A high chief in Ijebu, Rasaki Adeneye, has said that failure to perform traditional burial rites for the late Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Adetona, may have consequences for Ijebu Ode.
Speaking during an interview with Punch as the Olowa Iberu Akile Ijebu, Adeneye stressed that Isese rituals remain central to kingship and the peace of the land.
He said crowns, beads and palace symbols are tied to Yoruba tradition and not to foreign religions.
He criticised monarchs who distance themselves from Isese, describing such kings as “clueless.”
Adeneye also said, “In 1960, after his installments, he visited all the shrines and according to reports, he said yet the Muslims should bury him but they should give the Isese people their requests. Anyone that say we mutilate the king’s body parts is untruthful. It doesn’t happen any longer. We’ve modernized our ways. I wouldn’t abuse the king who said we mutilate kings because of his crown. I respect the crown.”
The chief maintained that Yoruba kingship cannot be separated from ancestral practices, insisting that appeasing deities secures harmony for the people.
Adeneye urged Ijebu and Yoruba indigenes not to be swayed by religious divisions, declaring Isese as the foundation of all faiths in the land.
His comments add to the ongoing debate over Oba Adetona’s burial.
Governor Dapo Abiodun had earlier defended the Islamic burial conducted for the monarch, citing the Obas and Chiefs Law of Ogun State 2021, which allows rulers to choose their funeral rites.
The Awujale, who died on July 13, was buried the following day at his Igbeba residence in Ijebu-Ode, in line with Islamic tradition.
However, traditionalists and cultural groups argued that the law also recognises the role of indigenous practitioners.
Some protested after members of the Osugbo society were escorted out of the palace grounds during the burial.
Ifasola Opeodu, also known as Oluwo Iperu, said the action violated Section 55 of the Ogun State law and warned that atonement rites must be performed.
“It is imperative that the deceased’s body be properly reburied or else there will be danger in the land of Ijebu,” he said.
The Ogun State government maintains that the late monarch’s burial aligned with his personal wishes as guaranteed by law.
