Tension broke out on Tuesday during a meeting of princes in Ipetumodu, Osun State, following calls for Governor Ademola Adeleke to declare the stool of the Apetumodu vacant after the conviction of Oba Joseph Oloyede in the United States.
Oba Oloyede, the 27th Apetumodu, was recently sentenced to over four years in a U.S. prison for COVID-19 loan fraud.
He was also ordered to forfeit assets and pay more than $4.4m in restitution, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio.
The meeting, held at the palace and presided over by the Asalu of Ipetumodu, Chief Sunday Adedeji, started around 4 p.m. without incident.
Trouble began when a prince urged Adedeji, the most senior surviving kingmaker, to formally write to the governor declaring the throne vacant.
Adedeji rejected the demand, recused himself from the process, and announced he was no longer interested in serving as a kingmaker.
His stance triggered a shouting match among the princes, forcing the meeting to collapse by 6 p.m.
Prince Olaboye Ayoola of the Aribile Ruling House expressed disappointment, saying the gathering had earlier agreed to elect two new kingmakers and write to the governor on the vacancy.
“But Chief Adedeji refused, insisting we won’t do that. That led to chaos, and the meeting ended without any resolution,” he told journalists.
Contacted, Adedeji confirmed his position, saying only: “It is true. Peace has to reign first.”
Since Oba Oloyede’s sentencing, Ipetumodu has been unsettled, with mounting calls for the state government to decide his fate.
The Osun Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Dosu Babatunde, said the government would obtain a Certified True Copy of the U.S. judgment before taking action.