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Ipe akoko
• Government

• Olupe Oba Francis Apata Makanjuola jp II •Motto(s): Omo olupe aijedun

•Demonym(s)omo Ibia ukpe Ipe-Akoko (Ipe or Ukpe for short), city in southwestern Nigeria, is located in the South Western oil rich Ondo State. Ikare is about 110 km from Akure, the Ondo State capital. The city is the biggest townf Akoko south-East Local Government. The city is a trading point for the production of Cocoa in the surrounding area. The paramount traditional ruler of Ipe is the Olupe of Ipe akoko. The olupe have several other chiefs administering the various Quarters. The Quarters in Ipe include Iba,ugbe,oshinodo, uwi, Ilegbe, Ipaso, okua, igbede, Itoto. Ipe-Akoko is famous throughout West Africa for its decorative pottery.

The city is located in the Yoruba cultural region and has a substantial Christian, Jehovah Witness and Muslim population with several Churches, worshipping halls and Mosques. The architectural style of the city incorporates both Portuguese and Arabic styles.

• Education

Ipe is home to several educational institutions in Ondo State. Notable among which are; Ipe high school Ipe akoko ; olawale international group of school ipe,, Awodua community high school Ipe akoko,Dynmic group of school Ipe akoko and so many government and private-owned Primary and Secondary Schools. Ipe sons and daughters are well educated and are presently holding national and international positions. • Markets Ipe is a chief commercial city in Ondo state with several industrial base and markets which include; Oja-Oba Market, Oja ale Market, Ipe Market, and several other markets in adjoining Villages. It is a super city for successful transportation business especially by private individuals. • Inter Ethnic Relationships Ipe though basically a Yoruba ethnic city, is also a covergent place in Ondo State for many ethnic groups in Nigeria namely Igbo,Hausa, Fulani, Ijaw,and so on. The friendly disposition of its natives to visitors and holiday makers, from time immemorial, is perhaps responsible for the growing number of settlers in the city. • Festival Ipe has a rich cultural heritage with exciting festivals every year.The popular new yam festival is the chief festival in Ipe which is celebrated every last Saturday of July. On this day, Ipe sons and daughters both home and abroad come together to celebrate. The festival also features Masquerade parade, Also Itele festival (Maiden Festival)where virgin will paint themselves with Osun (Camwood) and go around the town nude, before converging at a designated point.Igokeagba also known as (Ihare) Festival: A stage in a man life time of a man  that belong to an age group  know as (udeh) age group. This festival is celebrate in every 7years of rotation. Ipe also celebrate Opera, and Egungun festival every year. Islamic festivals such as Eid-Maulud, Eid Fitr, Eid Kabir as well as Christian festivals such as Christmas, Easter and also the New Year Festival every January 1 are celebrated with funfair in Ipe. All these point to the fact that Ipe is a very religious city. • HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF IPE AKOKO Ipe people fought many wars in the past, in fact it was told that Ipe people never eat monkey because they believe, they have a tie with monkeys. In those days, according to the story whenever they went to war the monkeys turned out to help in defeating their enemies. And if you asked any senior citizen in Ipe, he/she will corroborate this, much cannot be said about the younger generation, it seems history is fading away that is why one needs to preserve the history at least for the next generations to come. The monkeys used their tails to hold the local guns, which turn to a stick of broom; the enemies would only see monkeys and not the people. I do not know how true this story was but I want to believe that the people themselves turned to monkeys to protect themselves from the enemies. Till today they still refers to monkeys as their kin The first crowned king of Ipe Akoko was Ajagbi, he was betrayed by his own people when he led them to war as a result of this, he cursed the Ipe peoples that never will they have a king with crown after the statement he sank into the ground with the crown in his head. Water flows out at the exact place where he entered into the ground. Up till today the water is still flowing and it was named Owii. River Owii becomes a sacrilege, it becomes a goddess rivers. Thereafter, another older man became the king in Ipe Akoko he only ruled for six years before he became sick and died. After a year, Obaya became the king, he ruled for many years and one of his two sons was destiny to become the king after him. Again, it was told that lion ran into the house and ran out during the birth of Job the first son born to the king; well what this connotes could not be ascertained. However, the grandfather was made to leave the palace because he committed taboo, he saw the person under masquerade and reveal the secret which was an abominable act to Ipe People, the king was asked to produced his prince for sacrifice. The queen who came from the lineage of Apata, for fear of what the villagers might do to the royal prince she therefore took the prince to her family with the queen’s royal stool. Because the prince cannot be trained outside the royal house, it is forbidden. That marked the beginning of power shift. He stayed with queen’s family until, he turned seventeen he left home for Ondo town and became a steward inside one of the Portuguese ship. He worked and travelled with them until he saved enough to start his own business. His line of business was in building materials, in fact his house was the first house built with roofing sheets in Ipe village. For many years Ipe village remained without having a king, however, king emerged from Apata family of recent, to rule Ipe people. It must be told that history will keep repeating itself as Apata lineage is also entitled to the throne, but nobody could denied it that the queen’s royal stool was taken into Apata house hold to train the prince there. The story still stand today that the queen came from Apata lineage

• Culture celebrated Chegba Festival in commemoration of women who had their first birth without any complications.

The festival is as old as the community which is dated back to the 13th century when aborigines community were said to have migrated from Ile Ife in Osun State.

Highlight of the event was the presentation of what is called the largest bean cakes in the universe by the women being celebrated.

Speaking to newsmen, Oba Francis Apata, the traditional ruler of the community, said that the festival was meant to celebrate women who had given birth to their first children successfully..

Apata explained that it was a way of checkmating women from indulging in promiscuity that could lead to unwanted pregnancy and abortion.

“This Chegba Festival, which started from time immemorial, has been in practice since the origin of this community, and it has always been done primarily by those women who had successful first birth.

“That is, those who did not have stillbirth and abortion, and people would rejoice while their relations would celebrate with them.

“This year, they have invented a traditional bean cake which is the largest and widest you can think of in the whole universe and it can stay for nine days without getting decayed.

“The festival is a celebration of joy with people and we are expanding its scope this year with the introduction of the unique bean cakes,”he said.

The monarch added that the ingredients were sourced locally,saying ‘one wonders how the beans cake could be that large and wide in diameter’. AUTHOR : ADEJUBE JOHN OLUSOLA SMART TEMITOPE