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…Ooni is not aware – Palace
From Lateef Dada, Osogbo
Muslim traders in Ile-Ife, Osun State, have accused some people from the palace of Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, of intimidating and extorting them for the celebration of Olojo festival.
A statement by the coordinator of Artisans, Peasants and Traders Association of Nigeria (APTAN), Adegoke Saidi, Secretary, Monsur Jimoh, and Welfare Officer, Banjo Isiaq, and made available to journalists in Osogbo, on Sunday, alleged that its members were attacked at the Ojatuntun Otisese Weekly Market, Tuesday, September 16, 2025, by three men identified as Efunwole Kola, Sogo Olagbaju, and Hezekiah Agunbiade, who confiscated their goods, including clothing and vegetable oil, because they refused to contribute to Olojo festival.
The association alleged that they have been facing the harassment for more than five years by the purported men from Ooni’s palace, compelling Muslims to pay for traditional religious practices despite their faith prohibiting such contributions.
The association noted that it holds Ooni in high esteem, stressing that the extortion constituted an infringement on their right to freedom of religion as guaranteed by Section 38(1) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and Section 44(1), which protects citizens from unlawful seizure of property.
Noting that the monarch may not be aware of the actions allegedly being perpetrated by certain palace men and the Babaloja of Odo-Ogbe, Chief Jimoh Olaoluwa Odeyemi, the association urged Ooni to stop the extortion.
“We are not rebels; we are contributors to the development of Ile-Ife. But our members are constantly attacked and stripped of their goods simply because they refuse to compromise their faith.
“Our cry is simple: stop the harassment, return the seized goods, and respect our right to practice Islam without coercion,” the association said.
However, spokesperson to Ooni, Moses Olafare, denied the involvement of the palace in the allegation, saying that the palace could not have and did not send anybody to commit crime in the name of Olojo festival.
He stressed that such persons ought to have been arrested and made to face the wrath of the law.
According to him, “No palace can force people to pay levy for festival talk less the Ooni’s palace. The Ooni has made available needed fund for the festival and volunteers have also made donations towards the successful celebration of the annual event. Whoever go around in the name of the palace should be treated as a criminal and be made to face the wrath of the law.
“It is also unfortunate that the traders have not informed the palace of the extortion they face annually as they claimed. Since they can identify the people involved they should report to the police and let them face the consequences of their actions,” Olafare said.
