Friday, 11 October 2024

LISABI AGBONGBO AKALA

Lisabi Agbongbo Akala is a hero of the Egba people, who are native occupiers of Abeokuta, a Yoruba town 77 kilometers from Lagos. Lisabi was a giant man who lived in Igbehin but he was originally from another Egba village called Itoku. He conspired to achieve independence for Egba people from Oyo Empire. The Oyo Empire was ruled by the Alaafin, the Oyo presided over an empire that spanned most of present day Yoruba lands and stretched to Dahomey in Benin Republic. Alaafin’s representatives to Egba village were extremely oppressive creating resentment against Oyo Empire and the Alaafin.

Egba people were made of farmers so to achieve his aim of building an army, Lisabi first developed societal mutual system known as the EgbeAro, this society will grow to become a fundamental unit of Egbaland. In this society each farmer members enjoyed the cooperation of one another in cultivating their farmlands. Lisabi always helped other members in their farmlands but never requested for their help on his own farmland passing up his opportunity many times. His plan was to evolve the group into a structured and functional military society; he eventually achieved this forming a militia group. A meeting house of the militia he formed was built in each Egba village from which an insurrection was planned

In 1775, a full scale revolt was in motion. Lisabi beckoned his people to revolt, after murdering the Alaafin’s representative in his own village of Igbehin, about six hundred empire agents were killed. Anticipating a reprisal from Oyo, Lisabi summoned his companions, removed women and children to a ravine called OgbunMelegun and hid himself and his small army in another part of the same ravine. He took the army who came to Igbehin by surprise and defeated them, thus setting up his chiefdom never to pay tribute to the Oyo Empire ever again.

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