Lagos Declares Thursday August 20 Work-Free for 2026 Isese Day

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Lagos State Government has declared Thursday, August 20, as a work-free day for public servants, political appointees and others to mark the 2026 Ìṣẹ̀ṣe Day.

The event is expected to be the largest single gathering of traditional worshippers anywhere in the world, with over three million residents expected to join the celebrations.

The Special Adviser to the Governor on Tourism, Arts and Culture, Mr Idris Aregbe, in a statement signed personally on Wednesday, described the day as one that is bigger than a holiday on a calendar.

“Ìṣẹ̀ṣe is not a relic. It is a living expression of our traditions and a celebration of Yoruba spirituality as an important part of Nigeria’s cultural and religious landscape,” he said, noting that the Yorubas are one of Africa’s largest ethnic nations with more than 55 million people globally, holding tenaciously to the Yoruba culture and inculcating it in their children.

Adhering to culture and tradition over the years has sustained the Ìṣẹ̀ṣe festivals in Cuba, Brazil, and the Caribbean, where many Yorubas live aside from Africa to this day.

“When the drums sound in Lagos on Thursday, they answer drums in Havana, in Salvador, in Port of Spain. Fifty-five million people and counting. Lagos is not observing a local holiday. Lagos is standing at the centre of a global heritage,” Mr Aregbe said.

Ìṣẹ̀ṣe Day marks the culmination of a full week of traditional activities, and has been observed as a work-free day in Lagos since 2023, following a request from the Lagos State Council of Obas and Chiefs.

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has upheld it every year, in line with the administration’s commitment to indigenous values and religious inclusiveness.

Mr Aregbe expressed profound appreciation to Sanwo-Olu for his courageous support for a noble cause, and reserved special honour for the traditional institution.

“We thank Mr Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu. It takes real conviction for a leader to stand publicly with heritage, and he has done so without hesitation and without apology. We also bow to Kábíyèsí, the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu I, foremost custodian of Lagos culture, to all our royal fathers, our revered White Cap Chiefs, our Babaláwo and Ìyánífá, our Olóòrìṣà and every custodian and promoter who kept these rites alive when it was neither fashionable nor convenient. Governments come and go. Custodians carry the culture,” he said.

This year’s celebrations will feature prayers, rituals, processions, drumming and cultural displays dedicated to the Òrìṣà, coordinated by the Association of African Traditional Religion Nigeria and Overseas (AATREN).

Mr Aregbe urged all participants to celebrate peacefully and respectfully.

“Three million voices rising in honour of tradition is not noise. It is history, faith and cultural pride in harmony. Whether you worship in a mosque, a church or a grove, Ìṣẹ̀ṣe Day belongs to you, because heritage has no denomination. Lagos remains the city where every heritage finds its place.”