If at some later date, following the isuance of this letter, you do concede to allow a mercy land corridor...would you expect me to agree to espouse before the world Press the incredible delay of your decision. What explanation could I honestly give for the needless prolongation of this horror.
Inconceivable acts
I pray this communication may in some small way influence you to move affirmatively, allowing the mercy land corridor to be born.
It is inconceivable to me that you would stop the feeding of thousands of your countrymen (under auspicies of world organizations such as the International Red Cross, World Council of Churches and many more) via a land corridor which is the only practical way to bring in food to help at this time. It is inconcivable to me that men of good faith would try to twist world opinion in such a manner as to deceive people into believing that the starvation and hunger that is consuming 'Biafra' is a plot of Britian, Nigeria and others to commit genocide.

POINT SIX - I cannot in all conscience serve you any longer. Nor can I be a party to suppressing the fact that your starving thousands have the food, medicine and milk available to them.....it can and is ready to be delivered through international organizations to you. Only your constant refusal has stopped its delivery.
I am this date, tendering my resignation and am returning to Mr. Collins Obih of the African Continental Bank all the fees you have given me (Letter of Credit No. 354 $400,000 US.)
I have sent your representative in New York a Bond in the amount of 800.000 pounds that I was holding in your behalf. I have also this date, sent the Bond of 200,000 pounds issues by the Central Bankl of Nigeria back to them for disposal.

POINT SEVEN - I am now convinced that one Nigeria is the only solution to peace. I also call upon you Mr. Ojukwu to allow your starving people to be fed. Their well-being is of deep concern to me as well as other right thinking people of the world. Your acting in the utmost haste in this matter is in my opinion the first step toward any lasting peace in your country."

Robert S. Goldstein

Biafra Surrender Ojukwu Ran Away:

Col. Phillip Effiong's Speech to Gowon On January 15, 1970 at Dodan Barracks in Lagos, in the
presence of General Gowon, Effiong announced the end of the Biafran conflict.

"I, Major-General Phillip Efiong, Officer Administering the Government of the Republic of Biafra, now wish to make the following declaration:

That we affirm that we are loyal Nigerian citizens and accept the authority of the Federal Military
Government of Nigeria. That we accept the existing
administrative and political structure of the Federation of Nigeria. That any future constitutional arrangement will be worked out by representatives of the people of Nigeria. That
the Republic of Biafra hereby ceases to exist."

[1] At the time of the surrender, Effiong believed that the situation was hopeless and that prolonging the conflict would have led only to the further destruction and starvation of the people of Biafra.

At that time Effiong said, "I am convinced now that a stop must be put to the bloodshed which is going on as a result of the war. I am also convinced that the suffering of our people must be brought to an immediate end."

In a 1996 interview, Effiong reflected on those events:

I have no regrets whatsoever of my involvement in Biafra or the role I played. The war deprived me of my property, dignity, my name. Yet, I saved so many souls on both sides and by this,I mean Biafra and Nigeria. . . .

I felt that I played a role which has kept this country united till today. . . .

At the end of it all when I saw they (Biafran soldiers) could no longer continue and Ojukwu had fled, I did what was ideal after wide consultation . . .

Effiong died 6 November 2003, at the age of 78 less than two weeks before his 79th birthday.

Who are We?
This is a question none of us can sincerely answer correctly. Why because, we do not really know who we are as a people.

Nigerians are one of the most confused people in the world.

We have no identity. No philosophy. We don’t really know who we really are, neither do we want to know who we really are.

We are not Africans, we are not Americans, we are not Europeans, not Chinese, neither are we Arab. We are lost within all these identities.

This moment, we are Africans with culture and tradition, the next moment, we are Europeans and Americans with circular mentality, next we are Arab, invoking the Arabian way of life.

We want to be everything and everyone, but in reality, we are nobody. We do not know who we really are, neither do we care to know. We are just living, just breathing.

Who are We?
This moment, we are Christians, calling on the name of Jesus, but next moment, we cannot be separated from traditional religious practices. And before you know, we are saying Allahu Akbar, holding tight the Islamic philosophy. In our mind, we are everything, everyone. But are we? You know the answer.

Who are We?
We are confused. Confused on which culture is our culture, Confused on which culture is ideal for us, confused on which identity is our identity, confused about who we are and confused on who we want to be. We don’t want the African ideal, then we want it. We don’t want foreign culture, then we want it. Always up and down.

Who Are We?
Can we be everything together? Can we be Muslims, Christians and Traditionalist combined?

Can we be Africans, Americans, Europeans and Arab joined?
Who Are We? What is our identity as a people?

I agree that we can pick from every culture, tradition and religion as the modern world demands. But how do we reconcile all these separate identities together to form our own distinct identity?

The culture we picked from Europe and America, the tradition we learned from Islam and Christianity, the language we adopted from Arab and English, how do we reconcile our acient identity with our emerging, but conflicting identities?
Who will help us harmonize our source of confusion, because most certainly, we can’t continue in this manner. We need a philosophy. A unified identity. A Nigerian can’t be this today and that tomorrow. You can’t be changing identity with places and time.

A Chinese is a Chinese any where, any time, be it Christian, Muslim or traditionalist. An American is an American anywhere, any time, be it Christian, Muslim or Traditionalist. An Arab is an Arab, anywhere any time, be it Christian, Muslims or traditionalist. Let a Nigerian be Nigerian, Anywhere, any time, be it Christian, Muslim or traditionalist.

We need a National Philosophy

The absence of a clear feasible national philosophy for
Nigeria is a costly mistake and it needs to be corrected. No nation can attain national development without a clear nation philosophy, ideology, upon , which its developmental strives are anchored on. Just as a good home has a master plan so a nation needs a clear national philosophy, ideology, to survive.

What is that Nigerian identity? What is that Nigerian philosophy?

This is a question we must answer if peace must reign.

Chapter Four: Marriage and the Olóbìnrin-Ilé
As set out earlier, in Yorùbá society, married women are not simply wives to their husbands. They are also the wives or women married into a particular compound or extended family by the sons, grandsons, great grandsons, uncles, nephews of this lineage. As members of this
group, they also have an organisational structure and hierarchy, which is discussed in detail in this chapter. While Sudarkasa mentions that
their participation in the affairs of their affinal compound was channelled through an “organizational structure” in which women were
frequently often ranked according to order of marriage (Sudarkasa 1986:28), she does not explain how this organization is formed, what entails in it and how it asserts itself as social sub-group in Yorùbá culture. This is the subject of this chapter.
4.1
The organisation of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé
As explainedearlier, the Olóbìnrin-Ilé are the wives of the sons/male children in a particular compound of a town. But like the male and female descendants of the lineage or compound, the Olóbìnrin-Ilé also forms a corporate group within the compound. Admission to the group is by marriage only, and seniority within the group is also defined by marriage. The Olóbìnrin-Ilé is headed by the most senior wives in order of marriage, who direct and control the welfare and the other affairs of all the wives in the compound. To avoid disputes, some compound leaders keep track of marriage order. In J ‟ compound in oyán the wives have a recording book where they note down all the marriages
in their compound in order to ascertain the dates of marriage of individual wives. Before the name and date is recorded, the mother-in-law, or someone who can act in that position, must buy groundnuts or biscuits for the Olóbìnrin-Ilé. If two wives enter the compound through marriage on the same day, or within a short distance of time, the wife whose groundnuts or biscuits are eaten first is recorded as the senior wife.Like in many Yorùbá towns, the group of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé is organised in a systematic way in oyán. As previously mentioned, the leader of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé is the woman who has been married into the compound for the longest time. She is the Ìyàálé, and she is also the highest adjudicator of the compound wives from among them. She is responsible only to the head of the compound.The Ìyàálé normally has one or two assistants, the and the , who follow her in seniority. It is the ‟s duty to call the attention of the Baálé and the men folk to any trouble
in the family, such as the death of young people; barrenness among the wives and even conflicts between the wives. If such things were to happen in the compound, the would have a meeting with the , who is the leader of the intermediate wives. Both of them will
seek audience with the Baálé and bring suggestions as to how to resolve the problem. The solutions may involve rituals that are particular to the compound. In ẸlmArsink ‟ Compound, once the wives come back from the meeting, they will inform all the wives that
they are going to worship their father in-law outside. Some compound leaders may opt for prayer, and in some compounds, all the important sections of the family pray together once a year irrespective of their faith.The women who preside over such activities are usually very old and wise, and cannot be expected to participate in strenuous activities.For such activities, there are other leaders. The Ìyá Àpis in charge of
the activities of “intermediate” wives, or , who are neither old nor young. The Ìyá Èwe is in charge of the younger wives, referred to as the
. Both leaders direct the outings and performances of wives in their categories. The is a wife who blows the whistle to announce
the women‟soutings. She is usually selected from among the , the group of wives of intermediate age, because hers is a job that requires responsibility and a degree of freedom from the duties of caring for very young children. Often two people are chosen for
the position of to avoid disappointment. In addition these leadership offices, the Olóbìnrin-Ilé also have other officials in line with
associational life elsewhere. One of the wives who knowhow to read and write is usually elected as Treasurer or Secretary. Given that such a title requires important skills and proficiency, it is exempt from the order of marriage. Another category mostly exempt from
hierarchies are the Ọlb, or cooks, who are chosen from each household within the compound by skill. They prepare the food for any
celebration and their activities will be discussed in more detail in Chapter Six. The organizational structure of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé in oyán reflects the wives‟ most important social roles, where the elements of social control and artistic production are closely interwoven. The
Olóbìnrin-Ilé keep close control of appropriate behaviour among the wives in order to ensure that they make a positive contribution to the compound in the ways discussed earlier, i.e.through responsible work and childbearing. Beyond their own affairs, they also constitute a moral force through their performance.The wives of a compound are also the custodians of the oríkìor family praise poetry
, which must be learnt by new wives in the family so they can fulfil their duties towards the husband‟s family and their own children. Lineage wives recite (lineage praise poetry) and lineage oríkì of important personalities within the family to salute and welcomedifferent members of the lineage(Awe 1974; 332-334). This is often done during social occasions or when someone returns from a journey.When a wife has a child, mothers also chant oríkì to their children in order to calm them down. It is believed that a
child or person that never responds to such poetry does not really belong to the family. In this way, play an important role both in celebrating the lineage and its members and in constituting (and even policing) lineage boundaries.The activities of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé include
support for their marital lineage in terms of cooking, fetching of water and firewood during burials, marriages, festivals and so on. On
such occasions, the Olóbìnrin-Ilé also provide moral support through songs, chants and dances which celebrate their marital compound, and which are pleasing and impressive to onlookers. In addition to the lyrics, which will celebrate the lineage, the aesthetic appeal of both songs and actions reflects positively on the members of their marital lineage because it demonstrates to onlookers that this is a family or compound that keeps its wives happy. As I explained above, there is an association between a man‟s good care of a wife and his character, and so the high quality of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé ‟s activities implies that the members of their marital lineage are of good character.
Jegede (2006:258) opines that Yorùbá women have great creative force and power which they exercise in diverse ways, and beyond the celebration of others. Referring to Kolawole (1997:77, in Jegede 2006:258), Jegede explains that women use their creativity also in support of the social order, using general as well as exclusively female oral genres to condemn social problems such as
immorality,unfaithfulness and idleness. They also use such genres to make demands for what they consider is their right, especially from their husbands‟ families. In this way, women, and especially the wives living together in their husband‟s compound, constitute a moral force whose social comments and demands are publicised and generalised through their performances.

Chapter Three: Discussing Gender among the Yorùbá
This chapter looks at relevant debates about gender in Yorùbá society in order to draw out the beliefs and practices that shape the experiences of women. In Yorùbá culture a woman can occupy different and even contradictory positions at the same time, and for the duration of women‟s married lives, they both remain daughters of their own compounds of patrilineages and act as wives (and mothers) in their marital compounds and patrilineages. The importance of women‟s dual identities, and dual forms of belonging, is illustrated by a short preview on my field work in oyán at the end of the chapter.

3.1 Views on women in Yorùbá society
Familusi (2012: 299-313) argues that like many other African societies, Yorùbá society is essentially patriarchal. Women are usually relegated to the background, and socially, politically, economically and religiously men tend to dominate decision-making. Oduyoye
(2001:3) assumes that African culture is replete with language that enables the community to diminish the humanity of women, while Akintunde (1999:74) asserts that African culture has been a long tale of discrimination and injustices to women. Familusi (2012:302) explains that
there are some Yorùbá proverbs that are used to portray women as unimportant and immoral.
However, much more ambivalently, Daramola (2007) notes that when it comes to the realm of spiritual powers women are regarded and esteemed as the owners of the world, the “ ”. This is because of the belief that women possess superior clairvoyant and spiritual
powers, and obligations, to men. For this reason Ajibade(2005:99,103) suggests that although Yorùbá society is patriarchal, women have extremely important roles to play. He argues that Yorùbá men and women are not seen as opposites, but as complementing each
other. Abimbola (1975: 400) examines the status of women in the Ifá literary corpus and notes that woman often symbolize character. In Yorùbá folklore, according to him, women represent the opposite poles of emotional involvement. They are symbols of love, care, devotion, tenderness and beauty. At the same time, they are, especially as witches, the symbols of wickedness, callousness, deceit and disloyalty. Sometimes, women may be regarded as witches and difficult to deal with. This depiction suggests that both the positive and the negative aspects of female power are rooted in intimate relationships. Makinde (2004:165) observes that motherhood carries the highest value among the Yorùbá people, which is reflected in the proverb which describes mothers as very precious; “ ”, other is gold. He also notes that women are considered to be very important in Yorùbá culture because the preservation of individual patrilineages and compounds depends on them. Because of their power to produce children(for others), women are regarded as the most valuable gift any man or his extended family can receive. This is confirmed in the saying that “”, i.e. he/she who gives one his/her child as wife has given the best gift. Makinde explains this further that even the mother of a male child believes that a successful male life cannot really start until her son has a wife or wives. It is generally believed that a man must take care of his character the same way he takes care of his wife. To the Yorùbá, the equivalence is that a man‟s good character brings success in life, just as success rewards a man who treats his wife or wives
with kindness and affection. Indeed, a man without a wife cannot be made king or occupy a position of religious leadership in the society. This is reflected in a Yorùbá adage that says “Ọ„”meaning there is no respect or honour for a king without a wife.
In traditional Yorùbá society, women are seen in every aspect of life. While wives are perceived to elevate the status of a man, female roles of authority are associated with motherhood. In the Yorùbá traditional political sphere, women acted as “Iyalode”, the mother
of the town, and “Iyalaje”, the mother of the market, because of their wealth, influence and wisdom. In traditional religious practice, a woman famous for her devotion to her deity, or, would be called “Iya Olorisa.”However, especially when it comes to high office, the roles of wife and mother blend into one another. In her discussion of gender and colonialism in the Yorùbá kingdom of Kétu, Semley suggests that whether powerful women were primarily seen as mothers or wives often depended on context. As both offices were often entwined, for example as the wives of rulers became “public mothers”, the symbolic distinction became ambiguous in the 19thcentury (2011:49).
Overall, theassociation of motherhood with the generation above points to the importance of age in mediating gender relations (Isike 2012:21
). Certainly older women, just like older men, are privileged over younger male or female members of society because status and
recognition from others reflect age as well as gender. For this reason it is pertinent to explore what forms of age and seniority are open to Yorùbá women.

Changes to compound life today
The advent of colonial rule and especially the growing influence of Christianity and Islam has led to significant social change (Adegoke, 2005:3).
For example, it has affected the choice of the ruler in oyán because it has become widely accepted to install a literate or learned person
as a town‟s Ọ . This is in contrast to earlier practices when people were installed because they had been selected by their
deities or the local oracle. The current ruler , Ọba Kilani Adekeye from ẸlmRuling house, ascended the throne in 1999 as the 24th Ọloyan
. The ongoing importance of marriage for Ọbaship is illustrated by the fact that the Ọba can be represented at any occasion by his wife
, who must however be accompanied by his làbà and one of his chiefs or accompanied by the staff of office. Compound life has also changed.
In oyán, there are still a sizeable number of old compounds that are surrounded by a wall. It is interesting to see that in some cases, modern houses are also being built inform of old traditional compounds albeit with additional modern facilities. No matter how modernized (or not), the compound is the place where everybody will gather during celebrations. Even if a person has his/ her own personal house;
s/he will go to his family compound with his family member for a whole day or more if there is something to celebrate.
However, not all members of a family live in its compound today.Adegoke (2005:70) notes that the housing custom of oyán town is typical of any other ancient Yorùbá town, where brothers and sometimes uncles come together to build a single house with many rooms to
house their families jointly. Some descendants of the town‟s old compounds have built houses elsewhere in the town in order to live a more nuclear family life or to be further away from family interference. If in the past, paternal relations used to build their houses in the
same area, nowadays the trend is for individuals to build their houses in different parts of the town. Other members of the town‟s compounds have left oyán for towns and cities where they could pursue their education more successfully. However, it should be noted that the
physical distance between family members often has little or no effect on family ties in the long run. Usually, even those „outside‟ embers of the compounds share in the resources controlled by the extended families, and in the practices associated with the merging of important family occasions. Also, if a family no longer meets at its compound, the house of the oldest or most respected family member stands as a place of meeting to deliberate upon issues concerning their family‟s welfare, landed property and so on . Often successful business or educated people suddenly find themselves in this position of a de-facto head of compound. Similarly, marriage continues to be shaped by the importance of extended kinship ties even in modern settings. This is expressed in the notion that meaning “one can marry a bad wife but it is not good to have a bad in-laws”. his indicates the mutual involvement of the spouses‟ families after marriage. In-laws and indeed the whole family have a role to play in offering advice and guidance to both spouses whenever there are conflicts or quarrels, and they are also expected to felicitate and assist each other. Traditional marriage involves the union of two families rather than two individuals (Ware1979:191). For this reason, even in urban environments, parents‟ involvement in most marriages exists in a man
ner very similar to the past. Thus, the couple may now have the privilege of choosing whom to marry rather than having to marry a spouse chosen for them by their parents. But it is still compulsory for the parents to give their consent and blessing to their wards before
marriage, and also to stand as a caution to both husband and wife. That is why some families do not hand over their daughters to the husband but only to the family: it is still the family that marries the wife for their son. In his study on the practice of polygyny in Ife Division, Driesen (1972:54) looked at the number of family heads and their wives over two periods and concluded that polygyny had also
declined,both in absolute proportion and in degree. This is confirmed by an even greater decline of the practice in more recent decades, especially in urban environments, where the cost of children limits their number. Nonetheless, polygyny continues to exist. For a man, the desire to avoid extra-marital affairs might precipitate him to look for a second wife. This might be due to different types of sexual abstinence within the marriage that are considered to be mandatory in Yorùbá culture (Caldwell et al. 1977, 1991; Ademola et al.1993; Adeokun, 1982; Bamikale, 2010). For example, a man is not expected to have sexual relation with his wife during pregnancy and
until the child is weaned.Sometimes polygamous arrangements arise because the first wife is childless. It is sometimes believed that when the husband marries another wife who starts having children the senior wife may be blessed with children too, hence the saying,
orím‟mwáyé–one child may bring luck to have another. Sometimes the practice works, and when the second wife falls pregnant the senior wife gets pregnant too. In other cases, polygyny may be the result of parental pressure especially by the man‟s mother. When a woman has only one child and it is a son, the belief is that the son should marry and have as many children as possible in order to fill the gap of not having siblings. Apart from such personal concerns, some men still consider a multiplicity of wives as a symbol of wealth and status. The historical prestige associated with a larger number of wives and children is so highly valued among some people
that it is often sufficient to overcome even the strictest religious admonitions.
Finally, it is also not uncommon for a man to take another wife in old age, especially when all the children from an earlier marriage are married and in need of the help of their mother in child care. wife‟s frequent absence may make a man lonely, and the children, wife or the man himself will look for a young lady to be his companion. Even so, marriage is not taken lightly because people believe that when one marries a bad wife, she might be dangerous not only to the person involved but to the whole family. This is expressed in the adage, “if one‟s family member eats a bad insect, the disturbance [arising from his or her digestion problems] will not allow others to sleep”.
Irrespective of the form of marriage practiced, the ongoing importance of family and kinship ties is reflected in the proverb,“Ọrj ‟r”,meaning “Close friends, scattered family, when close friendship (breaks), a person will be left with the scattered family”. his proverb is meant to encourage good relationships among members of the same family by implying that unlike friendship, family ties do not break. If one privileges friendship at the expense of family ties, one may be left with very little. Family members are enjoined to live and work together in unity. Co-operation and family membership are closely linked to each other.This is expressed in another saying, “yi”, “family ties are hard”.
Because a lazy or dishonest child will be seen to reflect badly on her or his parents, indolence and laziness are discouraged first within the family. Older members direct individual behaviour and interaction by outlining the rights and obligations of every member. But they are also supposed to live a life that is worthy of emulation so that at least some of the younger ones are likely to copy them.

19
2.2 Oyan compound structure

Sudarkasa (1986:95) observes three categories of kin groups in West Africa, namely corporate unilateral descent group or lineages
;domiciled extended families made up of certain lineage members, their spouses and dependent children; and conjugally based family
units which are subdivisions of the extended family and within which procreation takes place and primary responsibilities for socialization
are held. Oyewumi (1997:81) states that among Yorùbá, it is the lineage that was regarded as the family. he lineage is a consanguinally
-based family system built around men and women descended from the same ancestor. In oyán as in other Yorùbá towns, lineages shaped by paternal descent are at the core of the compound system. However, as marriage was exogamous, no compound could reproduce itself by relying on its core lineage or lineages. Upon marriage, couples did therefore not normally establish separate households, but joined the compound of either the groom.
But if the Yorùbá concept of family is shaped by the descent group or lineage, family is also defined by the importance of shared residence and activity within the compound (Barber 1990 :146). Paternally related husbands and their wives were not the only adults living in the
compound, and other related adults, distant relatives and even acquaintances with a challenging life situation might live with them. Extended families were often very large (Kolade 1999). Often a lineage outgrew its compound in a few generations (Marris 1961:13)
, or rifts between compound members undermined the compound. In that case a new compound was usually founded by one or two sections of the family, who would usually settle nearby. Traditional compounds are made up of long chains of rooms,often between thirty and forty, which are arranged around a central courtyard or courtyards. Lloyd, citing Stone, describes a Yorùbá compound in the following way:
... a compound is an enclosed space (generally in the form of a square) bounded by a wall about seven feet high, there is but one entranc
e to this enclosed space..., against this wall, the rooms are built... the compound of the chiefs are very large sometimes covering several acres of ground‟ (Lloyd 1955:236).This observation is slightly flawed as in most compounds, only the main entrance is visible to visitors, but there are always two or more entrances known to the inhabitants who serve as a way of escape when enemies invade. This form of settlement clearly reflects the widespread violence of the 19thcentury, but it also points to the importance of living together as a basis of for the production of a corporate identity. The fact that the residents of a compound often had a hereditary occupation or specialization (LeVine, Klein, & Owen1967:22)
also points to the importance of shared practice in the constitution of identity .Like the Ọ , the head of a compound, or Baálé, had wide disciplinary responsibilities. The baálé was usually the compound‟s oldest male.
Disrespect to elders, theft, disturbing the peace or sexual impropriety were usually punishable by flogging and warnings against
recurrence (Fadipe1970, 108-109). Among the women, there was a partly parallel administration. The , the oldest wife married into the compound,adjudicated women‟s crimes and misdemeanors. However, if a case was beyond her authority, she reported to the . A complex system of further authorities ensured that any problem that could not be resolved successfully was eventually reported to the Ọba
‟s palace. Historically, polygamy is closely linked to compound life. A large number of wives would be able both to bear children and work hard, thus increasing the numbers of a patrilineage. A man with many wives and children would be able to preside over a powerful section of his compound, and would empower his compound to play an important role in town politics. As a result, wives were valued both as workers who contributed to the compound‟s productivity and as bearers of children who increased the compound‟s size.

An introduction to Oyán is one of the biggest towns in Odo-Otin Local overnment rea of sun State. It is located at a distance of roughly 50 kilometers from Osogbo, the state capital, and it is surrounded by many villages within and outside the state.
Oyán is also clearly identified as a Yorùbá town. While there are some Yorùbá towns in Benin and Togo, the majority of the Yorùbá people lives in the south-western part of Nigeria (Bascom 1951:490; Lloyd 1955:235; Mabogunje 1962:56; Eades 1980: 1; Watts 1983:683; Smith 1988:
3). However, it is perhaps pertinent here to explain that the Yorùbá identity is the result of a particular historical development. Constituted by a wide range of urban-based kingdoms and alliances, including the powerful Oyo Empire, all Yorùbá-speakers share similar social and economic institutions, but they are not likely to have ever been politically united. The modern Yorùbá identity is a result of cultural and political processes of the late 19th and 20th century. In fact, there are some controversies over the origin of the word “Yorùbá” for reference to all speakers of the language (Eades1980; Abimbola 2006; Adegoke 2005, Law 1976). Eades (1980: 6-7, citing Law 1977:5) opines that the word “Yorùbá” was introduced by the missionaries and linguists in the middle of 19th century to refer to the whole area where people speak Yoruba. According to bimbola (2006: 30) the word “Yorùbá” today refers to the people, their culture, their languages and their religion. However, the fact remains that the word “Yorùbá” can be used both to describe the people, their language and their religion as a whole, but also to differentiate between those who were part of the Oyo Empire and those who were not. One belief widely shared among Yorùbá-speakers today is the centrality of Ile-Ife, a historically important Yoruba town. It is often believed to have been the first town, from which other towns were formed as colonies. However, some Yorùbá groups, such as the Ijebus, claim that they originated from other places than Ile-Ife.This illustrates that existing myths of origin are not entirely consistent, and that ideas about
Yorùbá origins and identity remain contested (Akintoye 2010:3). Like many Yorùbá settlements, Oyán was founded by a cultural hero linked to Ile-Ife. There are various accounts of the origin of Oyán which I cannot explore here. However, there is an agreement on the following facts:
yán‟s founder, Epe,was one of the sons of dùduw , recognized in myth as the legendary father of the Yorùbás in most parts of Yorùbáland. Epe
was a prince who had migrated from the town of Ile-Ife, where Odùduwa reigned, to oyán. The name of the town oyán was derived from the nickname given to Epe, who was also called oyánnu, meaning someone who is prone to hunger (Adegoke, 2005:13). he descendants of pe, the town‟s founder, constitute the royal family. It is from the members of the royal family that the rulers,or Ọ s,of the town are chosen. Before the arrival of colonial rule,oyán‟s traditional ruler was regarded as the representative of God on earth and the executive of his domain, although he had to rule with the consent of the , or council of chiefs. Peter Lloyd argues that in the past,Ọbas did not appear to their people frequently (Lloyd 1960:221). Yorùbá Ọbas only left the palace during the town festival that took place once a year. Because justice was executed by the Ọbaor in his name,it was said that whoever sees the king twice must be a criminal. According to Lloyd, the hidden nature of
Ọbaship illustrates its power and sacredness. But the power of the Ọba is also shaped by its interaction with, and support of, other families
within the town, who are settled together in large compounds.
The Ọba‟s chiefs, or advisers, were usually drawn from the compound system. The founding father of oyán, Epe,installed the leaders of some of the immigrants who joined the town later as chiefs. He also ensured that the compounds of all the chiefs so installed were very close to his own compound. Many later immigrants came to oyán during the Fulani invasion of the Igbomina and Offa areas of Yorùbáland in the 1820s, which forced people from these areas to flee to oyán in order to escape conflict. As in their hometowns, the immigrants settled in compounds. The descendants of those migrants –as well as of course those of oyán‟s earlier settlers –still
refer to their families as being originally from Ile-Ife, Ekitiland, Ijebuland, Oyo and Igbominaland. Some of them became influential and hold important chieftaincy titles. Each of oyán‟s family compounds is made up of family houses that belong to brothers, uncles and (paternal)
cousins.Lloyd (1974:30) explains that the core descent groups that make up the compounds are the antithesis of the nuclear family upon which industrial society is often based. As pointed out above, among the Yorùbá, descent is predominately agnatic, i.e. through the father (Comhaire-Sylvain 1950:234). But that does not necessarily mean that women are only members of the compounds of their birth: as wives, women are important members of their marital compounds. Many compounds in oyán have more than a hundred (or several hundred) members. Today the town has 72 compounds, each of which has its own land and a distinct cognomen or appellation
.Many compounds hold a chieftaincy title. The holder of such a title is installed by the ruler and expected to advise him. In this way, the Ọ has access to the important socio-political institutions of his town, and the town‟s important families/ compounds share in local decision-making.

Chapter Two: The political and social structures of Oyan

Throughout southwestern Nigeria, Yorùbá-speakers share an essentially urban form of settlement which is ruled by a king, or
Ọ , who rules in close interaction with other local leaders, often chiefs installed by him. Lloyd suggests that while Yorùbá peo
ple are divided into many sub-groups,they nonetheless share a wide range of practices, including a mutually intelligible language, the
names of deities, titles of chiefs and their installation ceremonies, political structures and even individuals‟ names (Lloyd 1955:235).
Indeed, Yorùbá people share similar beliefs and practices, such as greetings, respect for seniors,modes of dressing, naming ceremonies, marriages, burials and so on.
The origin and behaviour of many things in their environment and daily life are often explained through myth (Oso 1977: 367). This chapter will introduce us to those practices and beliefs that are relevant to marriage and marital life. Like in other societies, marriage reflects wider social practices and institutions, and the lives of married women –the Olóbìnrin-Ilé that are the focus of this thesis –unfold not in privacy but in close engagement with these structures.

Research Approach and Methodology
In addition to a close engagement with the relevant literature, this thesis is based on qualitative ethnographic research in
Oyán, where I spent three months doing field work.
Ethnographic methodologies vary and some ethnologists advocate the use of structural observation schedules by which one could observe behaviors or cultural activities for the purpose of later statistical analysis (Leedy & Ormrod 2000:147).
This did not work in the context of a small Yorùbá town, because it would have been rude for me to withdraw from social activities according to my own schedule. Instead of following my own schedule, I participated in activities whenever I was called or invited by the usually senior women who supported my research by sharing their thoughts and experiences with me. A commitment to participation and the respect of local female hierarchies meant that I had to be available when others were calling on me. While many people appreciated the importance of my research on married women, the nature of my fieldwork meant that my own status during fieldwork was shaped by my own achievements as a wife to my husband‟s family –and as a mother to his children –rather than my own academic achievements or ambitions. As a result, I was not always able to ask all the questions I would have liked to ask, because it was difficult for me to challenge some of my social seniors. Indeed, under their control I had little privacy and a number of duties, which meant that I was not always able to take field notes with the degree of detail I might have liked. But at the same time, I was able to observe, and draw my own conclusions on, practices which would not have been obvious to, or even shared with, a cultural or social outsider.
In addition to my participant observation in the life of married women in Oyán. I carried out formal interviews and focus group discussions with wives and daughters at nine of Oyán ‟s 72 compounds. All of my interviews were carried out in Yorùbá, both among older and younger
women. Apart from the fact that there are often no directly appropriate terms in English for the activities discussed here,most of
my informants had a low degree of education, as one would expect in a small Nigerian town, and thus did not speak (much) English
. While there were a few women who were only literate to the degree of writing their names, most of my 10 interlocutors had either
completed primary school or junior secondary school and could read or write, if sometimes only to the degree that would support their economic activities. While most young women, and especially those with small children, were primarily housewives who depended on their husbands‟ incomes, many older women were established traders. The majority of the women with whom I interacted were indigenes of Oyán
, while some were from other Yorùbá towns and cities. I particularly encouraged those women who were natives of Oyán, and who could therefore maintain close relations with their families of birth,to relate their experiences in their affinal compounds to that of their patrilineages. While my fieldwork and interviews were very illuminative, I did experience a few problems. One was that many people who were known to be versed in the oral tradition of both the town and the wives‟ groups were too old to be interviewed in any formal way.
Whenever I was lucky enough to interact with someone in that category, I simply tried to learn as much as I could from a few small exchanges and close observation of their language and expressions, and to note it in my field diary later. Another problem was that I was aware that my own relative seniority at the time ofthe fieldwork might have intimidated younger women. I tried to encourage
all informants and respondents to express their views freely. However, due to the importance of respect for seniority in Yorùbá culture, some of the younger women might not have been able to express themselves in public or they might not have felt free to reveal the truth or argue out a point with an older person. Sometimes such embarrassments could be resolved in private conversations or individual interviews, but it is still possible that not all my young respondents were comfortable enough with me not to hold back. In such delicate interview situations I usually did not record conversations and simply added my insights and reflections to my field notes later.
All interviews and focus group discussions covered the same topics, though the nature of the interview varied depending on the seniority
or personality of the interviewee. In all interviews I asked for my interlocutors‟ personal background information, even if I felt I knew it, because it was important to me to see how my respondents defined themselves. I encouraged all female respondents to tell
me both about the nature of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé in their husbands‟ families and to reflect on their experiences as wives and member of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé.
When discussing abstract rules and ideas, I also always asked for an example of how such rules and ideas were enforced, and of whether they had ever been violated. Many of my interview partners agreed to have their interviews recorded with an MP3 recorder, and recorded interviews were later transcribed and translated into English. With the relevant permissions I also recorded a good number of social events and outings that involved the Olóbìnrin-Ilé of various compounds, and transcribed and translated aspects of these events as well.
Another way in which I collected fieldwork materials was the watching and copying of existing cassettes, DVDs and C s on which people had recorded activities of the town‟s Olóbìnrin-Ilé. Most families record the big events and celebrations at which the Olóbìnrin-Ilé perform, and watching such recording together with other women was often both informative, as I learnt from their comments, and enjoyable, as they involved songs and happy memories. Where I was allowed to copy such recordings for the purposes of this study, I could also
make a note of practices or songs that I would not have encountered otherwise, and often I was able to obtain explanations from the original owners of the recording. This was particularly useful as part of my research period fell into a period in which social activities were limited (see below). In order to ensure that my interpretation of the practices of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé in Oyán were not skewed by my own more Westernised life style and educational ambitions, I identified a confidante among my respondents who had a strong interest in intellectual engagement. In order to check and reflect on my own ideas and prejudices, I discussed many of my findings and insights with her. Considering her as a key informant as well as a fellow intellectual, I accepted her corrections of my views on several occasions
. However, I did not do so on all occasions she disagreed with me, and I also made sure not to rely on her comments and views exclusively.
Both my confidante and those women who agreed to formal interviews were given pseudonyms to ensure confidentiality. The timing of the fieldwork was a small problem because it included the Muslim fasting period of Ramadan. During Ramadan some women (and men) were less willing to speak to me than normally because they were tired from fasting or because they felt that Ramadan was not the time to discuss some of the traditional practices I was interested in. Also, I was unable to interview the Ọba, or traditional ruler, of the town because he hadtravelled to Saudi Arabia to observe his fasting there. When he came back, his first wife had died, and he remained unavailable for interview as he observed a mourning period for her.

Chapter One: Introduction
1.1
Background to the Research Problem
The Yorùbá of southwest Nigeria have a unique way of establishing a family. As in other cultures all over the world, the idea of family among the Yorùbá is basically that of an extended family. If economic ally possible, the nuclear family of father, mother (or mothers)
and their children often live together with uncles, nephews, nieces and cousins. However, the Yorùbá family embraces more than members who are related by blood or marriage;and often a stranger who shares the family‟s residence may eventually become a member of that family. he basis of a family‟s residence is the compound, often a group of rooms or houses facing a shared open space (or spaces) whose male residents are usually related by descent, forming “a patrilineal core group” (LeVine, Klein and Owen 1967:52).

In a normal compound, there are often three or more generations living together and the most elderly male in the compound takes charge of all family affairs as the head of the family. The historical importance of this practice has been documented by Akintoye, who observed that each of the earliest -(lineage compounds) in Yorùbáland “consists of many dwelling units in one single building. Each building developed as a number of courtyards around which the dwelling units were arranged” ( kintoye 2010:20). he spatial dimensions of family compounds will be discussed in detail in chapters three and four. Although this type of family setting is often modified or even abandoned in modern urban settings, it remains constitutive of the social life in smaller Yorùbá towns. Important elements of compou
nd life, and especially its inclusivity, however continue to shape even more nuclear families in the urban environment. While many
families consist of the husband and wife with their children, they usually also include at least two or three relatives, or even acquaintances, from either side of the couple who stay with them as part of their extended family. The compound system in Yorùbá society is the foundation of the understanding of compound or “family” wives, called Olóbìnrin-Ilé, who are the topic of this dissertation.
As the compound‟s core lineage consists of those related on the paternal side, and as marriage within extended families is frowned upon, the wives of the men who belong to a compound are by necessity born to another lineage. While all women belong to their father‟s compound by
birth, they join their marital families as outsiders. It is these women who are married into a compound, and who therefore belong to it by marriage rather than by descent, who constitute an important group within the compound called the Olóbìnrin-Ilé.
While this group is obviously more important in settings where the compound system still operates, even smaller families in urban settings recognize the wives who married into the family as a category that is distinct from the daughters of the family. As a result, the social relations that shape married women‟s lives throughout Yorùbáland reflect important aspects of the institution of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé.
Research exploring the role of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé addresses important questions in the literature on Yorùbá women,and family and gender relations more generally.
Historically it reflects the importance of marriage and reproduction for women, but also the significance of polygyny for male success and achievement. Sudarkasa comments that, “ frican extended families, which are the normal co- residential form of family in indigenous pre
-colonial frican societies, are built around consanguineal relationships” (Sudarkasa 1986:97). While this dissertation emphasizes that
Yorùbá families are not limited to consangiuneal relationships, the importance of a core group related by descent for the
Yorùbá compound system illustrates this point. However, achievement rested on the ability of a compound leader to draw in additional people, and one way of doing this was by marriage, i.e. the extension of the family through affinal bonds.
In the past, polygamy was an advantage for those (often older)men who could afford it because in addition to increasing the size of a family through bearing children, all wives would work, either in the household and on the farm, to feed the growing family and to expand its control over cultivated land (Caldwell et al 1991:234-235).This logic meant that many Yorùbá speakers believed that the number of
wives determined the wealth and influence of a man and his family. A man with many wives could have a large family under his control, and with a large compound he would be able to play a leading role in town politics and become famous.
Describing compounds from the female point of view, Pearce defines an extended lineage compound as a place where a woman live
swith her husband‟s parents, his siblings and their wives, as well as co-wives of her husband, and which is controlled by the older members of
the patrilineage,both male and female (Pearce 1995:198). Oftentimes, parents would pressure their male children to have more than one wife, simply in order to have many children (or grandchildren), which were seen as the basis for wealth and influence.
Thus compounds with many male descendants could include over a hundred wives or Olóbìnrin-Ilé, which form a group with a distinct social identity within the compound. Especially in northern Yorùbáland, which is the location of the research for this dissertation, there are still some very large functioning compounds, and the Olóbìnrin-Ilé often play important social roles during ceremonies such as burials, marriages or even festivals to provide entertainment and to give moral or financial support to their marital compound.
In the compound, the women who have married into the family, irrespective of whether they were in monogamous or polygamous marriages, may be addressed as „our wife‟ by all relatives on their husband‟s side, including women. his address does not imply a sexual relationship of any kind, and it does not suggest that female members of a Yorùbálineage are comparable to the „female husbands‟ described by madiume for Igbo society. What Amadiume describes is a form of marriage in which daughters can (or could) act as social
sons for their lineages by marrying other women, whose children were then considered their offspring in the male line(Amadiume 1987).
In Yorùbá compounds, the address of a wife that has married into a compound as „our wife‟ by male and female members (by birth) of
that compound simply acknowledges the fact that she is a „wife of the compound‟. Her rights and duties within the compound are shaped by the fact that she belongs by marriage rather than descent.
The difference between women who belong to the compound by descent and those who belong to it by marriage illustrates the
complex way in which gender intersects with seniority within Yorùbáland. Scholars have disagreed over the way in which women‟s
social seniority is or was attained. Crucially, Oyewumi (1997, 1998, 2002)has suggested that in the past, individuals were distinguished from each other by biological age alone, with older women always senior to younger men. According to her, presently existing gender differences were only a colonial introduction to Yorùbá society. Oyewumi is right that the importance of seniority by age among siblings is often independent of gender. However, as Peel (2002) has pointed out, the importance of parenthood and the patrilocal nature of marriage meant that women were nonetheless disadvantaged in attaining seniority after marriage, because a new wife‟s seniority in her husband‟s compound was reckoned by the day she joined it. s a result, a wife‟s age within her marital compound depends on the date of her
marriage –she is considered younger than the baby who was born on the day before her wedding(Fadipe, 1970:14).
As a result, the distinction between those women who belong to a compound by birth and those who belong due to marriage is reflected in real differences in authority.
This is also illustrated by the fact that daughters and wives of the compound form distinct groups within the compound. As fellow wives of a compound, or co-wives, women of different backgrounds, and indeed sometimes different ethnicities, form a group that is tasked with supporting the compound in various ways, including the provision of manual and emotionallabour and the birth and raising of children. Ideally, the wives of a compound are expected to share such tasks in ways that benefit the compound‟s cohesion, for example by emphasizing
the shared paternal roots of the compound‟s children rather than their diverse maternal origins.
For this activity they are recognized and rewarded.
This ideal form of wifely behaviour is however threatened by rivalry and competition between wives, and especially between wives married to the same husband. In large compounds, the compliance of individual wives with such values, and the general sense that
wives must contribute to the greatness andcohesion of a compound, is ensured by the corporate organization of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé
under one or several leaders from among them.
But despite the importance of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé for the social lives of Yorùbá compounds, and, given the importance of marriage and reproduction (the social experiences of most adult women), studies of this group are extremely scarce. Akintoye recognizes the importance of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé with regard to important decisions on matters such as weddings, and in some festivals,but although he ascertained that women may play leadership roles in the compound, he refers to the group only in passing and does not give details of the types of leadership provided by female descendants or the compound wives (Akintoye 2010:128). In contrast, Fadipe notes that the Olóbìnrin-Ilé area recognized group of people to which admission is by marriage into the compound. He also comments on the women‟s mechanisms for gaining a footing in their husband‟s compound (Fadipe, 1970:116). However, he does not examine the hierarchies and activities of that group in greater detail. Karin Barber has pointed out that little attention has been paid to women‟s performance in the considerable body of academic work on Yorùbá oral literature (Barber, 1991:12). Overall, it seems as if the activities and the cultural relevance of wives in their husband‟s compounds have been taken for granted. This overlooks the fact that as wives, Yorùbá women make important contributions to their husband‟s compound or family, both as individuals and through the collective agency and power of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé. However, it should be noted that the Olóbìnrin-Ilé exist as a closely organized group primarily in the rural areas. As urban living conditions encourage life in smaller section
s or even in nuclear families, some Olóbìnrin -Ilé in the urban centres do not come together as a group often, and some families‟ wives may only have a superficial relationship with each other. Even so, during major family events, such as naming ceremonies,weddings and especially funerals, the Olóbìnrin- Ilé of urbanised families are usually responsible for aspects of the celebration as a group. Thus the lives of women even in very Westernised families continue to be shaped by the historical roles of Olóbìnrin-Ilé. In order to understand the particular role played by the wives of a family in its affairs, it is therefore pertinent to explore the role of the Olóbìnrin -Ilé in the setting of one of southwest Nigeria‟s smaller and medium -sized towns, where compound life is still the dominant form of residential and political organisation. Research in a smaller town can offer a clear insight intoideas about women, gender, and wifely roles that remain widely shared even if they are not practiced as openly or to the same degree. This thesis focuses on the small town of Oyán in sun State, Nigeria, the public life
of which remains dominated by its large compounds. As I have family ties to oyán through marriage myself, my belonging enabled me to draw on existing networks of trust and shared experiences in order to gather observations and experiences.
Despite the growing importance of Christianity and Islam in oyán , traditional practices and celebrations associated with the Olóbìnrin
-Ilé remain widely accepted, enabling me to discuss some practices openly with my interlocutors which might be kept from outsiders in more westernised localities. Overall, my research in Oyán meant that I could observe and participate in the activities of Olóbìnrin-Ilé as a group on an everyday basis. I had good access to local debates and practices, as well as material that further illuminated my research topic, such as video recordings. However, my positionality also meant that I was not as much at liberty as I originally thought to present my interlocutors in this thesis, because they are also relatives, family friends and, last but not least, personal friends. I therefore draw on my data in a mostly indirect way unless I have explicit permission to use material directly . While the practices surrounding the Olóbìnrin-Ilé vary between urbanised areas and smaller towns, and from one region of Yorùbáland to another, the findings from Oyán will
illustrate important practices and attitudes concerning women that are shared throughout Yorùbáland.
Erinosho argues that despite civilization and industrialization, the basic functions of the family unit within the Yorùbá social structure have not been altered. xtended family ties are still strong today. The family compound still retains its importance for rituals and various
social activities among its members, and loyalty to kin has not disappeared (Erinosho, 1978:5). his is evident in yán, the town under study, where many nuclear families come together as a compound on special occasions.
Based on research in Oyán, as well as a careful reading of existing literature, this dissertation will also address the question of women‟s belonging. It has been argued that women‟s agency is primarily shaped by their membership of their own patrilineages, implying that their activities as wives and mothers are not relevant to their success. At the same time, it has been implied that women are subsumed into the identity of their marital compounds, arguments which are discussed in more detail below. This dissertation will illustrate that unlike men, (married) women belong to two compounds –once as daughters and once as wives.
It is as wives that women make many important, and indeed fundamental, contributions to their husbands‟ compounds.
The dissertation is divided into six chapters,which explore following topics:What roles are played by women in the political and social structure of
Oyán What are the gendered roles of Yorùbá women and especially wives? In what ways do Yorùbá women experience marriage? What are the
roles of the compound women (Olóbìnrin-Ilé)?

This is a beautiful paper i just stumble upon while doing some research online. Its titled, Compound Wives (Olóbìnrin-Ilé)in Oyan, Southwest Nigeria written by Oluwakemi Taiwo Olabode. It is a thesis submitted to the University of Birmingham for a degree program.

Abstract:

This study is an investigation into the lives of married women (Olóbìnrin-Ilé) in yán Town, Osun State, Nigeria. As in other parts of Yorùbáland, the women married into a particular compound or family by the sons, grandsons, great-grandsons, uncles and nephews of the same lineage, are considered an important corporate group. The thesis focuses on the double belonging of women both as daughters of their natal compound and as wives of their marital compound and explores the institution of the compound wives (Olóbìnrin-Ilé), wives of the compound who are women of diverse origin and whose admission into the group is strictly by marriage. The data for this study was collected
through participant observation as well as through focus group discussions and individual interviews with married women from nine compounds in oyán, most of whom were active participants of the Olóbìnrin-Ilé. Data was analyzed using interpretive analysis, focusing on the way in which the women represent and support the husband‟s compound in their outings and how they are compensated for it.