•Says he is a firm believer in Almighty Allah
+ Why he uprooted 800-year-old deity from Iwo
The paramount ruler of Iwoland and Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdulrasheed Akanbi, has declared that his mission is to move his people in the ancient town from darkness to light.
The monarch stated that this explains why he uprooted all deities in his kingdom, noting he is a happy believer in one God.
Oba Abdulrasheed made this remark during an interview with Muslim News in Mina, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on the sidelines of the 2024 Hajj.
The prominent Yoruba monarch in Southwest Nigeria is one of the over 1.8 million pilgrims that performed hajj, a vital pillar of Islam in Saudi Arabia, this year.
He has been a firm and vocal voice in condemning the worship of deities, which is a common trend in Yorubaland.
He disclosed in the live interview with Muslim News that his participation in this year’s hajj under Dr. Bilal Sirajudeen Al-Asrau-led Inaayatullah Travels and Tours Limited further underlines his commitment to Islam and the worship of one God (Allah).
“I want to move my people from darkness into light and that is why I removed all deities. It is not about worshipping god of the sun, god of thunder. It is to worship just one God. It is confusing to say you want to worship other gods,” Oluwo said in the interview.
He noted that he uprooted an 800-year-old deity to stop his people from living in fear because it was believed to been responsible for killing community folks.
“I removed an 800-year-old deity that they said was killing our people. Why will a deity want to save our people and it is killing? Something that would save you shouldn’t be killing you; it means we are living in fear,” he said.
God is indivisible – Oluwo
The Oluwo affirmed the oneness of God irrespective of the various names adopted by different cultures and societies.
According to him, the worship of deities is born out of ignorance of the old, dark ages.
“In Islamic language, we call God Allah. In Yorubaland we call him Olodumare. In Hausa we call him Ubangiji. In Igbo, they call him Chineke, but it’s the same one God.
“When you talk about deity worship, it is universal. It is ignorance of the old dark, ages and people don’t know. Now we know. One God that connects the whole world, to China, India, Indonesia, anywhere it is one God.
“I am happy to be among the believers of one God. Jesus (Prophet Isa), Abraham, Moses, all the way to Adam, were believers of one God. So, our forefathers, Oduduwa, were believers of one God. All these deities that we have now, they worshipped one God. Sango worshipped God Almighty. Ogun worshipped God Almighty. Oduduwa worshipped God Almighty. Oduduwa did not worship any deity except one God which in Arabic means Allah.
“Deity worshipping is of the dark ages; slavery and we are not slaves. Worshipping of one God is the supreme. To be protected, to be greater in life, to have more wisdom, only through him (one God) you have direct access. If I want to go through a deity, will I go through the deity of Taiwan? Does he know me? If I want to go through Ogun (god of Iron). Ogun is from Ekiti, not Iwo. How can I be praying to an Ekiti man who doesn’t know me.
“Ogun will always take care of his people there before he even takes care of the people he doesn’t know. Sango is from Oyo. Why will an Iwo man worship an Oyo man? So, we all go to one God Almighty and I came here to serve that God.”
Urges Nigerians to eschew worship of deities
Oba Akanbi urged Nigerians to eschew the worship of deities and rely solely on God for the country to be able to harness its resources and achieve the level of development in Saudi Arabia.
“May God Bless Nigeria the way he blessed Saudi. The highest blessing is to know one God. This is the only country where people come in the time of Hajj. We will never be poor if we go back to one God Almighty. When you have one God you would never miss the right path,” he said.
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