Alhaji Kamorudeen Adegbayi, a champion of due process, justice and transparency in handling the issue of Iyaloja-General of Oyo State under the banner of Group of Market Leaders in the State on Thursday said nobody should blackmail Ibadans over the raging controversy on Iyaloja.
Adegbayi, who stressed that he is an indegene of Oke-Ogun area of Oyo State and Saki to be precise, admonished those trying to pit Ibadan against other zones of the State to thread softly and embrace the truth and reality for a moment.
According to the market leader, “nobody, I repeat no one is blackmailing Aare Musulumi of Yorubaland, Alhaji Dauda Makanjuola Akinola (D-Damak) over his perceived preference for Alhaja Nurudeen Folashade Abeo but what we are saying is that justice should be served in the matter of who truly is the choice of market women and traders across clusters.
In a statement he made available to reporters, Alhaji Adegbayi stated as follows, “the defence of those championing the cause of Folashade Abeo Nurudeen is shallow and cannot hold any water.
“Bringing late Alaafin of Oyo into this matter by saying he installed Folashade Abeo as Iyaloja is an height of disrespect for the stool of Alaafin because the court had set aside a similar case where the then Olubadan, Oba Saliu Adetunji made YK Abass the Babaloja-General of the State.
“In the said Judgment delivered by Justice K. B. Olawoyin of an Oyo State High Court in a suit filed by the aggrieved section of our group, the court nullified the process that produced Alhaji Y.K Abass and warned him from parading himself as the Babaloja-General of the state.
“It was after this judgement that the peace-loving Governor Seyi Makinde called for a truce and due process which eventually produced YK Abass as Babaloja against Alhaji Sunmaila Jimoh.
“And it was the same scenario that also made the state government to also directed the stakeholders in Iyaloja matters in the State to follow due process and not resort to palaces of Kings to be market leaders. This due process ultimately produced Alhaja Saratu Aduke Konibaje who polled seven votes to emerge as Iyaloja-General as against Folashade Abeo Nurudeen who garnered only two votes.
“Since there was no Ibadan Agenda in the previous installations of Iyalojas in the State, one wonders why any right thinking person would now turn around to say because Alhaja Saratu Aduke is an Ibadan woman, they are playing Ibadan agenda. People like us are not Ibadan indigenes but on justice and due process we stand, for posterity sake.
“So this is not about Saratu Aduke being an Ibadan person but purely on justice and due process that had in attendance representatives of the Oyo State Government from Justice Ministry, Commerce, Trade and Investment while the election was held.
“Those of us outside of Ibadan were privy to the meeting held last week at Ibadan house which had Aare Musulumi, the CCII leaders and stakeholders in the markets in attendance and the truths of the whole matter were laid bare with Aare Musulumi and other eminent leaders nodding in unison and exclaiming they were just hearing the reality of how Saratu Aduke emerged, for the first time.
“So why is the same Aare Musulumi working for someone who scored 2 against another who polled seven votes? The same Aare Musulumi supported our Governor, Engr Seyi Makinde in a landslide victory and dared not say Senator Teslim Folarin who came second be declared the Governor or be ruling us,” Adegbayi queried further.
