Ogbomoso, a
historic city which is one of the places that have been a source of attraction
to visitors and tourists, is the palace of the town’s traditional ruler, Oba
Jimoh Oyewumi, Ajagungbade III. A sprawling town strategically located along
Ibadan-Oyo-Ilorin road. The major highway that links the southern part of the
country with the north through South-west axis runs through Ogbomoso.
What appears
to be the magnet drawing people to Ogbomoso is a 324-year-old tortoise
popularly called Alagba by residents.
According
to those living in the palace, the tortoise has lived in the palace for over
300 years. This is not the only spectacle about Alagba. Since its arrival in
the palace, the tortoise, which is said to have mystical powers plays host to
different calibres of people including royal fathers, tourists from foreign
countries, ailing individuals seeking divine healing and people seeking
longevity.
According
to Samuel Ojo, the current caretaker, the tortoise was brought into the palace
several years ago by one of the past traditional rulers of the town, Oba Toyese
Ikumuyi, Ajagungbade I.
It was also
gathered that the tortoise receives up to 150 visitors daily.
Ojo further
revealed that the monarch saw the tortoise while returning from the war front,
and consequently brought it to the palace.
“This is
the history handed down to us from our forefathers. We all grew up to see the
tortoise in the palace. Out of curiosity, we inquired from our parents why the
tortoise was brought by the king and we were told that the king’s initial aim
was to keep it as a pet, but that when it was discovered that it had some
mystical powers, a decision was taken to take care of it,” he declared.
Ojo further
revealed that a detached apartment was later put up for the tortoise within the
palace.
“Since that
time this tortoise has become part of our life not only in the palace but also
throughout the town. You cannot talk of Ogbomoso without talking about the
tortoise.”
On how the
tortoise acquired its mystic powers to perform various miracles credited to it,
Ojo said: “My brother, it is only God that can explain it. But what I know is
that several people come here every day seeking to be cured of one form of
ailment or the other, and they believe that whenever they touch the tortoise
that their problems will be solved. This is why you see all these visitors
here. They are not here for picnic, they are here to see the tortoise because
they believe that it has powers to provide solutions to their problems,” he
said.
Recalling a
time when a traditional ruler from the Southwestern part of the country came to
the palace, Omo said that the monarch was carried to the palace by his aides,
but that as soon as he touched the tortoise’s head, the monarch regained his
health.
“There are
many instances that I have witnessed here where the tortoise was only touched
and you see people jubilating that their ailment had disappeared.”
Asked
whether the tortoise has any taboo , Ojo said: “There is nothing extraordinary
or unusual about the tortoise. But when you come here, there are certain rules
you must observe. As they say, when you are in Rome, behave like Romans, when
you come here you don’t call the tortoise by name you address it as Alagba
which mean the elderly one in Yoruba language. Not only that, you then
prostrate or kneel down depending on your sex before you proceed to touch the
tortoise on the head or any part of its body, and then table your requests.”
Reiterating
the importance of addressing the tortoise as Alagba, Ojo said failure to do so
would make the tortoise unhappy.
“If you
come here, and you refuse to follow the rules then this tortoise will not
cooperate with you. If you don’t address it as Alagba, you will just notice
that the tortoise will suddenly become cold towards you, and before you know
what is happening it would gradually move towards its resting place. There were
occasions when the tortoise got provoked, and for some days, it would not come
out of its resting place. There have been some occasions when some visitors
from far places had to wait for three days or more for the tortoise,” he
stated.
On the kind
of food the tortoise eats, Ojo said it could eat anything as long as such item
is edible.
“The
tortoise eats anything eaten by human beings. At times, we serve it moin-moin,
rice and fish, bread and tea and even rice. But what still baffles all of us
here is that the tortoise drink water only once in every two weeks. If you give
water to the tortoise now, it won’t drink again until two weeks later.
While
saying that there have been one or two occasions when the tortoise took ill, Ojo
however quickly added:
“Even for
human beings, we do fall sick, let alone animals, but this tortoise hardly
falls ill, and whenever it does not feel fine, nobody administers any drug on
it, the tortoise will just retreat to its abode, and for few days will not come
out. But by the time you see it moving round the palace ground again, you don’t
need anybody to tell you that it has regained its health. I don’t know the
secret of its longevity; this tortoise has outlived over 15 Souns, that is
talking about our traditional rulers here.”
Has there
been any attempt to relocate the tortoise to a zoo? You inquired. “Never!”, he
retorted. “For what reason? Since it was brought here, this tortoise has never
left the palace ground. It is generally believe that any attempt to take the
tortoise out of the palace will have a negative consequence.”
Speaking
with some residents of Ogbomoso on how they feel about the tortoise, most of
them described it as a blessing to the town.
For Madam
Adunni Adunola, a petty trader, the tortoise since its coming to Ogbomoso has
been a harbinger of blessing to the residents.
“Since the
tortoise came to Ogbomoso, everywhere has always been peaceful. Have you heard
about any crisis in Ogbomoso? Our city is a haven, and we owe this in part to
the existence of this tortoise,” she declared.
The
78-year-old trader enjoined Soun of Ogbomoso and his chiefs to continue taking
care of the tortoise.
In his own
view, Solomon Ayanlola, a political leader in the town, the history of Ogbomoso
can’t be complete without the tortoise.
“The
tortoise has been with us for many years. It has become part of our history. We
all treasure its presence among us, and we urge our leaders to continue taking
good care of it.”
1 comments:
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