• Warns insecurity could cripple farming in region
• Appeals court’s dismissal of N5b defamation suit against Sunday Igboho

The Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Adams, has said that the governors of the South-West states have rebuffed his suggestions for collaboration with the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) to address the growing security challenges across the region.

He, however, warned that continued insecurity could cripple agriculture and food security in the region.

Adams, who spoke during the National Coordinating Council meeting of the OPC in Ado-Ekiti, said the organisation is ready to support state governments in maintaining law and order through a structured security partnership.

He stated that although the OPC frequently receives calls for intervention during attacks by bandits and kidnappers, it is the constitutional responsibility of state governors to oversee security as the chief security officers of their various states.

Adams said that he had formally written to all six South-West governors proposing collaboration with 14 groups under the South-West Security Stakeholders Group (SSSG), but had yet to receive any response.

The Owa of Ijero-Ekiti, Oba Joseph Adebayo Adewole, commended the OPC for its contributions to preserving Yoruba culture and protecting traditional institutions.

The monarch lauded Gani Adams’ leadership, describing him as “a divine gift to the Yoruba race” and also commended the OPC for consistently supporting Yoruba monarchs, especially during periods of unrest.

MEANWHILE, Adams has appealed the judgment of Justice O.T. Ademola-Salami of Oyo State High Court, which dismissed his N5 billion defamation suit against Sunday Adeyemo, also known as Sunday Igboho.

In his appeal, filed at the Court of Appeal in Ibadan by Yusuff Olatunji Ogunrinde (SAN), Adams expressed dissatisfaction, saying that the judge erred in law with his resolutions on six grounds.

He said that the breach of privacy contravened Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.

In his appeal, filed on July 22, 2025, Adams said there was no lacuna created by the affidavit in support of the originating application, adding that it contained sufficient facts necessary to uphold the grant of his request for enforcement of his fundamental rights to privacy.

He stressed that given the trite position of law and the clear affidavit evidence on record, the lower court erred to have held that the affidavit in support of his application constituted mere conclusions and hearsay.

Adams, who maintained that Adeyemo had not been able to sufficiently debunk and/or deny the facts in the affidavit, urged the Appeal Court to set aside the judgment of the lower court delivered on July 3, 2025.