By; BAYO AKAMO, Ibadan
The crisis trailing the process of picking a new Alaafin of Oyo has assumed another dimension as four of the Oyo Mesi (Kingmakers) on Saturday, disowned the purported shortlisting of 10 persons for the vacant stool.
According to the Iba Samu of Oyo, High Chief Lamidi Olayanju , other Kingmakers dissociating themselves are Agbaakin High Chief Asinmiyu, Akinniku, High Chief Amusa Yusuf and the Alapini High Chief Rasheed Sheu, (who died early Sunday).
High Chief Olayanju emphasized that all the four Oyo kingmakers
knew nothing about the purported shortlisting of the said 10 persons, as the four high chiefs were not part of the decision.
The Samu of Oyo pointed out that it was the Basorun that authored the news of the purported shortlisting of the 10 persons, saying, ” I called
Basorun and he told me that he was the one behind the news that 10 persons had been shortlisted.”
” Four of us knows nothing about it. When we completed the interview on Thursday, we all agreed that we would meet next Tuesday to do that but hearing that 10 persons had been shortlisted on the radio is news to me. I called Basorun and he told me he authored the news”, he said.
High Chief Olayanju added, ” I heard it on the radio that we had shortlisted 10 but I am telling you I am not part of that and I called four of us and they said they did not know anything about it. Agbaakin (High Chief Asinmiyu) told me he was not part of the decision to pick 10 contestants; Akinniku (High Chief Amusa Yusuf) also told me that he was not part of it; Alapini (High Chief Rasheed Sheu) is indisposed,” he said.
The Samu of Oyo stressed, that the other kingmakers would not abide by the purported shortlisted contestants, adding, “ can you, yourself, abide by such a decision?
” We don’t know anything about it, we didn’t know when he picked them, so, we can’t abide by such.If we agree with him and the remaining contestants drag all of us to court, how are we going to defend what we were not part of?”
New Nigerian recalled that the Head of Oyomesi and Basorun of Oyo, High Chief Yussuf Ayoola in a statement last Friday by the Director of Media and Publicity to the Alaafin of Oyo, Bode Durojaiye, said 10 contestants have been shortlisted for the stool.
The Basorun in the statement stated further that members of the Oyomesi would soon meet to deliberate on the next step, which he said would be an Ifa consultation to pick the next Alaafin among the shortlisted contestants.
