Indigenes of Elete Community of Oto-Awori Local Council Development Area of Lagos state, on Tuesday, in their hundreds trooped out to appeal to the Lagos state government to save their community from being plunged into crisis. Government can, according to them, do this by installing the rightful person into the obaship seat of the community.
The indigenes of the community which comprises youths, men and women, made the appeal during a peace protest held at the Secretariat of Iba Local Council Development Area of the state, where the traditional rulers in Ojo kingdom were having their meeting with the council chairperson, Mrs. Ramota Oseni.
The indigenes who armed themselves with placards of different inscriptions such as: “Ema ba asa ati ise waje, meaning” don’t destroy our cultural heritage”, “we want peace and justice”, Elete youths call for reinstatement of rightful king for peace to reign in Elete kingdom”, ” give us our right”, “Oba Moshood Olanrewaju Lawal is the Oba approved by the tradition and law”, and several others, stated that the community would only know peace when rigthful occupant to the Obaship stool is installed by the state government.
The community indigenes also told the media that their protest was hinged on the imposition of Oba Nofiu Dauda Odu Owoiya, as their king by Lagos state government, which they said was contrary to the recommendation of February 29, 2012, of a tribunal set up to look into the crisis.
The indigenes of the community stated that the five man-tribunal headed by Justice A. O. Silva, had recommended that Moshood Olanrewaju Lawal be installed as Oba of Elete Kingdom, but stated that the Lagos state government through the Commissioner for Local Government and Community Affairs, Mr. Musiliu Folami had sometimes in April this year, installed Oba Nofiu Dauda as the king of the community.
Adisatu Morenike, an indigene of Elete community who spoke to thestreetreporters.com on the impasse, said: “The government should give us our right. Since the imposition of the man sitting on the throne that he is not entitled to, Elete community has not known peace, we have been facing series of chaos.”
The 100-year old Morenike said: “unless Moshood Olanrewaju Lawal is installed as Oba in Elete community there will be no peace”.
Another indigene of the community, Abolaji Lawal, spoke on the Tuesday’s protest: “we came here because we want peace, we don’t want fight, we are being threatened by the imposition on our forefathers throne.
“We have been to Alausa during the reign of the former Ayangburen of Ikorodu and former Oba of Lagos, and the state government also set up a committee after a panel of enquiry had recommended that Oba Moshod Olanrewaju Lawal be installed as the Monarch of Elete Kingdom, but to our surprise, the state government made an alien as our King.
“We want Moshod Olanrewaju Lawal as the Oba of Elete community not a non-indigene that was imposed on us, we want an indigene to be our king”.
Also speaking on the protest, a youth leader in the community, Oyeniyi Lawal said:
“We want Governor Ambode to look into the protest, listen to our cries and come to our aid by providing a lasting solution to the Obaship crisis in Elete kingdom. We have three ruling houses in the kingdom and the man they made King did not belong to any of these ruling houses.
“We have been to court and the case was concluded since 2012, in favour of Moshod Olanrewaju Lawal, but the state government has been playing game with us.
“We do not want problem that is why we are appealing to Governor Ambode to come to our rescue by giving us a rightful owner to the stool”.