Globacom on Sunday marked 20 years of sponsoring the Ojude Oba Festival in Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, with a grand celebration that saw the company giving out cars, tricycles, power generators and other items to lucky winners.
The 2025 edition of the cultural festival attracted dignitaries including Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun; minister of arts, culture, tourism & creative economy, Hannatu Musawa and the Ogbeni Oja of Ijebuland, Sunny Kuku.
They joined the Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Adetona, to witness colourful displays by nearly 100 Regberegbe age-grade groups competing in elegance and cultural presentation.
In his goodwill message, Governor Abiodun praised the Awujale for his “purposeful leadership, progressive vision and unwavering commitment to the upliftment of Ijebuland and the entire Ogun State.”
On her part, minister Musawa described the festival as a shining testament to the “richness of our cultural diversity and the resilience of our traditional institutions in preserving history for future generations.”
The festival, which follows the Eid celebrations, also featured the Balogun families parading their horses in homage to the Awujale—a tradition that continues to uphold the values of loyalty and honour in Ijebu culture.
As part of its 20th consecutive sponsorship, Globacom celebrated the Ijebu people by distributing premium Basmati rice to all Regberegbe groups and rewarding several attendees with valuable items.
Two brand new cars were given away along with four tricycles, power generators, sewing machines and grinding machines.
One of the car recipients, Opeoluwa Osisanwo, was nominated by the Ijebu community for his leadership as secretary of the Ojude Oba Festival planning committee.
The 52-year-old member of Egbe Tobalase Okunrin expressed his gratitude, saying, “I never knew people were watching me. I was just serving my land of birth to the best of my ability.”
He also thanked the Awujale and other committee members “for allowing me to work with them not minding the fact that I am the youngest among them.”
The second car winner, Idowu Olabisi, a trader from Ijebu Igbo, was visibly emotional upon receiving the keys. “Globacom indeed gave me a spectacular gift at Eid period,” she said.
“I had no inkling I would get such a car at this time.”
Winners of the brand-new tricycles included Hassan Toheeb, a businessman from Ijebu Itele; Adenike Olanrewaju, a plank seller at Molipa, Ijebu Ode; Gazal Temitope, a trader from Olisa, Ijebu Ode; and Lawal Tosin, a carpenter in Ijebu Ode.
With two decades of consistent support, Globacom has not only become a central part of the Ojude Oba Festival’s success story but also deepened its ties with the Ijebu community through impactful gestures and cultural appreciation.
