By Adeyinka Adeniran
The Oranmiyan of Oko kingdom, Oyo State, Oba Solomon Akinola has said the report that he and his chiefs were remanded at Abolongo correctional centre in Oyo is misrepresentation of fact and misleading.
The first class monarch while reacting to a media report that he and 14 of his chiefs were ordered to be remanded in prison custody over continuous violent attacks, attempted murder and land grabbing in his domain said nothing of such happened in any court as claimed in an online newspaper.
Crisis was said to have started when the complainant, Mr. Isaac Abiodun, alleged that he was attacked by the defendants at Aagba village in Surulere local government.
Addressing Journalists in Ibadan at the weekend, Oba Akinola explained that there is a land matter between Oloko of Okoland and a village called Aagba both in Surulere Local Government, Oyo State for almost 91 years ago and the case is currently pending before the Supreme Court sitting in Abuja.
He said the case was adjourned to 11th day of November, 2024 for defense.
It was gathered that, upon the future adjournment, the purchaser of almost 27 villages, Mr Abiodun of Tropical Culture Nig. Limited bought land from Head of Aagba village during the pendency of the case in Court of Appeal (1st appeal) sitting in Ibadan in 2011 stormed the villages around May, 2021, September, 2021 and March, 2023 to bulldoze the farmlands (cashew, cocoa, kola, yam, maize, groundnut, vegetables etc) and demolish the buildings of habitants of the villages where their forefathers lived for centuries ago.
The same is also pending before the Federal High Court, Ibadan and Supreme Court of Justice, Abuja.
Mr. Abiodun was said to have sued Oba Akinola, the Oloko of Okoland and other 14 occupants of those villages for criminal case of assault, stealing, trespassing and some other allegations which the Ogbomoso High Court opened the matter on 7th of November, 2023.
Speaking on the matter, the monarch’s Counsel Barrister Jimoh Absulsalam said “In distillation, neither Oba Solomon Akinola nor 14 others were remanded in Abolongo Correctional Centre, Oyo on Thursday, 23rd of November, 2023 as some online bloggers broadcasted it.
“Though, the Ogbomoso High Court 2 Judge, Justice K.A Adedokun initially gave a ruling to remand the 15 defendants in Abolongo Correctional Centre, Oyo with a view to ruling on their bail on Monday, 27th of November, 2023 but the ruling was immediately reversed on Thursday, 23rd of November, 2023.
“The company was trying to disposes 9 communities of their home and properties he was hiding under execution of a judgement and started demolishing their housed that was when people resisted him and his team on that point he reported at the police station and place a charge on Kabiesi and his chiefs, they did not bring out the charges to public but being a lawyer anything they file is subject to public scrutiny because its a public documents so when we saw the documents we inquired who press charges against our clients so we told Kabiesi not to worry that we will trash the matter out in the court.
“Kabiesi mobilize his chiefs and they came to court. We told the court this is the charge against Kabiesi and others we are here to defend the charge.
“The story in circulation is not the correct version of what happened at the court. What happened was that we have a bail application in respect of Kabiesi and the others and even before the bail application was passed the court is of opinion that Kabiesi is a first class monarch and all other people who are his subject, Kabiesi can guarantee them, the court directed that Kabiesi should guarantee their return to court at every subsequent adjournment and that Kabiesi should go and write undertaking and he wrote it.
“The second adjournment we were in court, the third adjournment when we argued the matter and the court said it would give the ruling later day before yesterday the ruling was delivered in favour of our client.
“The bail application was granted on the 23rd of November, the judge did not even request for surety because Kabiesi is a first class monarch. The story been circulated is not the correct version of what happened in the court.
“It has even gotten to a stage where we reported them to the judge and he warned them seriously, he was even looking for those journalist who wrote the report. Were they in court? no, no journalists was in court, somebody with intent to discredit Kabiesi and his chief did that to misinform the public.”
