Charles Akinsete reviews the historical accounts of Ido land written by Honourable Oludare Adesina, submitting that the author, in bringing to limelight the history of Ido, emphasises the significance of the century-old socio-cultural values of Ido people.

One of the assertions of the Western world, by European scholars such as Joseph Conrad, is that Africans have no culture, intellect and history.  And when the like of Professor Chinua Achebe, through his widely acknowledged counter-hegemonic theses, reexamined these claims, the argument further shifted grounds to the limitations of literary documentation of African cultures and histories.

There is, in fact, no gainsaying that many an African history/culture is lost as a result of lack of proper documentation or heavy reliance on human memory (mnemonic aid). With the advent of the alphabetic writing and the mastery of the European languages, many African scholars over centuries have been making attempts to salvage the socio-historical and cultural narratives of many African cultures and sub-cultures. Among others writers, who recently joined in the fray of promoting these indigenous values, include Oludare Adesina.

His recently published book, IDO: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, reveals an astonishing history of the Ido land and its people. The author, in a simple accessible language, traces the history of Ido land, bringing to perspective the role of certain people, whose actions and inactions, somewhat shaped the identity and location of the Ido land. He also focuses on the present status quo of the Ido land and how far the land has developed. As a good writer should, Adesina equally postulates on what the future will and can hold for the town, if only its teeming indigenes would rise up to the challenges facing its socio-economic and cultural development.

The importance of history cannot be overemphasised. As the     author puts it succinctly in the very first chapter of the book, “we cannot stay away from history. It offers the only extensive evidential base for the explanation and analysis of how societies function... History helps us to understand the growth and development of the society we live in... History helps us to be human”. Therefore, the author reviews the history of Ido in the second and third chapters, which forms the Part I of the book.

The Part II, which contains chapters four, five and six of the book, reveals information about the state of Ido town in contemporary times.

It also revolves round the historical development of Ido Local Government Area, the towns within the area as well as the personalities whose actions contributed in no small measure to the development of Ido land.

Part III, which contains the last chapter of the book, harps on the challenges facing Ido presently. The author, however, foregrounds the need for Ido land to transform positively and should be in competition with other developed towns across the world. Advocating for a better tomorrow for Ido, Adesina strongly opines the need for all and sundry to join hands in making sure the town becomes a force to be reckoned with in terms of infrastructural and human development.

“The future of Ido, in its entirety, is in the hands of the people. No foreigner will come and transform this local government. We have to do it ourselves,” he said.

Inasmuch as the book would still have go through more editing, it contains basic information which helps to put into perspective the location, origin and developmental rate of Ido land.

There is no doubt that this work is a landmark achievement in terms of documentation of the history of Ido land and its people. It is good handout for students and scholars whose research work may fall into such range.

Adesina has, indeed, set a good example for other local governments to follow in terms of the preservation of some parts of Africa’s heritage. The onus lies on more visionary leaders to toe his line in proving to the world and other sceptics that Africa, indeed, has thriving historical moments and cultural values.