…Family alleges forgery arrests and power play in Obaship crisis
The Olumegbon Chieftaincy Family of Ajah and Okun Ajah Kingdom has raised the alarm over what it described as a troubling incursion into its traditional affairs, alleging undue interference by the Lagos monarch, Rilwan Aremu Akiolu.
Addressing journalists in Lagos, the family’s General Secretary, Elder Alhaji Machado Adesina, said the monarch’s actions had unsettled the royal lineage and deepened divisions within the kingdom.
Adesina, who noted he had served the family in that capacity for over three decades, accused the monarch of leveraging influence to interfere in the selection and installation of the Olumegbon of Ajah and Okun Ajah.
He further alleged that the intervention had culminated in the controversial installation of Alhaji Abdulateef Kolawole Lawal as Oba elect, contrary to what he described as the family’s preferred choice.
According to him, the dispute escalated after he openly challenged what he termed an illegal imposition, an action he claimed led to his arrest and prolonged detention.
The septuagenarian recounted that he was held for 32 days at the Force Criminal Investigation Department Annex in Alagbon, Ikoyi, without bail, insisting that no lawful offence was established against him.
He alleged that the detention took a toll on his health, resulting in memory loss and illness, which required medical attention at the Police Hospital in Ikoyi.
Adesina stated that his eventual arraignment followed legal intervention by his counsel, who challenged the legality of his detention before a Lagos High Court.
He added that he was subsequently granted bail, while the matter remains pending before the court.
Central to the controversy, he said, was pressure mounted on him while in custody to endorse the emergence of Lawal as Oba elect, a move he claimed he firmly resisted.
The family secretary further alleged that a document purportedly bearing his signature in support of the installation later surfaced, despite his refusal to sign any such endorsement.
He disclosed that a petition to the forensic unit of the police confirmed that the signature attributed to him was forged.
Adesina said the development had prompted further petitions to the Lagos State Government, the police authorities and the Eti Osa Local Government, calling for a thorough investigation.
He insisted that the monarch in question was not a member of the Olumegbon royal family, tracing historical ties to an adoption that, according to him, did not confer lineage rights.
The elder also revisited the long standing land ownership disputes in Ajah and Okun Ajah, asserting that the family’s claims had been upheld through litigation culminating at the Supreme Court.
He, however, alleged that the present crisis had reopened old wounds, with claims of land encroachment and the use of security influence to assert control.
Calling for urgent intervention, Adesina urged relevant authorities to ensure justice, vowing that the family would challenge what it described as an illegal installation through lawful means.