Fear hung over the Orin Ekiti community of Ido/Osi LGA of Ekiti State as the palace was raided by armed men said to be politically fueled to select a new Olorin (The local kingship title of the community).
Eyewitnesses revealed that the said men were fully armed and conveyed in five Hilux fans to offer protection to the chairman of the council, Mr. Adeola Ayodimeji and the secretary, Mr. Olumide Fadipe as well as the newly selected warrant chiefs. The armed men were made to ensure that nobody gained entry into the palace while the procession was on to avoid any hindrance.
It was gathered that the state government has been allegedly working to install the ajibewa ruling house outside the two recognised royal families of the Olubunmo and Famikiti, to which the chiefs and the rest of the community strongly resisted.
As a result of this, the government suspended all the kingmakers and appointed six new warrant chiefs to commence the selection and installation process of the new ruler.
The youth leader of the town, Mr. Martins Omotoso and Prince Segun Olubunmo recounter the incidence saying that the security men took over the palace at about 10:45 am and commandeered the palace guard, Martins Dada out of the palace.
Omotoso then further said that the men proceeded to break the main door and the one leading into the conference hall. They say for less than 30 minutes, and afterward left the town.
He also said that from the information given to him by the Elewere and custodian of the palace, Chief John Ilori, some documents and paraphernalia that are related to Oba’s installation have been taken away from the Palace by the armed men.
“The LG boss and the Secretary, Mr Fadipe, who hails from Orin Ekiti were the arrowhead of this burglary. They came in company of a heavily armed policemen and soldiers and broke into the palace today.
“We had to keep a distance from the palace because they came with heavily armed security who guarded the area and acted in gestapo manners.
“They were in town in company of the warrant chiefs to begin obaship selection from Ajibewa ruling house that was not recognised by history and tradition.
“We even learnt one Olufemi Adeniran Ajibewa has been selected against our culture and tradition. We appeal to people of good conscience to beg them not to cause chaos in Orin Ekiti”. Mr. Martins said.
However, in response to the allegation, the secretary of the Ido-Osi LGA, Mr. Fadipe, said he and his team only acted on an instruction given to them by the state government which mandated the selection and installation of a new king be done without delay.
“lt is mere fallacy to say that we broke into the palace of Olorin today. All the property inside the palace belong to government. So, we did not break into the palace but we only went there to carry out instruction of the government on selection of the new monarch and that has to be done with the protection of security men.
“The kingmakers existing before were suspended by government because they had failed to perform their duty of producing a new monarch more than five years after the death of the late monarch. So, government appointed warrant chiefs who were with us to preside over the selection process.
“The government paper we have has three ruling houses of Famokiti, Olubunmo and Ajibewa and the next in line is the Ajibewa family,” he said.
