Shockwaves are reverberating across Yorùbáland and the global Yorùbá diaspora following the sudden death of the Baba Ọba (King’s Father) of the famed Oyotunji African Village in South Carolina, USA. The late Baba Ọba, Lukman Arohunfale, a revered socialite and traditionalist, passed away under circumstances already sparking fierce controversy. His death comes just days after he publicly accused the newly installed Alaafin of Oyo, His Imperial Majesty Oba Akeem Adéyẹmọ Owoade, of allegedly ordering his courtiers to beat him mercilessly during a recent courtesy visit to the Oyo palace in Nigeria. In a widely circulated voice recording, the deceased recounted how what was meant to be a simple homage turned violent. Although the Baba Ọba had reportedly battled ill health in the past year, growing insinuations suggest that the alleged physical assault may have aggravated his condition, ultimately leading to his untimely death. The palace in Oyo recently denied that s...
Ibrahim Salami, one of the Cotonou-based lawyers of Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo aka Sunday Igboho, has said the police in Benin Republic handcuffed the hands of the activist despite detaining him in a locked cell.
Salami spoke on Saturday in a Facebook Live Interview with BBC News Yoruba.
He said, “We are five lawyers handling his case. When we visited Sunday Adeyemo at the police station, he was not beaten but what they did that is alien to the law here is that they handcuffed him inside the police cell after locking the cell. This makes eating and movement within the cell difficult for him to the extent that someone has been helping him in this regard.
“Apart from being a lecturer, I am also a professor of law at a university here in Benin Republic. Part of what we teach our students is human rights. Human rights frown at the action of the police.
“I called the attention of the police commander and the prosecutor to this but still nothing changed. At the moment, Sunday Igboho’s hands are in chains at the police station. This is not good at all.”
Salami also said the Nigerian Government’s representatives told the court that Igboho is a gunrunner who tried to divide Nigeria.
A Beninise court ruled on Thursday that Igboho’s Germany-based wife, Ropo, should be released unconditionally as there were no charges against her.
The court, however, ruled that Igboho be remanded in police custody till the next week when sitting would resume in the French-speaking court.
The two were arrested at the Cadjèhoun Airport in Cotonou on Monday while they tried to catch a flight to Germany. Igboho was earlier declared wanted by the Department of State Services for allegedly stockpiling arms, an allegation he denied. The secret police had also raided his house, killed two of his associates and arrested about 12 of them.
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