Osun Obaship Tussles: “I Am Not Involved In This Matter”, Says CP

The Commissioner of Police (CP) in Osun State, Mr. Fimihan Adeoye has declared that neither himself nor his agents were involved in the imbroglio between the Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdulrasheed Akanbi and his counterpart, the Oluwo of Iwo-Oke, Oba Kadiri Adeoye.

Oba Adeoye had dragged the traditional ruler of Iwo and the state CP to court, accusing the state police of conniving with Oba Akanbi who used his influence as a first class monarch to restrict his movement and to prevent him from testifying in a criminal case before the court.

In the suit, the Oluwo-Oke leveled series of criminal allegations against Oba Akanbi where he called on the court to depose the traditional ruler, saying he hold it as a duty being a member of Iwo Traditional Council to inform the court who really was the Oluwo of Iwo.

But the CP rushed to the Magistrate Court in Osogbo where the case was being heard with a notice of preliminary objection through his counsel, Barrister Aruna Abass, asking that his name be struck out in the suit.

According to an affidavit deposed to by Mr. Edogun Sunday, a clerk in the legal section of the Department of Investigation State Criminal Investigative Department (SCID), Osogbo, Mr. Adeoye refuted the claims that he was being used by Oba Akanbi to do anything against the fundamental human rights of the applicant.

The CP explained that in the interest of justice, the court should strike out his name from the suit because he and his agents had discharged “their duties in accordance with the law without fear or favour”.

Meanwhile, the presiding Chief Magistrate, Mr. Olusola Aluko has directed all the parties in the matter including the Oluwo of Iwo to appear before him on Friday, December 2, to defend all criminal allegations leveled against him by Oba Adeoye.

Oba Adeoye had approached the Magistrate Court accusing the Oluwo of Iwo of concealing some facts about his past to the state government when he was installed as a first class monarch about a year ago.

According to the Oluwo-Oke in a 33-paragraph affidavit, Oba Akanbi had displayed characters that did not befit a person of his status and calibre “as he is used to carrying armed thugs, miscreants and hoodlums around to harass, intimidate, molest and attacked persons whom he perceived as his enemies”.

He further alleged in that the Oba Akanbi was “an ex-convict who does not deserve the post that he is presently occupying”.

Oba Adeoye averred further, “That I know as a matter of fact that when he was about to travel out of the country sometimes late 1990’s, he disowned his father and started using the name Adeonigbagbe as his father’s name.

“That he used the said Adeonigbagbe as his surname to travel to the United States of America where he resided at New York City and that he was later arrested for an offence which bothered on dishonesty and was detained for seven months before his deportation back to Nigeria in 2000”.

He added that Oba Akanbi later travelled out with his real name to Canada in 2001 and became a Canadian citizen but was also arrested in Toronto and was in jail between 2006 and 2007, saying these facts were concealed for the state government which appointed and installed him as the Oluwo of Iwo.

He also accused him of presently making money through the internet fraud otherwise known as “YahooYahoo” and was using his palace as a cover-up.

But Oba Akanbi reacted to these allegations through the Aremo of Iwo land, Chief Adelani Akanbi who described the application filed against the Oluwoof Iwo by Oba Adeoye as “scandalous, vexations and designed to embarrass, blackmail and ridicule the monarch in the view of right thinking members of the society”.

He further stated through a 13-paragraph objection that by virtue of his position, there was no person, be it traditional or honourary that is referred to the Oluwo of Iwo-Oke.

Oba Akanbi’s counsel, Barrister A.B Quadry asked the court to disqualify itself from hearing the case as it lacked jurisdiction to entertain the suit and that the applicant lacked the locus to file the application against his client.

The case was adjourned to Friday, December 2, 2016 with a directive by the Chief Magistrate to Oluwoof Iwo to appear in person to defend himself.