STOP PRESS !
Ugele Rock Shelter, Ikere: Chief Wole Olanipekun Pledges Support, Says “We Shall Take It Up”
By
Victor Ogundipe
The renewed effort to develop and enhance the Ugele Rock Shelter Settlement in Ikere-Ekiti has received a major boost as the Asiwaju of Ikere-Ekiti, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, CON, has expressed strong interest in the initiative and pledged to rally support for its transformation into a major tourism destination.
Chief Olanipekun gave the assurance when the Director-General of the Ekiti State Bureau of Tourism Development, Barrister Wale Ojo-Lanre, paid him a strategic advocacy visit at his residence in Ikere-Ekiti, where he presented the tourism, historical, cultural, and heritage potential of the Ugele Rock Shelter Settlement.
The legal icon, who warmly received Ojo-Lanre, listened attentively to the presentation and also watched the video of the recent hiking expedition to the site, organised by Discover Ekiti Tourism Club in collaboration with the Ekiti State Bureau of Tourism Development.
After watching the presentation and appreciating the significance of the site, Chief Olanipekun declared: “We shall take it up,” and immediately requested that a concept note be prepared for further consideration.
Chief Olanipekun, who is the Asiwaju of Ikere-Ekiti, said he would mobilise the Ikere community, his friends, associates, and other stakeholders to support the development of Ugele Rock Shelter Settlement. He also expressed his readiness to collaborate with the Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji, in ensuring that Ugele becomes not only a tourist attraction, but a full-fledged destination of pride, value, and economic opportunity.
According to him, while the government is already taking the lead in opening up tourism assets across the state, the Ikere community must also rise to support the vision.
He stated: “While the government is taking the lead, we, the Ikere community, will support. Ugele must not just be an attraction; it must become a destination.”
Ojo-Lanre described Chief Olanipekun’s response as heartwarming and highly encouraging, noting that the senior advocate has always been a pillar of development in Ikere-Ekiti and a man whose commitment to community growth, human empowerment, and public good remains uncommon.
According to him, the Ugele Rock Shelter Settlement is not just another tourism site, but a heritage asset with deep historical, cultural, archaeological, educational, and economic value.
He said the Bureau, working with Discover Ekiti Tourism Club and other stakeholders, is determined to ensure that the site is properly documented, promoted, protected, and positioned as one of the important heritage tourism destinations in Ekiti State.
Ojo-Lanre added that the interest shown by Chief Olanipekun would further strengthen ongoing efforts to attract attention, support, and structured development to the site.
He commended Chief Olanipekun for his open-door attitude, humility, and consistent devotion to the progress of Ikere-Ekiti, stressing that the legal luminary has touched almost every sphere of development in the community through personal sacrifice, vision, and generosity.
“The man called Wole Olanipekun is not just a legal icon; he is a development institution. He listened. He watched. He understood the vision. And when he said, ‘We shall take it up,’ it was not an ordinary statement. It was a statement of interest, responsibility, and commitment,” Ojo-Lanre said.
He further noted that the development of Ugele Rock Shelter Settlement aligns perfectly with the tourism vision of the Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji-led administration, which places strong emphasis on heritage preservation, community participation, destination development, and tourism as a tool for economic growth.
The Bureau assured the people of Ikere-Ekiti and Ekiti State that efforts would continue to be intensified to bring the Ugele Rock Shelter Settlement to national and international attention.