Olubadan suspends Egungun festival in Ibadan over violence

Olubadan suspends Egungun festival in Ibadan over violence

Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Lekan Balogun, has ordered the suspension of the ongoing Egungun festival over reported cases of violence.

A statement issued on Sunday in Ibadan by the Olubadan’s Personal Assistant on Media, Mr Oladele Ogunsola, said the violence involved arson and looting of shops.

He said the atrocities were perpetrated by some hoodlums hiding under the cover of the Egungun festival in Ibadan.

Olubadan also summoned all the leaders of masquerades known as ‘Alaagbaa’ in Ibadan land to an emergency meeting on Monday.

The traditional ruler expressed sadness over the reported cases violence whose “video of which has gone viral”.

He described the development as unfortunate and an affront to his palace.

It would be recalled that Oba Balogun on Wednesday condemned the violence reported during the festival in the Alafara area.

“As if the warning was just a blabbing, the same thing was reported on Saturday on a scale that made the previous one a child’s play.

“No responsible leader would fold his arms when majority of those subjects one superintendents over are in agony and living in perpetual fear just because of the activities of a few misguided elements who find it difficult to be law-abiding.

“This is why the suspension clause has to be invoked and how long it lasts would be determined by the outcome of the meeting of Monday afternoon,” Olubadan said.

He called on the security agencies to ensure no culprit is spared, adding that “whoever flouts the suspension order under whatever guise must be handled like a criminal.”