Friday hosted by the indigenes of Ile-Ife, Osun State,
resident in the United States.
The monarch, with his entourage, was received at the J.F.
Kennedy Airport, New York, by leaders of Ife indigenes
and other Nigerians in the US on Thursday.
A New York City Senator, Kevin Parker, and the Brooklyn
Borough President, Eric Adams, said the city had secured
a proclamation to declare Monday, June 13, 2016 as
Yoruba Day.
They said the action was to honour the monarch.
According to a statement, the Ooni has also been billed to
visit President Barack Obama at the White House, where
he will receive an award.
The statement added that a number of programmes had
been scheduled to honour the traditional ruler while in the
country.
As part of activities in his visit to the US, the Ooni will on
Sunday, June 12, 2016, be the Special Guest of Honour at
the prestigious Odunde festival.
The festival, which promotes the culture of the Yoruba
race, was created in 1975 by Lois Fernandez and Ruth
Arthur, and attracts about 500,000 people annually.
The event will provide an opportunity for the monarch to
interact with the over 3,000 Ife indigenes in the US on
how to develop Ile-Ife.
The statement said, “On the same day, the Museum of the
Contemporary African Diaspora Arts will receive the
monarch in a private reception as well as a public forum
session.
“Expected at the event will be Brooklyn Borough President
and a New York City Public Advocate, Leticia James. The
monarch will then move to the Mid-West and other parts
of the country to attend economic and leadership
summits before being received by President Barack
Obama through The White House Office of Faith-based
and Neighbourhood Partnerships.”
The Chairman of the Grand Reception Planning
Committee and one of the leaders of Ife Ooye North
America group, Chief Olubunmi Awopileda, said, “All Ife
natives in the US are excited and energised for this
epochal occasion. It will be an occasion to showcase our
very rich culture with our king as the symbol.”
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