Arole Oodua Olofin Adimula, Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwui,CFR, Ojaja II, The Ooni of Ife has formally received his wife, Olori(Dr) Opeoluwa Elizabeth Akinmuda in line with customs and traditions of the Ife Kingdom known as source of the entire Oduduwa race worldwide.
The two day event which started with the historic arrival of the queen at the Ile-Oodua palace of the Ooni in Ile-Ife at about 8:pm on Friday in company of her parent, family members and friends, also continued on Saturday with a brief thanksgiving service 11am and 12 midday inside the banquet room at the palace followed by a 2 hour recess to allow for other rites and subsequently climaxed by the reception party and entertainment of guests at main hall right inside palace lasted the whole day.
FRIDAY: The queen being ushered in by a group of women into the palace after she was received by a retinue of the Ooni’s traditional aides known as ‘Emese Ooni’ who led her to the Sacred “Yemoolu Well” to perform her first assignment as an Ooni’s wife. She was told a brief history of “Yemoolu” a one time Ooni’s queen who transformed to the sacred well which has since become mandatory Ooni’s water for drinking and other important uses at the palace.
Having administered the Yemoolu rites on her, the Queen was escorted to the official residence of the Ooni where the waiting Ife high chiefs and Iyalodes led by The Lowa Adimula of Ife, High Chief Adekola Adeyeye rained traditional prayers on her and officially received her into the Ile-Oodua(palace ) before she was handed over by her father to the Olori Agba(most senior wife) in the Ogunwusi Royal family, Olori Margret Ogunwusi who handed her to Olori Mariam flanked by Olori Aderonke Ademiluyi Ogunwusi.
Having been received by her husband, Queen Elizabeth was made to sit beside her husband as the rites continued till about 10pm before she was finally led to her residence which is less than 50 meters from the Ooni’s official residence.
SATURDAY: The colourful wedding ceremony which took inside the Multipurpose hall at the palace was witnessed by creme-de-la-creme of the society including the Olota of Ota Awori, HRM, Oba(Prof) Adeyemi Abdulkabir Obalanlege. The cutting of the masterpiece cake for the wedding was supervised by the SookoLaekun of Ife, Prince Adegboyega Ogunwusi who doubles as The Head Of The Princes Of Ife Kingdom.
Speaking at the event, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, Former president of Nigeria represented by King (Dr.) Amalate Turner, Obanobhan of Oloibiri Kingdom, Bayelsa State, expressed happiness to be at the event celebrating with the foremost monarch on his wedding celebration.
“Ooni Ogunwusi has been a lover of peace and promotes it in every fora he is. Since mounting the throne of his forebears, he has been propagating peace all round the globe and we are very proud of him”. He said.
It will be recalled that Ooni Ogunwusi had in the first week of October 2023 married Dr Opeoluwa Elizabeth Akinmuda, an Awori Princess room Ajibode Community in Ota, Ogun state, Nigeria is a PHD holder and Scotland-UK based Electronic Data Processor who became his second wife at a traditional wedding engagement in Magodo, Lagos few days after taking Olori Mariam Ogunwusi as his first wife.
The formal entry to the Ooni’s Palace by the queen is in fulfillment of the necessary spiritual and traditional rites in accordance with inherited royal wedding culture of Ile-Ife.
Signed:
Otunba Moses Olafare,
Director, Media and Public Affairs,
Ooni’s Palace.