Alaafin palace clarifies Igbo-Ora Festival incident

By Adejayan Gbenga –

The palace of the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade, has clarified the reported disturbance that occurred on Saturday during the annual World Twins Festival in Igbo-Ora, Ibarapa area of Oyo State.

Western Post learnt that pandemonium broke out when some youths blocked the convoy of the Alaafin as he attempted to leave the venue of the event.

According to sources, the confrontation became chaotic, forcing security operatives attached to the monarch to fire warning shots into the air to disperse the crowd and clear a path for the royal convoy.

Reacting to the development, the Director of Media and Publicity to the Alaafin, Mr. Bode Durojaiye, explained that the incident started when a group of youths surrounded the convoy, demanding money from the monarch before he could leave.

Durojaiye said security personnel initially tried to calm the situation, but the crowd became unruly, prompting officers to use tear gas canisters to disperse them.

“They are street urchins who wanted to collect money from the king. Even if they wanted to collect money, they failed to comport themselves,” he said.

“The security appealed to them, but they became forceful. The agents could not allow urchins to rough-handle the monarch. No live bullets were fired; only tear gas was used to scare them away,” Durojaiye clarified.

The palace reaffirmed that the Alaafin was safe and that the situation was quickly brought under control.