“All females are forbidden to be seen outside” on Tuesday – Ikorodu Monarch says ahead of ORO

Ahead of the Magbo festival scheduled for Tuesday, May 8, all female residents of Ikorodu have been asked to stay indoors.

Kabiru Shotobi, the Ayangbure of Ikorodu, traditional ruler of the town, said tradition forbids females to step out of their homes or move around town on the said day which he says is the “Oro Day”.

• WHAT IS ORO FESTIVAl?

The Oro festival is an event celebrated by towns and settlements of Yoruba origin. It is an annual traditional festival of patriarchal nature, celebrated only by male descendants who are paternal natives to the specific locations where the particular event is taking place.

During the festival, females and non-natives stay indoors as oral history has it that Oro must not be seen by women and non-participating people. It is believed that a female who sees the night-time procession may die or suffer barrenness.

Oro is a traditional festival celebrated in Yoruba communities.

In a letter addressed to the chairman of the management boards of the Ikorodu town hall, Shotobi advised strict compliance with the warning.

“This is to notify you of the above-mentioned festival which is slated for Tuesday, 8 May 2018, according to tradition all females are forbidden to be seen outside their homes or move around the town on this date which is ORO DAY,” the letter read.

“Your cooperation towards the success of the festival will be appreciated. Thank you in anticipation and God bless.”

Residents of the area have called on the state government to stop the Oro festival in the area or restrict it to midnight, complaining that it stalls commercial and educational activities during the day.