Copyright tribuneonlineng
Bisi Akande, Ooni, others expectd at lecture series in his memory THE Ekiti Council of Elders has announced plans to immortalise the late Chief Joel Babatola, a foremost nationalist and close ally of the first Premier of the Western region of Nigeria, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, through an annual lecture series in his honour. Addressing journalists in Ado-Ekiti, the chairman, Board of Trustees of the Joel Babatola Annual Lectures (JOBAL), Olufemi Adewumi, said the series will commence its maiden edition on November 7, 2025 in Ekiti State. Adewumi, a retired Head of Service in Ekiti, explained that the initiative was conceived to celebrate the life and legacy of Chief Babatola, who served as a parliamentary secretary to Chief Awolowo during Nigeria’s self-government era in the 1950s, a role comparable to that of a Chief of Staff to a modern-day governor. He stressed that Babatola, who died at 96, was also the pioneer chairman of the Ekiti Council of Elders, where he contributed immensely to social and political development across the SouthWest. The objectives of the annual lecture, themed: ‘Governance, structural reforms and economic landscape of Nigeria in the 21st century,’ according to him, are to stimulate intellectual reflections on cultural and political challenges in contemporary society, inspire patriotism among descendants of Yorubaland and honour the contributions of exemplary forebears whose values shaped Yoruba identity and governance. He added that the maiden edition, will feature former governor of Osun State and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Bisi Akande, as the guest lecturer and will attract dignitaries from across Yorubaland, including the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi as the Royal Father of the Day; Ekiti State governor, Biodun Oyebanji and the Ewi of Ado-Ekiti, Oba Rufus Adejugbe. Other expected guests include chairmen of councils of Obas across Ekiti and other Oodua states, the president of the Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) and several distinguished personalities from academia, politics and culture. Adewumi said, “On account of his people-oriented services during his life-time, the lecture series have been instituted by the Ekiti Council of Elders (ECE) to achieve the following significant objectives: “To provide and stimulate reflections as well as discussions on the prospects and challenges inherent in an unfolding cultural epoch in which literacy is the key and defining characteristic. “To inspire patriotism in us as Oodua descendants, in service to our collective well-being in the light of the preceding objective.” Babatola was the minister of Home Affairs and Information in the Western Region of Nigeria under Chief Samuel Ladoke Akintola during the First Republic in 1960. He was also a Commissioner where he represented Ekiti Divisions in the Government of Western State of Nigeria in 1971 under Brigadier General Oluwole Rotimi and was the Chairman of Ondo State Housing Corporation and held this position during the second republic of old Ondo State between 1979 and 1983. He was also a patron of Ekiti Council of Elders and Government Elders Advisory Committee and inaugurated by former Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State in 2012.
