The Olofin of Isheri and Adimula of Awori Kingdom, Oba Sulaimon Bamgbade, has said the Aworis were the first settlers in Lagos State.
The monarch stated this on Thursday while responding to a recent comment from the Oba of Benin, Oba Ewuare II, claiming that the Binis founded Lagos.
Naija News reports that the Benin monarch had, during a visit to the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Sunday, stated that the origin of Lagos could be traced to the Binis.
Responding to his colleague’s statement, Bamgbade urged Oba Ewuare to retrace the origin of the Benin Kingdom to Ile Ife, like the Aworis have always done.
The Olofin argued that contrary to Oba Ewuare’s claim, Lagos was founded and established by Olofin Ogunfuminire, the progenitor of the Awori people.
He claimed that the Benin people came to Lagos as mere traders.
He said, “Olofin Ogunfuminire left Ile-Ife to settle at Isheri before migrating with his wife, Ajaiye, to present-day Iddo in the heart of Lagos. It was at Iddo that Ajaiye was blessed with the fruits of the womb. Her offspring are the Idejo, who are the actual traditional landowners of Lagos.
“The spatial region of the land owned by the Idejo spans from Lagos Mainland (Iddo) to Lagos Island and up to Eti-Osa, which he allocated absolutely to his children and other descendants.
“In this regard, he assigned Iru to the Oniru, Ikate to the Elegushi, Lagos Island to Aromire, Iganmu to Ojora, Otto, and mainland to the Oloto (up to Odo–Iya Alaro). Isheri was the dispersal point where other Olofin Ogunfunminire descendants left to found other Awori towns. For instance, Akeredun left Isheri to establish Igbesa, Odoyi left Isheri to find Agboyi, and Osolo and Eleidi Atalabi left Isheri to find Ota.
“These facts are firmly established and supported by extant literature written by foreign authors and researchers such as Kristin Mann who in his book titled ‘Slavery and Birth of an African City: Lagos 1760- 1900,” wrote, and I quote: ‘Migrant fishing people first settled in Lagos and from the beginning water and canoes had a prominent role in the lives of its inhabitants. Prior to the sixteenth century, Aworis, the southernmost of the Yoruba-speaking people, dispersed from Isheri, a village twelve miles up the Ogun River. A group of them settled at what is now Ebute Metta on the mainland.”
Olofin added, “The Benin, who later came to Lagos as mere traders, met Olofin and his descendants on the island of Iddo and its neighbourhood, where they settled down and were well received and hosted by the community. As time went by, a feud broke out between the Benin and their hosts. Facing imminent defeat, they called for reinforcements and assistance from the Oba of Benin.
“Olofin Ogunfunminire and his mentees vehemently and successfully repelled these attacks. As a compromise, and as part of the tolerant disposition which is the character of the typical Awori, the Benins were eventually relocated to live with Aromire on his pepper farm on Lagos Island at Iga Idungaran (Idungaran in Awori means pepper farm) where they after a while and probably due to the indifference of the original land owner, introduced a more structured organisation.
“The first settlers in present Lagos are Aworis, and the dispersal point of Aworis is Isheri. As the Olofin of Isheri and Adimula of Awori Kingdoms, I implore The Oba of Benin to retrace the origin of the Benin Kingdom to Ile Ife, like the Aworis have always done.”
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