At the same time, investigation has revealed that one of the things that made Oje tick is the legendary crocodile at the Delesolu Compound, which was brought to the compound 73 years ago. The crocodile has attracted thousands of local and international tourists to Oje. Crocodile is known as ‘Ooni’ in Yoruba, ‘Kada’ in Hausa and ‘Agu iyi’ or in Igbo.
According to experts, a crocodile is a large carnivorous reptile that lives near water, and has a long thick-skinned body and a broad head with strong jaws. It is native to tropical or subtropical regions.
Wikipedia, a free online encyclopaedia, says the word crocodile comes from the ancient Greek ‘crocodilos’. Crocodiles do not have sweat glands and release heat through their mouths. They often sleep with their mouths open and may pant like a dog.
The animal is able to absorb heat through the amour, as a network of small capillaries allows blood through the scales to absorb heat. Crocodiles are polyphyodonts; they are able to replace each of their teeth up to 50 times in their 35 to 75-year lifespan.
The crocodile at Delesolu Compound is not different from other crocodiles in their natural environment. It also has smooth skin on its belly and side and its dorsal surface is armoured with large osteoderms. Research revealed that crocodiles can survive for months without food as a result of their slow metabolisms.post by expdonaloaded.blogspot.com..
Nigerian Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, and Oyo State governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, are among the tourists to the Delesolu Compound. The duo jointly paid a visit to the compound during electioneering for the 2015 general elections by the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The Mogaji of Delesolu Compound, Alhaji Raufu Yesufu Delesolu said: “They arrived at our compound 5p.m. Governor Ajimobi did not look at the crocodile, he just threw a live chicken at it. But Prof Osinbajo looked at it before he threw the live chicken at the animal. But they did not do it as a sacrifice, but as a way to feeding helpless animal. It is just like when you go to the zoological garden and you throw banana at monkeys without any strings attached to it. The crocodile has brought good things to our compound. It has given us a good name. I thank God for this.”
In the same vein, the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) during the 2015 general elections in Oyo State, Senator Teslim Folarin, who is a former Senate Leader, was said to have paid a visit to the Delesolu Compound before the April 11, 2015 polls to catch a glimpse of the crocodile. Wife of a former governor of Oyo State, Alhaja Mutiyat Ladoja, according to the Mogaji of Delesolu Compound, was also attracted to the compound by the crocodile before the 2003 general elections in Nigeria.
Fielding questions on the speculations that many political office seekers usually visit the Delesolu Compound to make special requests to the crocodile to assist them on their ambitions, Mogaji Yesufu said: “It is true that many of them do come. Before the previous general elections, they came. But I did not see their coming as something that has to do with idolatry or that you would always get desired answers once you ask the crocodile for something.
“Many political office seekers came before the 2015 general elections and made requests to the crocodile, but they eventually lost the elections. Where do you want to place that? This also boils down to the fact that the people who visit the crocodile for any request must do so with good intentions, not to harm their fellow human beings. Anyone who comes with evil intention would pray amiss.”
The popularity of the crocodile prompted Saturday Sun to visit Delesolu Compound in Oje earlier in the week to find out what is special about the animal. This reporter observed that the small house where the animal is kept at the frontage of the Delesolu compound. The wall of the house is chest-tall and tourists usually look at the crocodile from the top of the wall.
The animal laid on the floor of its house with a gentle mien. It only opened its eyes and slightly raised its head when camera was focused on it. But it did not move away from its position. A slightly deep water reservoir that has four corners was sighted at one side of the shed.
The Mogaji of Delesolu Compound, Alhaji Raufu Yesufu Delesolu, who is the Aare Egbe Omo Olubadan of Ibadanland, told Saturday Sun that many of the visitors to the compound usually throw live chickens or live he-goats/she-goats to the crocodile and they would watch as the animal would devour the preys.
He explained that the current crocodile at the compound was bought by his father, Alhaji Laisi Delesolu in 1942 from Akeukereke Compound at Oke-Ofa Baba Isale, Ibadan. But it is not the first crocodile in the compound. The first one captured by their progenitor, he said, died in 1939 after it was bred for more than 100 years. The first crocodile, he noted, was captured at Owobale Village near Erunmu in Ibadan. Both crocodiles, according to him, attracted local and foreign tourists to the Delesolu Compound.
He said breeding of the animal did not have anything to do with idolatry, but a sort of promoting the culture and tradition of the family. Apart from that, the crocodile also has spiritual protection for the family against smallpox, which is a highly contagious disease caused by a poxvirus and marked by high fever and the formation of scar-producing pustules.
“Native doctors usually direct their clients, looking for the fruits of the womb to come and make a request to God through the crocodile and many of them have received answers to their prayers. Also, native doctors usually request for water from the crocodile’s house for special concoction to bathe those that are sick. Apart from that, we don’t worship the crocodile. It is just a culture in the family right from the time of our forefathers,” he said.
But how have they been collecting water from the crocodile’s house without the animal attacking them? The Mogaji said: “We used to tie cup to a long stick and we would throw a live chicken to the other side of the house for the crocodile. When it is devouring the chicken, we would quickly collect the water with the device. But on some occasions, the animal would wrestle to collect the stick from us.
“But we have made it easier to collect the water now. We have fixed a pipe to the crocodile’s house. It is like a tap. We can lock and unlock it. We now collect the water for visitors that need the water from the tap.”
The Mogaji, who was born in 1943, also said the crocodile lays eggs at regular intervals. The eggs, he said, are usually bigger than duck’s eggs. But he said it was a mystery to him that the crocodile lays eggs despite the fact that it is the only one in the house and other crocodile has been mating it. The crocodile lays up to 10 or 15 eggs, and it started laying eggs some 50 years ago, he said.
Saturday Sun also sought clarifications from the Mogaji of Delesolu Compound on the insinuation that members of Delesolu family usually place their newborn babies in the crocodile’s house in order to know if the child is a bastard or not. It was said that if the animal does not eat the baby, the child is not a bastard.
But the Mogaji burst into laughter when the question was thrown at him, describing the insinuation as a blatant lie. He contended that a member of the family, who contested the stool of Mogaji with him actually peddled the rumour, saying the contender also claimed that the crocodile came to greet his mother the day he was born. He noted that it would be a suicide mission for any member of the family to engage in such practice, while saying such a thing never happened and it would not.
“The practice in the family is that every new wife into the family must fetch water and empty it in the water reservoir in the crocodile’s house. Also, when we used to observe masquerade festivals, every woman in the family would gather and fill the crocodile’s house with water. But we don’t observe the festival again.
But who founded Delesolu Compound and how did the family start breeding crocodile? Raufu provided answers to the questions. He stated that the progenitor of the family, Delesolu and his younger brother, Ladefe, migrated from Ijeru in Ogbomoso zone of Oyo State to Ibadan close to 200 years. The family also has a compound in Ijeru, where another crocodile is being bred.
The duo, he said, hailed from Oje-Ile. But the community got desolated after a war that rocked the area. The desolation made Delesolu and Ladefe to migrate to Ijeru in Igbomoso. They were warriors. They also left Ijeru close to 200 years ago on a war expedition to Ibadan. On getting to Ibadan, they first settled at Balogun Oderinlo Compound at Oja’ba. The duo also fought at the warfront with Balogun Oderinlo, one of the greatest war generalissimos of Ibadan.
“But whenever Delesolu came back from the warfront, all the children in the family would have been dead as a result of strange disease attacking them. After consulting with his native doctors, he planned to relocate from Ibadan to another part of Yorubaland. He told Balogun Oderinlo his plan and he asked him why.
“Delesolu explained that the death of his children informed his decision to relocate from Ibadan. Then, Oderinlo advised him not to go far as a parcel of land would be given to him in Ibadan. They have him a place called Oke Oje. He settled at the place and it remains so till today.
“But the land was not given to Delesolu free of charge. The Ibadan elders then collected from him 11 horses, 11 slaves and a lot of cowries. Some of the elders present at the handing-over of the land to Delesolu, as gathered, included Chief Opeagbe, Iba Oluyole, Chief Foko and Chief Babalola.
Checks by Saturday Sun revealed that Delesolu quarters used to be the headquarters of the 131 quarters in Oje neighbourhood. It also served as a payment centre for tax payers when payment of taxes was introduced by the colonial masters before Nigeria’s independence.
The Mogaji further stated that the crocodile had escaped from its house once in the last 73 years, but it was recaptured in a ditch at Ojo’badan quarters and brought back to its house.
He recalled that an incident occurred many years ago that could have put an end to breeding of crocodile in the compound. A boy entered into the crocodile’s house. But to their utmost surprise, the animal did not attack the boy and has not attacked anybody till date.
But it is a taboo for those that hail from Delesolu Compound to eat crocodile meat. It was, however, not in the record that anyone of them had defiled the taboo. When the first crocodile at the compound died in 1939, it was buried in a special way. The Mogaji said another crocodile would be acquired for the family whenever the current one dies.
“It is only one crocodile that must be in our family compound at a time and only one road must lead to the Delesolu Compound. It is my duty to take care of the crocodile as the Mogaji of the compound. I must say that there are other two families in Agbeni, Ibadan that also breed crocodiles.
“The first crocodile at Delesolu Compound died in 1939, four years before I was born. I was born in 1943. I was told that gunshots were used to announce its death by the hunters. It was later shrouded in white clothes, necessary sacrifices were made, and it was buried like a human being. The place it was buried is known as ‘Laka’.
“Laka is a place where stillborn babies were buried in those days. If you get to the place where the first crocodile was buried, a storey building has been erected on it. If you are not told, you would not know that it was the resting place of the first crocodile. Whenever the present crocodile also dies, we will just bury it without any fanfare and acquire another one,” Mogaji Yesufu said.
Click photo to download; but you lied to me by Expdona aka finish gravity
Expdonaloaded blog;Click the photo to download aboki wey d suya by Expdona aka finish gravity
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