50th birthday: Ooni inaugurates foundation to tackle truancy, out-of-school syndrome

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, has inaugurated a foundation for traditional rulers’ intervention on truancy prevention, school enrolment and engagement.

The Foundation is expected to officially unveil plans and programmes to curb the out-of-school menace in South-West, including Kogi and Kwara states, ahead of his 50th birthday anniversary.

The Foundation, headed by Eburu of Iba, Oba Adekunle Adeogun-Okunoye, has as members other traditional rulers across the six South-West Zone, as well as Kogi and Kwara states, namely Onigogo of Igogo (Ekiti State), Larooka of Wanikkin Ife (Osun State), Olukotun of Ikotun-Ile (Kwara State), Adeboruwa of Igbogbo (Lagos State), Oloba-Uso of Oba-Uso (Ondo State), Onpetu of Ijeru (Oyo State) and the Olujumu of Ijumu (Kogi State) as directors while the Ooni’s Director of Media and Public Affairs, Moses Olafare, serves as Deputy Secretary of the Foundation.

Oba Adeogun-Okunoye, while briefing journalists, yesterday, shortly after the inaugural meeting at the Ooni’s palace, said that the Ooni had put in place the Foundation in fulfilment of his quest to ensure that traditional institutions and Yoruba states in Nigeria work for the masses by complementing government’s efforts in curbing truancy and out-of-school syndrome in the society.

The monarch, who doubles as the Foundation’s Director-General, further said that Ooni had premised the programme on the on-going agitation of the traditional rulers for constitutional role and the persistent efforts of traditional rulers to work with government in addressing challenges, especially those that directly affect youths and girls.

In his remarks, Secretary of the Foundation, Prof. Michael Adeyeye, described the initiative as a veritable strategy to give traditional rulers a meaningful, measurable, and effective eligibility and competence for constitutional roles in governance.

“The innovative programme will enable us to harness the opportunity provided by the established traditional structure to work with the school systems to prevent and control truancy, increase school enrolment and bring all stakeholders together for overall success of school children,” he stated.