The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi has disowned claims by a man who claimed the monarch was his father.
According to a statement by the palace spokesperson, Moses
Olafare on Thursday, the man in the viral video
engaged in an act of impersonation.
Olafare also noted that the matter had been reported to the
security agencies for further action.
He maintained that the monarch, being a responsible father
and custodian of tradition, knew and acknowledged all his children and would
stop at nothing to take full responsibility for them.
According to him, “Our attention has been drawn to an
amateur video clip featuring a grown-up individual claiming to be a son of our
father, Arole Oodua Olofin Adimula, Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja ll, the
Ooni of Ife, virally trending across various online platforms.
“The self-acclaimed prince was unknown to the palace and the
Ile-Ife populace.
“He is not a child of Ooni Ogunwusi as fraudulently claimed
and also never related in any way to any lineage of the Ogunwusi royal family
and the Giesi royal compound of Ile-Ife at large.
“We categorically condemn and denounce this shameless act of
impersonation in the strongest possible terms.
“It is imperative to clarify that the Ooni of Ife, as a
responsible father and custodian of tradition, knows and acknowledges all his
children and stops at nothing to take full responsibility for them (both those
who are in Nigeria and outside the country).”
All the children of the traditional ruler and their
respective locations were also listed by the palace
“As all of Ooni’s children are well known to the palace and
the people of Ile-Ife, the eldest child of the Ooni is Princess Adeola
Ogunwusi, a Masters degree holder working and residing in Canada, followed by
Princess Adewamiwa Ogunwusi, who recently relocated to further her education in
Dublin, Ireland, from where she had come three years ago for her secondary
school education in her home country, Nigeria.
“Princess Adesewa is doing very well, Prince Tadenikawo
Ogunwusi is widely known to be with his mother, hale and hearty while the
newborn twins, Prince Adebisi Kehinde and Princess Taiwo Adeayo, are being
planned to formally make their historic entry into the palace in a couple of
days, in accordance with the customs and traditions of the Ife palace,” it
disclosed.
The palace while condemning the marauding impersonation
tactics to exploit the revered status of the Ooni of Ife for fraudulent
personal gains, added that it was not only sacrilegious but criminal.
“Impersonation of any member of the royal family is a
sacrilege against the sanctity of the palace and the heritage it represents.
“While the palace leaves no stone unturned to go after this
criminal using all possible means to scapegoat him, with a view to making him
face the law for necessary deterrence, we hereby urge the law enforcement
agencies, particularly the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State
Services to thoroughly investigate this matter and bring the perpetrator to
justice as swiftly as possible,” it added.
It asked that any individual with useful information about
the whereabouts of the impersonator to seek an audience with the palace or the
police.
“We call on the impersonator to refrain from engaging in or
promoting such deceptive practices.
“The House of Oduduwa remained committed to preserving the
rich cultural heritage of the Yoruba people and would not tolerate any attempt
to undermine or tarnish its legacy through fraudulent means,” the statement
concluded.
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