Ahead of the grand finale of this year’s Olojo festival, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, has begun a seven-day seclusion rite just as he urged Nigerians to be patient with President Bola Tinubu over his plan to tackle the nation’s economic challenges.

The monarch, who is expected to use the seclusion to commune with the ancestors and pray to the Almighty Olodumare (God) for his people, Nigeria and the entire mankind, pleaded with Nigerians to exercise patience with Tinubu’s administration in fixing the national economy.

However, in a statement by his Director of Media and Public Affairs, Moses Olafare, in Osogbo, yesterday, the monarch was quoted to have described “the yearly seclusion rite as the most sacred moment for him on the throne.

The statement reads: “This time around, I want to pray and seek for the face of our Creator to intervene in the current economic situation. Things are very tough and people are feeling the hardship. I want to pray for all and sundry and specially urge the youths to exercise patience so that we will not use our hands to destroy our country.

“I know that people are passing through difficult periods in which they are not finding life easy and truly this is a challenging period.

“But I know that after this festival, normalcy will return to the country, as the problems we’re facing will soon come to an end. I am urging the present government to do more to serve the populace by making bountiful dividends of democracy for the citizenry.”

Oba Ogunwusi will be marking his ninth edition of the Olojo festival on Saturday when he will be appearing to the public with the sacred crown of Oduduwa, known as ‘Ade Are’, worn once a year to commemorate the first day of mankind.