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Yewa Oba’s Deny Inviting Senator Olamilekan Adeola For Ogun West Seat
Fred Omotara, Lagos
Traditional rulers in Ogun West have said they are not aware of any invitation or plea by Oba’s in the region that the Senator representing Lagos West, Olamilekan Adeola aka Yayi should come and contest for Ogun West Senatorial seat.
This was their separate reactions to a statement credited to Senator Adeola saying the Ogun West monarchs invited him to come and contest in the Gateway State.
The Onidogo of Idogo, Oba Saheed Olubiyi, said he was not aware of Yewa Obas meeting Tinubu to plead that Adeola should be released to contest in Ogun West.
“Yewa Obas are not politicians. We don’t play politics. We’ve been hearing it from politicians that Yayi wants to run for senate. You can go and confirm from our President. We know he and many others want to run for senate and they have all been coming to us to declare their ambitions; but the claim that Yewa Obas are the ones who asked him to come to Ogun West is what I don’t know. May God choose for us.” Onidogo posited.
In his words, the Onimeko of Imeko, Oba Benjamen Oyeditan Olanite, denied knowledge of Obas asking Senator Olamilekan Adeola to come and contest in Ogun.
“I am not aware of that development and I know if anything like that happened, my Paramount Ruler would carry me along. Maybe this happened at a time I was not around. But as the head of Obas in my Ketu domain, I don’t think that can take place without my knowledge,” Onimeko explained.
The Eselu of Iselu, Oba Akintunde Akinyemi, told our correspondent that, “I just returned to the country. I wouldn’t know if anything like that was done while I was away. But I don’t think that can be done without my consent. We are not politicians. We are for everybody. People should disregard such claim.”
Ololo of Ijofin, Oba Moruf Awode, in a terse response, stated that, “What’s my own with that? I don’t know anything about it.”
Also speaking, the Asale of Isale Gbokoto, Oba Ganiu Adegbola, maintained that, “I am just hearing this for the first time. The Paramount Ruler is the only one to confirm that report. It may be so and it may not be so, I can’t confirm. I may not be around when it happened; I may not attend meeting that day. When we meet on Friday or Saturday, I will find out.”
The Onipokia of Ipokia, Oba Yisa Olaniyan, in his view, stated that: “I cannot really say much about the issue because I just joined Yewa Traditional Council, a little over a year now and I know Senator Yayi has been around for quite a while.
“But the little I can say is that I never heard from any Oba that they begged anyone to come and contest the Ogun West Senatorial seat.
“Governor Dapo Abiodun was the only one I heard not too long ago at a ceremony saying Yayi was loaned to Lagos and that he is coming back home soon.”
When contacted, the Olu of Ilaro and Paramount Ruler of Yewa, Oba Kehinde Olugbenle did not answer calls to his phone, neither did he reply messages sent to him.
Recall that Senator Adeola was reported to have said the Yewa Obas begged him for the Ogun West 2023 senatorial race.
Adeola was quoted to have said that, “When I went to inform Tinubu of my decision to return home, he was reluctant. It took the intervention of traditional rulers in Yewaland led by the Paramount Ruler of Yewaland, the Olu of Ilaro, before the APC leader agreed that I go. I thank the APC leader for allowing me to go this time