Oluwo insists Olodumare festival will hold despite petition by Iwo prince
By Deborah Oladejo, Osogbo –
The Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdulrasheed Akanbi, Telu 1, has said that the Odun Olodumare festival scheduled for Monday, November 9, will hold as planned despite a petition by an Iwo prince, Fatai Tadese, seeking police intervention over fears of a possible religious and communal crisis.
The petition, addressed to the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone XI, Osogbo, raised concerns that the festival could trigger a religious crisis and disrupt peace in Iwo.
However, the Oluwo’s press secretary, Alli Ibraheem, told Western Post in a telephone conversation that nothing would prevent the festival from holding, urging the public to disregard what he described as fake news being spread by agents of evil.
He explained that the event was organised to enable the Oluwo to rededicate his throne to God Almighty, pray and offer praises to Him.
“We are going ahead with the festival and nothing is stopping it. The festival is for Oluwo to rededicate his throne and pray to God Almighty and praise God,” Ibraheem said.
In his petition dated November 6, 2026, and copied to the Permanent Secretary of the Osun State Ministry of Justice, Tadese described the festival as alien to Iwo culture and capable of triggering communal, religious and traditional conflicts.
The petition, titled “Urgent Intervention to Stop Odun Eledumare in Iwo Hence Curbing Crisis, Protest and Breaking of Law and Order Instead of Harmonious Relationship Through Reconciliation”, expressed concerns over the growing controversy surrounding the festival.
Tadese also argued that the festival was inconsistent with genuine Iwo cultural practices and the Islamic religion professed by the monarch, urging him to adhere to Sharia law in his capacity as Ameerul Muluuk rather than embrace what he described as a mixture of diluted cultures and religions.
