Ibadan, Oyo State | August 25, 2025
Former Governor of Oyo State and Olubadan-designate, Oba Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja, has called on family compound heads (Mogajis) and community leaders in Ibadan not to abandon their ancestral homes but to renovate and inhabit them in order to promote urban renewal and reduce social vices.
Ladoja made the appeal on Sunday at his Ondo Street residence in Bodija, Ibadan, while receiving hundreds of Mogajis who visited to congratulate him on his emergence as the next Olubadan of Ibadanland.
In a statement issued by his media aide, Adeola Oloko, the monarch-in-waiting noted that many Mogajis had relocated to affluent neighborhoods such as Bodija, Oluyole, Iyaganku, Jericho, Akobo, or even abroad, leaving their family compounds neglected. He stressed that these compounds could be made more habitable through investment and rehabilitation, thereby reducing drug abuse and other social challenges in the communities.
“Some Mogajis have not convened family meetings for years to discuss developmental activities since they were installed. We must return to our roots and make our ancestral homes functional and respectable again,” Ladoja said.
The Olubadan-designate revealed that he had already renovated his own family house at Isale-Osi and pledged to continue visiting it occasionally after his coronation, describing the move as leading by example.
Ladoja’s appeal comes as Ibadan prepares for his coronation as the 44th Olubadan, following the passing of Oba Lekan Balogun in July 2025.