By Isaac olusesi
In Nigeria, nothing in the State of Osun could go for intellectual property under any of its governments. Nothing, absolutely nothing, even from the last government of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that looked visibly moronic, withdrawn, at both the 1st and 2nd term inaugurations of its governor as though amidst praise singers’ flurry of drums and intoxicating legworks. The party, ever moribund, lacks manifest inventive, the cocoon of intellectual property that could have positioned Osun on the house top for distinctions.
However, in just one year or so in office, from the cache of the All Progressives Congress (APC) government of Rauf Aregbesola, with a detest for governance as a tea party, came the iconic, rich cluster of intellectual property – State of Osun, Osun Anthem, Osun Pledge, Osun Flag, and Osun Crest, with Osun Motto. The five intellectual inventions depict a living thing that has continued to steer a desired mind-set in the Osun people, good governance and democracy, courage and sacrifice; and as aftermath, faith and hope in the growth and development of the state.
Intellectual property is a means of identification and communication. The Christian Knights from Western Europe who fought in a series of military campaigns in the medieval times, displayed coats of arms on the shields and flags that assisted their followers to recognise them in the battlefronts. And the royalty, nobility and clergy in the Feudal European society were also able to identify their processions and official documents by marking them with heraldic signs, symbols or emblems.
Similar heraldic bearings in the Osun intellectual property include seven cowries, the emblem of the seven grandsons of Olofin Oduduwa; and Ori-Olokun, symbolic of the common origin of Yoruba and dexterity in technology, have put, for instance the Osun Flag on the same pedestal of intellectual property as that of the United Kingdom (UK)’s Flag – the amalgam of the flags of England, Scotland and Ireland, respectively bearing the cross of St. George, St. Andrew and St. Patrick and the United State of America (US)’s Uncle Sam, the Salute and Liberty, and George Washington, the US first president. Intellectual property includes, for instance, National Anthem, National Flag, National Pledge, and the Coat of Arms for Nigeria; Maple Leaf for Canada; John Bull for England; and the Fluer-de-lis for France.
The Osun intellectual property traced exclusively to Aregbesola, have practically provided Osun with a rallying point for its internal and external affairs; signaled a display of Osun virtues at home and abroad; protected Osun from misrepresentation, marking out Osun documents, communications and processes; identified Osun in national enterprises; re-positioned Osun significantly on national ranking; and garnered in the vary peoples of Osun, the consciousness of patriotism.
Good! The Osun intellectual property have received the much requisite legal teeth in the state parliament that has now made the inventions to be used, displayed, honoured and shielded from desecration. The legal protection is the heart beat of the state intellectual property, protecting them from unauthorised use. The infringer could be liable for actual damage(s) specified by the law. Unintentional infringement is also said to be illegal but could be treated less harshly by the court than intentional infringement. The primary legal question to be addressed in a court of law would be whether the infringer’s use has confused or misled the public mind.
Electorally, the Osun intellectual property triumphed for both the emergence of Aregbesola as governor and course of liberty of votes cast by Osun peoples that quitted PDP’s near 8years of open misrule in the state. The invention of the State of Osun, Osun Anthem, Osun Pledge, Osun Flag, and Osun Crest, with Osun Motto, is symbolic of Osun peoples’ revolution and Osun vote–conquest of mis-governance of the state under PDP. Where then is the irascibility of the opponents of the Osun intellectual property? The incipient indignations of the hit-and-run PDP over the five intellectual inventions are particularly irksome. The grimace of the never-do-well PDP in society and politics at the very highly commendable intellectual inventions in the course of the years of APC in Osun government, is ironically, the PDP self-indictment because not even one innovation or invention ever came from PDP while the party held sway in the state government house.
Instead, all that came from the PDP government in Osun were shoddiness, rottenness, rustiness, decay, resentment, hate, incompetence, corruption, irresponsibility, recklessness, mediocrity and such other weird, arbitrary symptoms of bad governance. Meaning that, the opposition PDP and its co-travellers in the Osun electoral firmament do not deserve a vote of Osun people, come the September 22 gubernatorial election in the state. Not even any other party in the PDP garb and grab should get Osun votes.
Alas and alack, critics in PDP have continually grizzled over Osun intellectual property in manner that the incurable mockers within the PDP are better neck – chained to a sangoma home to be treated for monomania by a dutiful inyanga, a person who treats people who are ill, using natural materials such as plants. Ironically, the opposition PDP in the state have always worked self, albeit irrationally off-times into frenzies over the heroics of Aregbesola in the art and science of governance and administration of Osun, the heroics that daily open a new vista in intellectual governance in the state.
In the Osun history, Aregbesola remains a long distance runner in intellectual property and other development politics, policies and projects, a study in intelligence and industry of the man, called Aregbesola, invulnerable to knock-backs from opposition elements in the state. Honestly, it will be momentous, historic should the state government after Aregbesola proclaim Osun Intellectual Property Day, an annual event to feature corresponding intellectual discourse on the five inventions: their origin, meaning and potency. Many nations and constituents of nations, the world over celebrate their intellectual property. In the State of Osun, the Intellectual Property Day ought to be celebrated annually, to mark the hot vote-chase the peoples of Osun gave the PDP rudderless government that eventually heralded the emergence of the Aregbesola’s government.
A celebration of the re-development of Osun, making the election of whoever emerges as the APC candidate for the 2018 Osun governorship a sine quanon for further development of the state.
