Ilorin the Kwara state capital has a long line of history that is filled with contentions between the Yoruba and fulani that till date remains unresolved.
The Fulani claim legitimacy to the Ilorin throne, asserting that the monarchy has, from time immemorial, been held by their lineage. The descendants of Alimi, a Fulani cleric and warrior, have long maintained that their right to the emirship is historically established.
https://youtu.be/S9pVgfkC22w?si=5e8u22XMSW6IlFSr
But on the other side of the story stand the Yoruba particularly the descendants of Afonja, a formidable general and the town’s reputed founder. Like the majority of Ilorin’s inhabitants, they are Yoruba, and they argue that since their forefather laid the foundation of the ancient town, the kingship rightly belongs to them.
Alimi, the revered ancestor of the Fulani in Ilorin, was once a guest some say a tenant of Afonja. Afonja, then the Aare Ona Kakanfo (the General of the Oyo Empire), had turned Ilorin into a military outpost from where he waged wars for the Alaafin of Oyo.
During one of those power struggles, Afonja rebelled against the Alaafin. Seeking both spiritual and military backing, he turned to Alimi for support. Alimi, with his charisma and Fulani warriors, helped secure victory. The Alaafin was defeated and fled Oyo-Ile, founding a new base in what is now known as Oyo.
In gratitude or perhaps in a move of trust Afonja entrusted Alimi with tutoring his children. But fate played a cruel trick. Upon the deaths of both Afonja and Alimi, it was not Afonja’s heir who assumed leadership, but Alimi’s son, Abdulsalami. Backed by Fulani forces, Abdulsalami claimed the throne of Ilorin around 1831. And so began the dynasty of Fulani emirs in a predominantly Yoruba city.
Afonja’s descendants have never truly accepted this turn of events. They believe their ancestors were betrayed and sidelined. Over the years, several uprisings have tried to reclaim what they see as their rightful place which I have outlined in the video.
Fast forward to the present, and the embers still burn.
#IlorinChronicles #YorubaVsFulani #AfonjaLegacy #AlimiDynasty #WhoOwnsIlorin #KingshipTussle #IlorinThrone #HistoryOfIlorin #KwaraPolitics #OyaStateNow #JusticeForAfonja #NigeriaHistoryMatters
©Odey Godwin Agbaka
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