A Lagos State High Court sitting in Igbosere has ordered the removal of Oba Micheal Gbadebo Onakoya as the traditional ruler and Orijeru of Igboye in Epe Local Government Area.
Justice Iyabo Kasali, who presided, gave the ruling on Wednesday and restrained Onakoya from parading himself as the monarch of Igboyeland in a suit filed by representatives of Ewade Ruling House who were contesting the nomination and crowning of the monarch.
Justice Kasali granted all the claims of the claimants, in the suit filed through their counsel, Tunde Oyende and declared the nomination of the second defendant, Onakoya, to the stool of Orijeru of Igboye as illegal and of no effect adding that he is not a member of the Ewade Ruling House of Igboye and is not entitled to be nominated to the stool of the Orijeru of Igboye.
She described as fraudulent, the documents used by the deposed monarch for his nomination, selection and subsequent recognition by the Lagos State Government for the stool of Orijeru of Igboyeland and dismissed the 35 point averments by Onakoya contained in his amended statement of defence and counter claims filed through his counsel, Babatunde Oshilaja.
She also granted an order of perpetual injunction restraining all the other defendants, which includes the Head of the Ewade Ruling House, Otunba Abdulwasiu Musa-Adebamowo; Lagos State Government and the Attorney General of Lagos State, from recognising the second defendant as a member of Ewade Ruling House of Igboye.
Justice Kasali noted that while the claimants have been able to prove that the second defendant is not from their Ruling House, the second defendant has not been able to discharge the burden of proving that he is from Ewade Ruling House adding that there was overwhelming evidence that the second defendant is not a member of the Ewade Ruling House but from the Erelu Ruling House.
The judge said she had seen the declaration on succession to the stool of Orijeru of Igboye and based on the submissions made by counsels, the court relied on the document and restated that the second defendant is not entitled to be nominated to the stool of the Orijeru on the platform of Ewade Ruling House.
She said: “the claimants’ case succeeds. The counter-claims failed and is therefore dismissed in its entirety. All the other defendants also perpetually restrained”.
The claimants in the suit are Alhaji M.A. Quadri, Chief Dauda Kadiri and Mrs. Oladipe Otunowo for themselves and as representatives of Osekelu branch of Ewade Ruling House.
Others are Chief Gbenro Otunowo, Mr. Yemisi Adegboyega and Mrs. Adeleke Ogunnubi, for themselves and as representatives of Okuyemi/Okuboyejo branch of Ewade Ruling House.
Meanwhile, the embattled monarch’s appeal against his dethronement by Justice Habib Abiru, now elevated to the Court of Appeal, is still pending before the Lagos division of the court.
Justice Abiru had earlier in 2008 in his judgement in a suit no ID/1472/1992 filed by representatives of the Erelu and Osikadewa Ruling Houses dethroned the embattled monarch from the stool of Orijeru of Igboyeland which was appealed
