Okukenu Sagbua (c. 1790–1862)
Okukenu Sagbua was a Yoruba Egba chief and the first Alake of Egbaland. He was also a founding member of the Ogboni of Egbaland.
Life
Okukenu was born in the 1790s to Ọ̀ṣọ́ of Igbein in Egba Ake and Matiku of Imo, both towns in Egba Ake. His maternal lineage traced back to Adesomi, daughter of Lukoye, son of Laarun, an 18th-century Alake of the Egba. He was also related to Deliyi, Balogun of Ijemo.
After the Yoruba Civil Wars, the Egba refugees settled in Abeokuta under Olumo Rock. The Ogboni councils were reconstituted, and Okukenu, formerly a military titleholder (Eso Ikoyi), became a civil chief.
Following the death of Chief Shodeke in 1845, Okukenu and other chiefs ruled Abeokuta jointly, a time marked by anarchy and slave trade tensions. After the death of the Losi of Ake, Okukenu was chosen as Alake and crowned on 8 August 1854. He became the first Alake to rule in Abeokuta.
Though his rule faced opposition from war and trade chiefs, he was supported by Bashorun Apati, his former rival turned prime minister. Okukenu died on 31 August 1862, after which his cousin Bashorun Shomoye acted as regent.
Marriage and Family
Okukenu had many wives and children. One of his wives, Efunwunmi, was previously married to the Baase of Igbein and had a son, Arikuola, by him. Okukenu forcefully took her as his wife. Their son, Gbadebo, born in June 1854, became Gbadebo I, Alake of Egbaland.
Descendants
Okukenu’s great-grandson, Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo III, is the current Alake of Egbaland.