President John Mahama
President John Mahama was the recipient of an honorary Yoruba title in the spiritual cradle of the Yoruba Kingdom, Ile Ife, in Oyo State of Nigeria yesterday.
The ceremony attracted many Ghanaian Yorubas from Ghana, among them the head of the Yoruba community Oba Abdul Rashid Brimah IX and others.
The honour “Aare Atayeto Oodua” was conferred on the President by His Imperial Majesty Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, the Ooni of Ife, title which translates to “A President who reorganises the global space for humanity.”
Being a recipient of an earlier honour, the “Aare Atolase of Offa” in October 2015 by His Royal Majesty Oba Mufutau Gbadamosi Esuwoye I, the Olofa of Offa, described President Mahama as a leader who has once more strengthened his bond with the Yorubas both in Nigeria and Ghana.
One of the sisters of President Mahama, Hajia Sherifat Dundu Mahama, descends from a Yoruba woman from Offa in Kwara State. Offa is home to many Yorubas born and bred in various parts of Ghana, especially Accra and Kumasi.
The Ooni of Ife is the spiritual head of the Yoruba Kingdom, he and the Alafin of Oyo trace their ancestry to one of the sons of Oduduwa, founder of the Yoruba Kingdom known as Oranmiyan.
History has it that Ile Ife is the ancestral origin of the Gas. One of the major trips the Ga Mantse, Nii Teiku Tsuru II, undertook upon assuming the leadership of the Gas was a visit to Ile Ife sometime last year.
The visit was a promise made good when during the visit to Ghana of the Ooni of Ife, His Royal Majesty, Alaye Oba (Dr.) Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi in 2016, he promised to host his guest when he eventually ascends the stool of Ga Mantse.
It is said that royal children start learning history from their infancy, no wonder the Ooni of Ife was able to narrate the historic bond between the people of Ife and the Ga-Adangbe when he hosted his brother from Accra.
Ghana is home to fourth and even fifth generation of Yoruba migrants, having been finely assimilated into the Ghanaian society through intermarriages. The Gas call them Anago and the Akans, Alata.