A rejoinder on the article “Who is Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe, everybody is talking about?”which was published in in one of the online news platform has become necessary in view of the shock and alarm this exhilarating title commanded. I was however, less shocked after reading this interesting article as it showcased the full profile of this dynamic young man. His fitness and readiness for the political position which he is aspiring to occupy is not in any doubt, because of his rich educational, professional and political exposures on the local, national and international space. He is a first cousin of my friend Professor Babatunde Tegbe, an Ibadan indigene from Labo area in Ibadan, who retired from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. The Tegbes have their Village locality of origin as Akiode via Olorunda in Ona-Ara Local Government Area of Oyo State and they belong to the St. David’s Cathedral Church, Kudeti, Ibadan.
On a further look at the controversial article and the buzz on Olasunkanmi,was the erroneous mis-categorization,of Olasunkanmi as not being one of us, as an indigenous Ibadanman! Originally, the OGUNTEGBES (Ogun is worthy of being worshiped) now the TEGBES were from Labo area of Ibadan. One of the Tegbes, Pa Emmanuel Layiwola Tegbe was my late father’s contemporary and friend. He was also our family’s accomplished photographer of old, the Victory Photo Studio, Bere, Ibadan.
Fortunately, his first son Babatunde, attended Awe High School, while I attended Fiditi Grammar School and we carried on with our friendship from High School on to The School of Agriculture and till date. He, TSB Tegbe is today a Professor of Animal Science and it was in their Labo Residence, where my friend’s father and mother lived until they passed on to glory. Professor Tegbe is also a nephew of Pa TSB Aribisala, an Ibadan indigene and former Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Western Nigeria.
When my friend was in Awe High School, he resided with his Uncle Pa Joseph Adejimi Tegbe, who happened to be from the family stock of the Oguntegbes who lived in Oyo. Joseph Olasunkami Tegbe is one of the children (last born) of this Uncle Joseph Adejimi Tegbe of the Oyo branch,who was the proprietor of Josie andSons Bookshop, Oyo.
On a lighter mode, we as children used to make fun of my Friend as Babatunde ‘Oguntegbe’ and we had fun pulling his legs, taunting him. It became the fad those days to clip of from names, subscripts/postscripts like OGUN, OSHUN, SHANGO, OYA, and ODU etc. which refer to some deitiesfrom names as Christianity advanced in Nigeria. This is why today names like:
SHODE was converted to OLUDE. OGUNTEGBE was converted to TEGBE. OSHUNBUNMI was converted to OLUBUNMI. SHANGOTOLA was converted to OLUTOLA OYAGBEMI was converted to OLUGBEMI. ODULANA was converted to OLULANA. SHORINMADE was converted to OLURINMADE
The former variations and adaptations of the idolatry insertions as prefixes and suffixes have been transformed to give Christianly meanings to names, by the contemporary Christians. This is the explanation, just to cast some light to the genealogy or root of the name formerly known as OGUNTEGBE which has become what we now know simply as TEGBE. Further, there exists some few individuals, even in Tegbe family, who refused to change from the original OGUNTEGBE (Ogun to wa gbe). Any one who is in doubt should go to LABO and ask for the family of Tegbe, the popular photographers of the 1940s to 1960s.
In conclusion, the Tegbe family is a Bonafide Ibadan family, with root from Labo. A close look at Olasunkanmi, and the other Tegbe/Oguntegbe offsprings will convince the sceptics that this family is one and the same stock, whether in the US, Lagos, Oyo or in Ibadan. Following the retirement of Pa Adejimi Tegbe from the CMS Bookshop System, he established his own Josie and Sons Bookshop in Oyo since 1955 till he passed on in 2002. This Pa Adejimi TEGBE, is the father of Olasunkanmi of Labo, Ibadan brand/origin.
Prof Adekunle Akinyemi writes from Pikesville, Maryland, USA. He is the President/CEO of Ceezek Foundation Inc. He can be reached via: akinyemia7@gmail.com.
