OONI OF IFE OBA OKUNADE SIJUWADE JOINS HIS ANCESTORS

OONI OF IFE OBA OKUNADE SIJUWADE JOINS HIS ANCESTORS
HIS LAST MOMENT REVEALED
The Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade(Olubuse II) has joined his ancestors. The first-class monarch passed away yesterday, July 28, 2015 in a London hospital. Recall in 2013, there were fears over the Ooni’s health when he was flown out of the country for medical attention for over 1 month.

Oba Sijuwade died in London on Tuesday evening, at around 7pm. He was aged 85. The royal father passed on at Saint Mary’s Hospital, Paddington, London, United Kingdom (U.K), where he was being treated. He was reportedly flown out on Thursday in an air ambulance for treatment at the London hospital when his health reportedly suffered a relapse. St. Mary’s is a general acute hospital that diagnoses and treats a range of adult and paediatric conditions. The hospital is one of the four Major Trauma Centres (MTCs) in London, acting as the hub for the northwest London trauma network and a vital part of the London-wide trauma system which connects a series of trauma units and rehabilitation facilities. It pioneered the use of robotic surgery, including the UK’s first da Vinci robot for keyhole surgery. Two of his oloris (wives) – Olori Moni and Olori Odun – were with him in the UK at the time of his passage.

Alayeluwa Oba Okunade Sijuwade was born on 1 January 1930. He became the fiftieth traditional ruler or Ooni of Ife in 1980, taking the regnal name Olubuse II. He was crowned on 6 December 1980 in a ceremony attended by the Emir of Kano, Oba of Benin, Amayanabo of Opobo and Olu of Warri, as well as by representatives of the Queen of England. Oba Sijuwade was born on 1 January 1930 in Ile-Ife to the Ogboru ruling house, grandson of the Ooni Sijuwade Adelekan Olubuse I.

He studied at Abeokuta Grammar School and Oduduwa College in Ile-Ife. He worked for three years in his father’s business, then for two years with the Nigerian Tribune, before attending Northampton College in the United Kingdom to study business management.

By the age of 30 he was a manager in Leventis, a Greek-Nigerian conglomerate. In 1963 he became Sales Director of the state-owned National Motor in Lagos. After spotting a business opportunity during a 1964 visit to the Soviet Union, he formed a company to distribute Soviet-built vehicles and equipment in Nigeria, which became the nucleus of a widespread business empire.