The National President of Ipetumodu Progressive Union (IPU), Dr Israel Akinjogbin, yesterday reassured citizens that the situation in the community remains under control and that the community should not allow the development to disrupt their daily lives.

According to Akinjogbin, while the news of the monarch’s conviction has come as “unthinkable to many,” it is important for the people of Ipetumodu to distinguish “between the legal proceedings abroad and the peace and order at home.”

Earlier, a meeting of princes in Ipetumodu, Osun State, descended into tension on Tuesday after a member of the royal family demanded that the throne of the Apetumodu be declared vacant.

The controversy follows the conviction of Oba Joseph Oloyede, the 27th Apetumodu of Ipetumodu, who was recently sentenced to more than four years in prison over COVID-19 loan fraud in the United States (U.S.).

The monarch was also ordered to forfeit assets and pay over $4.4 million in restitution. During the meeting, Olaboye Ayoola of the Aribile Ruling House urged Sunday Adedeji, the most senior kingmaker, to formally notify Governor Ademola Adeleke and request that the stool be declared vacant.
Adedeji, however, rejected the demand, insisting that he would not be party to such a move.

His stance triggered a heated exchange among the princes, forcing the meeting to end abruptly without a resolution.

However, the town has been gripped by uncertainty, with deepening divisions between the two royal lineages, Aribile and Fagbemokun. While the Aribile Ruling House maintains that the throne should remain with them until the convicted monarch completes his jail term, the Fagbemokun family argues that the crown should now pass to their lineage in line with tradition.

The state government, through the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Dosu Babatunde, has declared that it would not take any decision on the matter until it obtains a Certified True Copy of the U.S. judgment.

Meanwhile, following the tension generated over the call for the governor to declare the stool of the Apetumodu of Ipetumodu in the state vacant after the conviction of Oba Oloyede in the U.S., stakeholders have called for peace.

The IPU further admonished residents to continue to be law-abiding and desist from fomenting trouble. He said, “Ipetumodu is always a peaceful town and will not accept anything that may disrupt the existing peaceful coexistence.”

“Already, Osun State Government has said it will obtain the Certified True Copy of the judgment of a U.S. court that sentenced the monarch to prison before making any official statement, as the government would not act based on social media reports.”