Posted by By Zika Bobby and Matthew Dike on
The lingering leadership crisis in the Oluwa royal family, Apapa, in Ajeromi Ifelodun Local Government Area of Lagos State, deepened at the weekend as the warring factions engaged in a battle royale.
The lingering leadership crisis in the Oluwa royal family, Apapa, in Ajeromi Ifelodun Local Government Area of Lagos State, deepened at the weekend as the warring factions engaged in a battle royale.
The family has been engulfed in leadership tussle since over a year ago, after one of them, Mukaila, was installed as the new Oluwa of Apapa, by Oba of Lagos, Rilwanu Akiolu.
Since the crisis started, the new Oluwa and his opponents were prevented from having access to the palace, which had been under lock and key.
People suspected to be members of the Odua Peoples Congres(OPC) have been manning the palace on the order of one of the members of the family, pending when the crisis would be resolved.
Fresh crisis was said to have erupted when Mukaila and his supporters tried to gain entrance into the palace, which was resisted by the other group.
An OPC leader was said to have accompanied Mukaila and his supporters to the palace to ascend the controversial throne, but a prominent member of the family and a retired Chief Justice, Ishola Oluwa, told them to steer clear, as it was a family matter.
The OPC leader, who came in a Lexus jeep with some members of his group, left almost immediately. Soon after he left the area , fight broke out between the supporters of Mukaila and the opposing party who prevented them from entering the palace.
Daily Sun gathered that dangerous weapons, including charms were freely used by both factions prompting residents of the area to move out en masse.
The new Oluwa and a member of the other faction reportedly sustained injuries before policemen from Tolu police station and Area ‘B' police command, Apapa, led by the Area Commander, Mr. Femi Oyeleye, an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), intervened.
The Divisional Police Officer(DPO) in charge of Tolu police station, Prince Isaac Obafaye, told Daily Sun that the police were already aware that Mukaila and his supporters were coming to take over the palace, adding that they were on ground to bring the situation under control.
Meanwhile, residents of the area have expressed concern over the unresolved Oluwa chieftaincy tussle. They narrated how those guarding the palace usually disturbed them with gunshots, especially at nights. They commended the police for preventing the crisis from escalating and appealed to the Lagos State government to wade into the matter.