As preparations for the annual ‘Aso-Ofi’ festival scheduled to hold in Iseyin this week’s Saturday hit top gears, the Aseyin of Iseyin, Oba Abdul Ganiyu Salaudeen, yesterday visited the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi.
Receiving the monarch in his Oduduwa palace, Oba Ogunwusi emphasised that Yoruba is the first race to develop the concept of cloth weaving in the world, adding that “Yorubas are blessed. Our race is the pacesetter in all spheres.”
He maintained that the Yoruba race had been setting the pace in virtually all spheres, being the descendants of Oodua from Ile-Ife, which is the origin of all human migration to the entire surface of the earth.
According to him, “Yoruba is the first race to wear cloth in the whole world. The progenitor of Yoruba race weaved cloths several centuries back. He received the inspiration and concept for weaving through spider and its craft of cobweb, which was the origin of weaving cloth in the global community.”
Oba Ogunwusi further stated that “through archaeological exploration, we recently exhumed a local weaving tools and machines used by our forefathers in Ile-Ife for weaving cloths, most especially Aso Oke. The tools are over 4,000 years old. We were able to get the age of the local key machines through scientific dating.”
While assuring that he would collaborate with Aseyin of Iseyin and groups of Aso Oke cloth weavers from Iseyin and Kwara on the forthcoming Aso Oke festival, the monarch recalled that the founder of Iseyin, identified as Olufi migrated from Ile-Ife to Iseyin where he started cloth weaving business.
Oba Ogunwusi said many descendants of Yoruba extraction moved from Ile-Ife to Sudan, Ethiopia, Egypt, India, Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba and other parts of the world, where they excelled in making difference in their resident countries.
Earlier, the Aseyin of Iseyin, Oba Abdul Ganiyu Salawudeen described Ooni as rare symbol of humility, who have displayed high degree of intelligence and maturity since he ascended throne about two years ago.
He corroborated Ooni’s historical account of Iseyin saying Olufi and his brother, Ebedi who migrated from their ancestral home in Ile-Ife began the trade of Aso Oke cloth weaving in the community, stressing that “both of them are now mountains that we worship in Iseyin.
Oba Salawudeen said he had the delegation of high chiefs and Aso Oke weavers from Iseyin to officially invite Ooni for the annual Aso Oke festival.
