The Alaafin, the current one, has chosen an obnoxiously obsolete history to pursue an impossible hegemony in a modern world. That ambition is not only anachronistic; it is intellectually indefensible.
Power, today, is no longer derived from myth inflated into supremacy, but from legitimacy rooted in verifiable history, cultural diplomacy, and moral authority.
The case of the Ooni—past or present—is fundamentally different. Ile-Ife is not a political contrivance; it is the Source. It is the cradle from which the Yoruba civilization emerged and dispersed. Káàrọ̀ o jíire, or whatever identity we choose to carry, traces back to Ife. This is not a matter of palace propaganda or contemporary rivalry; it is history , supported not merely by oral narration, but by archaeology, artifacts, linguistics, carbon-dated findings, and global scholarly consensus.
From ancient terracotta and bronze heads to the unmistakable sophistication of Ife art that stunned early European archaeologists, Ile-Ife stands as empirical evidence of origin, not aspiration. No amount of revisionism can erase that.
While other Yoruba polities rose to military or administrative prominence at different historical moments, none can credibly rewrite origin into dominance.
What is therefore troubling is not cultural pride, but cultural overreach, an attempt to weaponize selective history to impose hierarchy where history itself recognises plurality. Yoruba civilization thrived because it allowed multiple centers of power, innovation, and identity to coexist without denying the Source.
To conflate later political strength with primordial supremacy is to misunderstand history and insult intelligence. Cultural leadership in the 21st century demands humility, learning, and diplomacy not arrogance anchored in obsolete claims.
The future of Yoruba unity will not be built on forced hegemony, but on honest history and mutual respect.
BETWEEN MYTH AND REALITY BY OLADOTUN ADETUNBERU
