Oluwatosin Enesi
Obasanjo disclosed this at a luncheon he organised to celebrate the 50th birthday of the renowned woman drummer, Aralola Olamuyiwa held at the Green Legacy of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library in Abeokuta.
The former President lamented that it is unfortunate that many rich African cultures are being relegated to the background in the name of embracing western culture.
Our electric bike will crash
He said: “Culture is the totality of who we are, unfortunately, we have relegated some of our culture to the background, our food, our language, our dress and so on
“They even say Yoruba is vernacular, that is not right, Yoruba is Yoruba, it is the authentic and we must learn to celebrate what belong to us because that’s the authentic
“I am a Christian, I have been to two churches today but whoever say Ifa Orumila is nothing must be a bloody fool because Orunmila has been with us before the advent of Christianity or Islam.”
“We now have a woman who can beat the drum better than the men. She is helping a lot to sustain our cultural heritage and that is why I have decided to celebrate her so as to further encourage her to keep up the good job.”
Speaking earlier, Ara thanked the former President for the honour done her, saying that it was a gesture she would ever cherish for the rest of her life and career.
The renowned Ondo State born drummer said that she had thought that she would not be alive to celebrate 50 years having suffered a life threatening ailment last year.
Ara explained that the celebration was to return the praises to God who had preserved her and has supported her to be on the global stage despite all odds.
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