By: Publicity Secretary, Okeparapo
There are moments in the life of a people when something quiet begins to stir with a kind of steady insistence that says: we will not remain the same again. Noise may not be made, but impact will be made.
For Oke Ife, that moment did not arrive with fanfare. It did not come from government offices or distant benefactors. It began, instead, in a place as ordinary and as sacred as the market.
A market built not just with blocks and roofing sheets, but with visionary leadership and unwavering belief.
The Women Who Refused to Wait
When Okeparapo Market was officially opened on December 1, 2025, it carried more than just the promise of commerce. It carried expectation — that this space would become a centre of life, of trade, of daily sustenance for the people of Oke Ife.
But markets do not run on infrastructure alone. They run on people.
And in this case, they ran on women.
Women who showed up each morning with goods that barely stretched, with capital that could not compete, yet with a determination that refused to yield. Even when better-funded traders from surrounding areas began to edge into the system, these women did not retreat. They stayed.
They traded.
They endured.
They kept the market alive.
And somewhere within the community, a question began to take shape:
If they have not abandoned us… can we afford to abandon them?
The Idea That Became a Movement
The answer came in the form of a simple idea — one that would soon reveal itself to be anything but small.
An empowerment scheme.
Not a handout. Not a gesture of sympathy. But a deliberate intervention designed to inject capital directly into the hands of those who needed it most, so that they could stand — not as survivors — but as competitors.
Seventy slots were opened. Contributions were invited. No compulsion. No levy. Just a call — quiet, but clear — to anyone who still believed in what it means to build something together.
And then something began to happen.
The Sound of a Community Responding
Names started appearing.
Then more names.
Then more.
Not in one place. Not from one group. But from across generations, titles, families, and professions — a slow gathering of commitment that soon became impossible to ignore.
At a certain point, it stopped being about money.
It became about participation.
About presence.
About a shared refusal to stand aside.
By the time the window approached its original closing date, something remarkable had already happened:
55 individuals had stepped forward, contributing a total of ₦1,140,000.
Phase 1 Donors (Transparency & Accountability)
Shepherd Osifeko, Olumide Ogunbayo, Elder Otunba Kunle Osifeko, Fr. Hector Osifeko, Prince Bamidele Olukoju, Adedotun Adebambo, Godsknight Jesufeekofunwa, Hon. Tayo Otusanya, Mr. Olufemi Adenrele Adenopo, Ogunmade Oluwakemi, Olatunde Ken Salem Onososen, Chief Olumide Osisami, Iyabo Adebowale Ademokun, Adesegun Amos, Chief S. A. Adebanjo, Mrs. Adeola Adetoro, Mr. Abayomi Mabadeje, Chief O.A. Adenigba, Mrs. C. Adenike Aina, Akeem Badejo, Mr. Olufunsho Okunniwa (Mrs. A.A. Okunniwa, Tajala), Hon. Alhaji Badejo Abiodun, Chief Mukaila Olukoya, Uncle Tunde Omotoye & Siblings, Alhaji Tajudeen Mabadeje, Omoniyi Tiamiyu Oyemade, Tola Sadiku (Okeliwo), Alhaji Wale Badejo, Prince Tosin Kadiri, Mr. Sina Togun (FCA), Rasaq Ganiu Oluwole, Hon. Prince Femi Osunlalu, Prince Bámidélé S. Shitta Adékọ́gà, Anonymous, Oluseyi Oyemade, Deaconess Fawehinmi, Otunba Tade Osisami, Otunba Mrs. Funmi Alebiosu, Hon. Olarenwaju Sunday Odukoya, Col. Adewale Osifeko, Waheed Badejo, Omoba Ademola Dairo, Tunde Oyemade, Abayomi Oyemade Tiamiyu, Elder Adetola Oyemade, Mr. Odunlami Oluwatobi (Tajala), Prince Nurudeen Adeniyi Adekoga, Primate Olusegun Fowora, Princess Oluwabunmi Osifeko, Adedayo Ayodeji Koiki, Mr. Bayo Lasisi, Elder Emmanuel Dele Ogunkoya (Ogunkoya Family), Ọmọba Lékè Adesanya, Ọmọọba Dele Oyemade (Tidesa), Mrs. Kudirat Muritala-Awojobi…
The target had not only been met — it had been surpassed.
And yet, even in that moment of success, the leadership made a decision that revealed something deeper about the effort. Three hours before the donation window closed, the Executive Chairman of Okeparapo, Otunba Barrister Oluwole Onafujabi, added ₦60,000, bringing the total to a remarkable ₦1,200,000—nearly double the initial fundraising goal of ₦700,000!
A Deadline Moved — Not for Urgency, but for Discipline
The donation window was closed earlier than planned.
Not because enthusiasm had faded — but because responsibility had arrived.
The decision, reached unanimously by the Okeparapo Market Committee, was driven by two priorities:
- To create room for proper vetting of applicants and guarantors
- To move swiftly into planning for the 2026 Okeparapo Annual Rally
In other words, the work had begun.
From Collection to Distribution: Where Words Became Reality
Then came the moment that would define everything.
Disbursement.
Not a promise of it. Not a plan for it. But the actual, physical transfer of resources into the hands of the women whose resilience had started this entire journey.
Under Phase 1, the following beneficiaries received support:
- Lameed Titilayo — ₦100,000
- Busari Adeola Dabira — ₦50,000 (currently on hold due to brief illness)
- Salako Abosede — ₦50,000
- Akewusola Abosede — ₦100,000
- Lasisi Aminat Olusola — ₦60,000
- Omoloye Waliyat — ₦60,000
- Ojugbele Taiwo — ₦30,000
- Mrs Adekoya — ₦30,000
Total Disbursed: ₦430,000
Balance: ₦50,000 (to be returned to the association account)
There are figures there, yes. But beyond the numbers lies something harder to measure — the quiet restoration of dignity.
Because to place capital in the hands of a trader is not merely to give money. It is to return possibility.
The Questions That Now Belong to All of Us
And so, the story turns.
From fundraising… to accountability.
From excitement… to expectation.
Because now, the real questions begin — not whispered, but spoken plainly:
Will this system sustain itself?
Will discipline guide distribution and repayment?
Will sentiment be resisted in favour of structure?
These questions are not threats. They are signs of ownership.
This is what it looks like when a community begins to take itself seriously.
A Digital Home for a Living Story
This entire journey — from the first announcement to the latest disbursement — is now being documented on the newly launched Okeparapo website.
Not as an archive, but as a living platform.
A place where sons and daughters of Oke Ife, whether at home or across oceans, can see, follow, and engage with what is happening in real time.
👉🏾 You can read about the launch of this platform here:
OKEPARAPO LAUNCHES WEBSITE
A Word That Must Be Said Properly
On behalf of the founding fathers of Okeparapo Since 1952, all past, present and former Chairmen of Oke Ife Development Association, our Royal Father in “Ife Ijebu” as a whole, our Baales in Oke Ifẹ, Chiefs, High Chiefs, Otunbas, Sons and Daughters of Oke Ife and the progress-minded occupants of our beloved, ancestral town.
I am humbly bowed in your presence this very moment, humbled by your support for this most laudable fundraising milestone achieved because CHARITY they say, begins at home, and you have shown that truly, T’òkè Ṣòro. Thank You all 🙌🏽🙏🏾
But that is not all — we have only just begun.
What Comes Next Will Define Everything
There are still slots unclaimed.
There are still phases ahead.
And there is now something far more valuable than money in motion:
Trust.
It is fragile.
It is powerful.
And once earned, it demands to be honoured.
For Those Who Still Wish to Stand In
The window may have narrowed, but the journey remains open.
For those who wish to be part of what is unfolding:
Bank Details:
UBA
Account Number: 2207261736
Account Name: Òkè Ife Development Association
The Quiet Truth Beneath It All
What is happening here is not just about a market.
It is about a people remembering themselves.
Not waiting to be rescued.
Not explaining their limitations.
But acting — deliberately, collectively, and with a kind of clarity that cannot be easily reversed.
And if this continues — if it is nurtured, protected, and scaled — then years from now, someone will look back and say:
This was where it began.
Àṣẹ.
Shepherd OSIFEKO
Publicity Secretary, Okeparapo