Former President Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has urged Nigerians, especially those with children abroad, to teach their wards Yoruba language and culture so they do not lose their identity in a foreign land.

Obasanjo, who emphasised the importance of cultural heritage, said that Yoruba people need to familiarise their young ones in the diaspora with their roots to enable them to connect with their culture and traditions.

He said teaching children Yoruba language and culture is the only legacy parents can leave behind, adding that it would not cause them to lose their identity and roots.

He spoke on Saturday at the 26th Edition of Odun Omo Oluwo 2025 with the theme: ” Awaken the Owu Spirit,” held at Ọba Adeleye Park, Sokori, Ori-Omi, Abeokuta, Ogun State.”

Our culture is the totality of our way of life. If somebody abuses me by saying that I don’t have a culture, I will fight that person because what that person said is that I don’t have a way of life.

It is only our culture that makes us different from other people. Let us elevate our culture, which is the greatest legacy we can leave for our children when we get old and when we die.

“There is nothing that can replace our culture. I have a professor friend who said his children should not speak Yoruba. When they went abroad and wrote letters to their father, what they said in the letter is that the white men always asked for their culture, but their father did not teach them about it,” he said.Speaking, the state governor, Dapo Abiodun, who was represented by his deputy, Engineer Noimot Salako- Oyedele, called on sons and daughters of Owu Kingdom to invest in their community and the state in order to create jobs and improve the state’s economy.

According to him, doing so would align with the ISEYA Mantra of the governor.”As we celebrate this year’s festival, let it be a call on sons and daughters of Owu, both at home and abroad, to invest in the growth of their homeland. You must always remember that, no matter where destiny takes you, Owu remains your home, your identity and your pride.

“Let us pass to the next generation the virtue of discipline, honesty, hard work and unity.

May the Owu Kingdom continue to prosper, and may our culture continue to inspire unity and economic hope,” Abiodun noted.Earlier, the Olowu of Owu Kingdom, Ọba Saka Matemilola, thanked dignitaries, including Obasanjo, Abiodun, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, the Senator representing Ogunwest Senatorial District, Solomon Adeola Yayi, and traditional rulers, as well as sons and daughters of Owu, for their contributions to the development of the community.