The ancient town of Ikoyi-Ile, Oyo State was agog on Saturday when Oba Abdul Yekeen Oladipupo Ayinla , the Onikoyi of Ikoyi –Ile, conferred traditional titles of Babalaje and Yeye Babalaje of Ikoyi-Ile on Engineer Babatunde Bamidele and his wife Mrs Christiana, Babatunde alongside two other prominent personalities, who were also conferred with title; Aare Baamofin of Ikoyi-Ile and iyalode of Ikoyi-Ile.
Babatunde who is the Chief Executive Officer of Glister Success Limited, a solid mineral resresources explorationmpany, who is now refeered to s a double chief haven been earlier conferred the Agbaakin of Igbetiland, both towns being host communities of his exploration sites in Oyo State.
All sons and daughter of Ikoyi Ile came around for the august occasion to celebrate with their monarch.
Speaking with our correspondent shortly after the conferment of the title, Engineer Babatunde An industrialist and reputable operator in the extractive industry used the medium to join his voice with Nigerians clamouring for alternative sources of income for Nigeria as a way out of uncertainty and fluctuations in oil prices in the world.
Babatunde who said he has been in the mining and extractive industry since the past twenty years said that his industry is a sure alternative source of income better compared to the petroleum industry.
He said that the challenge of youth unemployment bedeviling the country is best solved by empowering miners and operators in the extractive industry in a way that they would be able to employ the youths, because government alone cannot provide the jobs for all its youths.
The Balaje of Ikoyi also reiterated that as much as the activity illegal miners remain a crime, they exist as a matter of necessity in that the need for a means of livelihood pushed most of them into the act and until the government provides alternative source of livelihood, the fight against illegal mining would be a mirage.
The Agbaakin of Igbetiland also advised government at all levels to reconsider carving a role for traditional rulers because their redundancy will continue to spell doom for the nation making reference to happenings in the northeast adding that traditional rulers know their people better and have traditional ways of settling issues in the domain.
Engineer Bamidele also condemned civil servants on the clamour for N30,000 minimum wage stressing that what government should be done first is a trim down of labour force because in his words, there are too many redundant staff in the service a case of one type writer to six typists.
He asked, “if individuals know how to manage their private business to make profits why should government ventures be run at a loss simply because they do not want to down size?”
The chieftaincy conferment at Ikoyi was witnessed by other traditional rulers in the environment such as
the Onitede of Tede , Oba Abdulrauf Oladoyin, Onijabata of Jabata, Oba Mustapha Ajala as well as other dignitaries like former governor of Oyo state, Chief Rasheed Adewolu Ladoja , Chairman, Orire Local Government , Alhaja Fatimah Gidado , Mr Tunde Irorun Agbe, Alhaji Oriwu Akinpelu.
The prominent Ewi exponent, Alhaji Sulaiman Ayilara also known as Ajobiewe, was the master of the ceremony adding colours to the rendition of poems and accolades of traditional lineage.
Other artistes present at the event includes Alhaji Adisa Owala
