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Ekiti monarchs wade into rulership crisis
From Ifedayo Sayo, Ado-Ekiti

EKITI State Council of Obas has intervened in the communal crisis in Ayede-Ekiti with a view to restoring peace to the trouble area.

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The community has not known peace since the Court of Appeal sitting in Ilorin, Kwara State capital, nullified the appointment and enthronement of the Affa of Ayede, Oba Joseph Adeleke Orisagbemi last month.

Subsequently, some elite in the town made futile efforts to eject Orisagbemi from his palace last week.

The situation has pitted supporters of Orisagbemi against those of another contender to the throne of Affa of Ayede and a half brother to Orisagbemi, Mr. Lagunju Oso.

The Council of Obas, which met under the leadership of the chairman and Elekole of Ikole, Oba Adetula Adeleke, resolved to call the aggrieved parties to order to ensure peace.

Orisagbemi has been taken to court by Oso for what he called injustice meted to him by the old Ondo State government which approved the appointment of Orisagbemi.

In its ruling, an Ado-Ekiti High Court had nullified the appointment of Orisagbemi but did not order that Oso be enthroned as the Affa of Ayede-Ekiti.

Orisagbemi's appeal at the Court of Appeal sitting in Ilorin was equally thrown out by the court last month.

He has since filed an appeal at the Supreme Court and another motion for a stay of execution of the Court of Appeal judgement.

While the Supreme Court was yet to sit on the appeal, a section of the community made attempt to install Oso as the Affa.

The situation led to a clash between supporters of the two parties. The intervention of the police later restored peace to the town.

Orisagbemi, who pointed an accusing finger at a relation of the state governor of being the brain behind his travails, said the property of his supporters were destroyed by some hired thugs.

Some of the higher thugs, he said, were later released by the police on the order of a top government official who claimed to be interested in the case.

The monarch, who narrated his ordeal to reporters on Monday also spoke on his arrest last week on the order of the state Governor Ayo Fayose for inviting members of the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) to the town to cause havoc on his people.

Orisagbemi, who denied the allegation, said those the police claimed were OPC members were actually members of the community celebrating the yearly yam festival.

He said it was unthinkable that he would bring hired thugs into the town to attack his people and their monarch.

He added that the allegation by the police was spurious as he could not have asked people to attack himself (Orisagbemi) as the only monarch in the town.